The Prince and the Pea is a sweet little love story. No matter who we are, we can't help who we fall for. They might not be who we, or anyone else, thought we would end up with, but we have to be true to ourselves and when we find that right person we do whatever it takes to be with them. When you know, you know!

This was a short and fun retelling of the Princess and the Pea fable. I really enjoyed reading this, a modern twist on a well known story. Like all fairy stories it carries an important message, about being yourself and staying true to who you are. At just over twenty pages this is a very short read but it reminded me very much of my childhood reading stories just like this. It's a lovely, sweet little story that I'm sure adults and children will enjoy!

The copy I received was not a complete copy. Only had the acknowldgements. Wasn't able to read it. Sorry :(

A sweet little fairy tale and a different take on the original.

This one has a moral, which older readers will understand. At just twenty-six pages this is a coffee-break style of book. A pleasant way to pass a few minutes of reading.

Lovely family short story


A wonderful short story, that will appeal to all ages.

The prince needs to marry a princess. The king devises a way to check that visiting princesses are suitable, but will the princess that passes the test become the one true love of the prince?

A lovely story, which took me 15 minutes to read, with humorous moments. Perfect to read to all the family after a meal, before bedtime, or as an "unwinder". Will the prince find his "happy ever after" princess?

If you are an adult who wants a quick read, with humour and charm this is for you. If you know children who enjoy excitement and wonder, this is also for you.

I've rated it a 3, because though it is a well written great story, and I certainly will recommend it to others, I am the wrong audience for this book.

The Prince and the Pea is a retelling of an old classic, The Princess and the Pea, with a modern twist. Prince Richard is expected to marry well, but his thoughts on the matter don’t seem to matter to his parents. At just 26 pages, it’s short, sweet and guaranteed to make you smile.

This is a quick read and as such my review will be short for fear of giving anything away.

I vaguely remember reading a book of the Princess and The Pea by Hans Christian Anderson so wasn't sure what to expect from this short book. I enjoyed it as it was written with humour and warmth. It is a similar tale in a way to the book by Anderson, but with a twist and more humour. For a short book it is very descriptive and full of content.

A nice little read for all ages.

Everyone loves a fairy tale, don’t they? And this was just thoroughly gorgeous, an inspired reworking of the well-known princess’ story from the perspective of the prince – who isn’t the usual stuffy royal of conventional fairy stories, but a rather lovely guy with real sensitivity and perception. The writing flows just beautifully, the story has a lovely light humour in places that brings a smile to your face, and the perfect ending really warms your heart. It’s one for every adult who believes in true love, and I’m sure younger readers would find it easy enough to read and equally enchanting. It took me about twenty minutes to read – and I must say I loved every moment of it.

Prince Richard is no ordinary prince, as he is consumed by the need to find true love. He does not follow the belief of his father, the King, that his fate is tied to the kingdom. At heart he is a poet and the thought of a marriage as a business arrangement is not agreeable to him. But out of love and duty to his father, he agrees to meet Princess Victoria.

From the beginning he feels no warmth between them and he is easily distracted by the outside world.

‘A ray of sun darted into the room, cutting through the glass pendants of the chandelier and casting tiny rainbows all along the royal walls. Richard, in wonder, followed the beam of light to the window. Outside the fields called to him. How he longed to race over them on his stallion, Avanti. Animals he found were less demanding than people.’

A chambermaid, Rosie O’ Toole, sparks something within Richard’s heart. There is a pureness about her as she goes about her daily chores, unaffected by the world around her.

As Richard studies Rosie, he comes to a realisation about his destiny.

Is he willing to let others control his life?

Is he just going to accept the direction of the path chosen for him or will he create a new one for himself?

The Prince and the Pea is ultimately a fairy tale but it also carries a very important message for all.

Be yourself

Follow your dreams

Fulfill your destiny

Make your own path

The best recommendation I can give for this book is from my daughter. She read it in my car last night on a windswept evening, as we were attending a camogie match. Half-way through she spotted she only had approximately twelve pages left and she asked me could I get the rest of it please? She was loving it and wanted more!!

In the current world we live in, our kids are exposed to so much of the bad stuff. For a short while it was so lovely to see her engrossed in a fairy tale and turn to me, with a huge smile, when she had read the last page and say ‘That was lovely Mum!’

To start with, don't you love when the dedication alone makes you sit back and smile?:

"Once upon a time, there were two little girls who forced people to watch their 'plays'. This story is written by one of those little girls for the other. To Ail, with love and chewing gum."

And I quickly settled into this lovely Kindle short, where Prince Richard isn't too keen on the process of being set up with a princess. His father, the King, has to be sure that any princess is truly that, and so he organises for mattresses to be set up with a pea underneath, stating, as we know, that if she is truly a princess she will feel the pea under the cushioning of the mattresses. This short shone with vibrant sparks of comedy, as the King and Richard worried that the princess might fall from the stack of mattresses set up to hide the pea. The comedy was also apparent as we met Princess Victoria, a demanding so-and-so that made me giggle with her disdain and complaining. In the midst of this we were introduced to the lovely chambermaid, Rosie, who not only showed us how lovely she was, but made us thoroughly fall in love with Prince Richard, who saw her as someone who could teach him a lesson or two.

