The Swan Prince

“You hear about it all the time: Queens going mad with jealousy and having banished or killed anyone and everyone whom they perceived to be prettier than them; kings not being able to touch anything without turning it into solid gold - which sounds all very well, until you stop to look at it from a practical point of view; princes and princesses who seem to disappear right into thin air...”

This is a very cute little story. It reads a lot like a fairytale. This is both a good thing and...honestly, not so great.

It's good because I love the style. We get to know the people and they're each different - even though it's not a very large cast. The problem is there's a lack of descriptions - just enough that you can follow without getting bogged down which might be good or you might be like me and have wanted a little more.

Also, the book has the habit of not indicating when we've changed point of views. This was actually handled very well, better than I've seen it before, it was still slightly jarring at times. You think you're following one character, but then their path crosses with someone else and - bam - we've changed who we're following.

I did like all three of the main characters though and I thought the ‘twist' was both unexpected and, if you follow carefully, not totally out of the blue.

Also, the brief glimpse of the world building was a lot of fun. I've always been a sucker for those retellings that throw everything in the same world and this one seems to do just that.

I'm definitely interested in reading more of this series.