“He’s determined to rescue her. She knows it’s impossible.
Two years after the invasion that ended his betrothal to the Cabranian princess, Prince Fenrick of Pethaylia watches his younger brother marry and longs for love of his own. When the borders between Pethaylia and Cabrana finally reopen, whispers circulate of the beautiful princess still awaiting a victorious suitor, and Fenrick resolves to try once more for her hand. Surely The Tests can’t be as difficult as rumors claim.
Still grieving the unexpected loss of her father, Princess Ellina of Cabrana is a captive in her own home. Resolved not to soften her heart to any of the suitors who attempt her mother’s corrupt tests, she wants nothing to do with the eager prince from Pethaylia. He’ll fail and leave her again, like everyone else. Perhaps it’s better that way.
As Fenrick fights to earn her favor, he realizes that failing at The Tests will lose more than her hand, but her hope as well. His efforts and unending kindness light a spark in Ellina’s chest, but how can anyone overcome the queen’s deception? As stakes rise and lies twist, more than their own happily-ever-afters hang in the balance.”
Series: Part of the “Twist of Tales” multi-authored series, but is not connected to any other books.
Spiritual Content- Prayers; Talks about God, loyalty to Him, & trusting Him; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; When she doubts it, Fenrick tells Ellina that God is always with them and to trust Him; Mentions of God & loyalty to Him; Mentions of prayers & praying; A couple mentions of a minister;
*Note: Mentions of luck & being lucky.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: Some lies (mostly done to protect others; guilt is felt after saying some of them); Some eye rolling; Fighting, Holding someone at knife-point (x2), Being beaten and tied-up, Injuries, Pain, & Being knocked unconscious (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Being grabbed & locked in a room (barely-above-not-detailed); Seeing fights & others knocked unconscious (barely-above-not-detailed); Grief (Ellina for her father, barely-above-not-detailed); Fenrick is ordered to kill others (thieves and someone who committed treason) as part of the test, *Spoilers* but does not as he does not want to murder innocent men; He finds a loophole in the first task; In the second order, he is tempted for Ellina’s sake, but cannot do it and asks God to forgive him for thinking about doing it *End of Spoilers*; Mentions of murders, orders to murder, possible murders, & a body being washed ashore; Mentions of deaths & grieving (Ellina for her late father & her mother’s mistreatment); Mentions of a plague, deaths, & countries closing their borders because of it; Mentions of possible deaths, injuries, pain, & blood/bleeding; Mentions of threats of harm & death; Mentions of jail, arrests, & possible hangings; Mentions of thieves & stealing; Mentions of flooding & damages to homes; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of manipulation (from a parent); A few mentions of invasions/wars; A few mentions of kidnappings & ransoms; A mention of an assassin; A mention of hatred; A mention of a rumor;
*Note: Ellina’s mother is very controlling and manipulative towards her, which is shown by her belittling Ellina (on both her appearance and implying Ellina isn’t smart), not allowing Ellina to leave the castle, having Ellina locked in her room, ordering guards to grab and closely watch Ellina, & Ellina is malnourished from a lack of food; *Spoilers* Fenrick and others help Ellina escape the castle for an afternoon (she’s very concerned that her mother will find out); Fenrick gives Ellina a knife to protect herself from her mother and *Major Spoilers* at the end, Ellina uses it against her mother; Her mother tries to manipulate her again by apologizing (not sincerely), but Fenrick tells Ellina to not listen to her; The queen is grabbed by guards and it’s said there will be a trial for her actions *End of Spoilers*.
Sexual Content- A head kiss; Some touches, hand holding, embraces, nearness, & blushes (barely-above-not-detailed); A bit of noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); Fenrick tells someone that true love should “never cause you to abandon goodness” and it “allows both parties to challenge one another, to grow together, to become stronger through life’s tests”; A few mentions of crushes & being smitten; A couple mentions of a couple kissing at a wedding; Light love, falling in love, & the emotions;
*Note: Ellina and Fenrick secretly meet in a room with that has a bed in it, but nothing sexual happens; Ellina’s mother criticizes Ellina’s figure when she is eating (a couple times).
-Ellina Thorell
-Fenrick Norlander
P.O.V. switches between them
177 pages
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My personal Rating-
This was overall a sweet story! There was a sad undertone because of Ellina’s mother’s actions and cruelty toward her daughter, but the main characters/couple were wonderful. Fenrick was a sweetheart! He had such a kind demeanor and heart, especially towards Ellina which was much needed after years of manipulation and never receiving love from her mother. I saw that the author called Fenrick a “morally admirable hero” on her website and I don’t think I’ve ever loved an idea more—and now I need more Male Main Characters like him who can be described that way!
This non-magical fairytale retelling was a gender-switched version of ‘The Princess and the Pea’—instead of her going through tests including a bad night of sleep to become a princess, it was him going through tests to win her hand and heart—but also had elements of ‘Rapunzel’ with Ellina’s mother keeping her locked up in a tower (her name wasn’t Gothel, but her actions were pretty close!) and also had some parts that reminded me of ‘Snow White’. It’s wasn’t a full retelling of any of them, though it had bits and pieces of those three in a very unique way. Our main couple is really what sold me on this book because I greatly enjoyed both of them and their hearts. There was unexpected humor that caught me off guard and caused me to laugh out loud—the knee popping scene especially! I wished the ending had been a little longer, but was overall pleased by the ending and seeing our Ellina being positively influenced by Fenrick to have courage and loyalty to God. I particularly liked their prayers for the Lord to give them strength in hard moments and appreciate the amount of faith content in this story. I honestly hope there will be another book set in this world so I can see glimpses of Ellina and Fenrick again!
See y’all on Friday with a new review!
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