And so as well as excellent comedy, beautiful romance and engaging characters, I was thrilled to be faced with a man (woman) hunt, with the heat on Richard as he and his staff scoured the kingdom for his wife to be. I loved everything about this short, and I have to say, for the price (less than a magazine-£1), it's well worth it, in particular I'd imagine devouring this with a hot drink or a bar of chocolate on a commute, or after a hard day's work in front of a fire. Or anywhere really! A perfect, nicely different autumnal read to make you smile, giggle and swoon. Very satisfying.

Thanks so much to Ms. Deegan and Netgalley for this book in return for an honest review.

Firstly I would like to thank Denise for bringing this story to my attention. If you loved a good fairy tale when you were younger then this is an ideal follow on in the ‘grown-up’ world.

Absolutely ideal to sit with a cup of coffee and let your imagination work wonders for 5 minutes. The Prince and the Pea may only be a short story but it speaks volumes about finding oneself, makes you think what is important and perhaps think about others a little more.

Yes, there is a royal family, the king wants Prince Richard to marry a highly suitable princess. A plan has been devised involving a pea under the mattress, how the chosen young ladies react to this test will determine whether they are deemed appropriate for marriage.

But one day Prince Richard opens his eyes to the world and starts wondering about the meaning of life. Strangely he confides in his maid and a sweet routine follows whereby he looks forward to chatting while she does her daily chores.

She is banished from the household when their friendship is discovered and Richard suddenly realises he needs to find her. But Rosie has disappeared.

I really liked the way Rosie interacted with Richard and watching his mind expand beyond the normal expectations. A lovely little book that can be enjoyed by all. It’s fun but has a deeper serious side and I finished it with a smile. Highly recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley and Denise for my copy which I read and reviewed voluntarily.

Just a quick review today, I was delighted to be asked to review this Kindle Single today, many thanks to Denise Deegan for my advance copy received through Netgalley in return for my honest review.
The Prince and the Pea is a short story, based naturally enough on the Princess and the Pea fairy tale (with the search throughout the land perhaps a small nod to Cinderella too!) In this charming retelling, our protagonist is Prince Richard; a poet at heart, Richard isn't worried about whether a princess can feel a pea through a mattress, he's more interested in learning how to set a fire so he can bring warmth to somebody's life.
This is a lovely little story to read aloud, my youngest daughter is almost ten and not really into romantic or princess stories but she enjoyed this and particularly liked the characters taking their destiny into their own hands.
With its familiar premise and the little twists this fairy tale is perfect for a feelgood bedtime story.

THE PRINCE AND THE PEA by Denise Deegan is the most delightful short read that I have had the pleasure to read in a long time. The perfect length if you are commuting to work or college, or simply if you have a quick break for a cup of tea, this charming retelling is sure to warm your heart.

Prince Richard is uncertain about himself and his position in life. His father, the King, desperately wants him to get married to a princess and learn to be in control of the kingdom but Richard is not so sure. When he becomes acquainted with his chambermaid Rosie and strikes up a conversation, he will soon realise that there is so much more to life - like bringing warmth and caring to someone else's life. And when Rosie is fired from the castle and disappears without a trace, Richard takes charge and will search high and low for this woman who has opened his eyes. But what if she wants to remain hidden?

Romantic, sweet, and uplifting THE PRINCE AND THE PEA by Denise Deegan contains a lot of feeling in its short pages and when I finished the last sentence I couldn't wipe the smile from my face. A thoroughly enchanting story!

This is a delightful story of The Prince and the Pea and at only 26 pages perfect to read to little ones or for children a little older to read themselves. It has all those magical qualities of what a fairy story should have. A Prince being forced to find a Princess to marry that will eventually become his Queen and expand the land his Kingdom owns. The mattresses and the pea test is put in places by his father so that he will find a true Princess but he can not find love with any of them.
The Prince forms a friendship with a the chambermaid, Rosie, that lights his fire each day in his room and of course the young lady steals his heart before vanishing. A search is organised but what the Prince finds is not what either him or I expected!
This old tale is beautifully told and has kept some of the original story but gained its own originality too. It is one that makes you sigh and smile with a lovely happy ever after ending.

This isn't my normal sort of read but I am always up for a challenge so settled down with a cup tea to read this sweet little fairy tale. Based on The Princess and the Pea this turns the tale on its head a little with a slightly modern twist..
I did enjoy this and did appreciate the sentiment involved but I'm just not quite sure where to place it in a genre or what sort of readers it will reach. But for a snapshot of the authors writing style it worked well.

The premise of this book is absolutely enthralling, I love a real "Romeo and Juliet" type story and that's exactly what you get here.