A villain becomes the savior, but she has to save herself first.
This is a tale of redemption,
a tale of finding what truly lies in one’s heart,
a tale of love.
The Princess Fugitive is a young adult fantasy, a retelling of The Little Red Riding Hood a classic fairy tale written by Australian author Melanie Cellier. This is the second book of The Four Kingdom Series. The series has wonderful world-building. Even though the book can be read as a standalone, I recommend reading the series in order for the best experience, starting with The Princess Companion.
Princess Ava used to be a weapon–sharp, strong, and beautiful. But when she fails at her most important task, Only her personal bodyguard, Hans, remains loyal. Hans claims to know the real Ava but she finds that hard to believe–after all, she’s been the villain so long that she can’t remember anything else.
Deep in exile, Ava learns her kingdom needs a hero, and she might be the only one who can save it. The catch? She must ally herself with the people she blames for her downfall. But winning over her enemies will only be the beginning of a game of life and death where the stakes are an entire kingdom. Can one fugitive save her people, her kingdom, and–hardest of all herself?
In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, Little Red Riding Hood, the girl in the red hood has been swallowed up by the wolf and must decide if she’s willing to fight for her freedom, no matter the cost.
Everyone knows the tale of Little Red Riding Hood, but I had absolutely no idea someone could integrate this story into a plot of parricide and a quest for power so beautifully. There is some major symbolism at play throughout the story. There is a wolf (or two now that I think about it), a girl with a red hood, a savior who ends the wolf, and a grandma. All of them significantly influence the story one way or another but still not in the way you might expect.
Now coming to Princess Ava, I confess, when I started the book I severely disliked if not hated her, and when I finished the epilogue I was in love with her. A little context for people who haven’t read the first book Ava was the villain in that book and she did some pretty bad things, like locking the protagonist in a cupboard bad.
But, not to worry if you have decided to read book 2 first, anything of importance in book 1 is mentioned in book 2 as well. Ava is deeply flawed obviously and in the first few chapters you might find her irritating but it gets better I promise. Once she comes to her senses, she is a total badass. Usually, I am not really interested in redemption stories. Here we see what is going on in her head and that substantially changed things for me at least. There is a backstory that involves loads of childhood trauma, even though there is absolutely no physical abuse. A bit of a cliche I know, but it works well enough with the rest of the story.
Coming to the love interest, Melanie did an outstanding job with this one. He had a backstory as well. Hans is protective, supportive, good-looking, strong, intelligent, and loyal as hell. It was he fell first she fell harder trope and I was living for it. There was a certain tension between them not to mention the difference in stations also posed some restrictions.
Did I mention that we will meet old characters again? I think not. The new characters were interesting in a good way. Ava’s relationships especially gave a glimpse into her growth. I am trying to not spoil anything. But, I think the characters were pretty well-written. I absolutely hated the villain which in itself is proof that he/she was very well-written.
Rangmere, Ava’s Kingdom, was quite different from Arcadia, where Book 1 was set. It was way more formal and the court, politics, and power play were way more intense than what we saw in Arcadia.
The plot was most certainly gripping. The sort of thing that keeps you hooked and more than a few times you will find your heartbeat has fastened. It is intense in the last few chapters, to say the least. You are constantly hoping for Ava to succeed even though you know that it is a Fairytale Retelling and they generally have a happily ever after. I’d say All the loose ends were tied up pretty nicely. Grandma’s story was good but could have been better according to me at least.
The book touches on themes of emotional abuse from one’s parent, parricide which is the murder of one’s family, and death, There is violence though it is not very graphic, and I don’t remember a lot/any bad language usage. There are quite a few things Ava learns throughout her journey and we are with her every step of the way. There is kissing at most on the romantic front. I would give it the 13 and up age rating.
The cover is totally gorgeous. The book is about 350 – 360 pages long, and it is divided into three parts. Parts 1 and 3 are both about 12 – 14 chapters long and part 2 which is the shortest is 9 chapters long. A prologue and an epilogue are given as well.
Not to forget true love and a clean romance. Melanie posts extra of her books on her website, and this book has one as well HERE. 2 out of the three novellas in this series are based on characters introduced in this book.
- The Coronation Ball : A Cinderella Novelette
- Happily Ever Afters: A Reimagining of Snow-White and Rose-Red (Novella)
5 stars from me, If you are looking for adventure, intrigue, and thrill this is the book for you.
That’s all for this book review.
Yours,
A Fellow Bookworm
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