A Monty Python-esque book with a twist. When given the chance to be kidnapped by the Merry Men, Clem all but jumps at the opportunity. When she meets gruff Captain Mariel, granddaughter to Robin Hood, Clem becomes less of a willing captive and more like a member of he rag-tag team. The characters will have you laughing and crying along with them and will win your heart.

not for the faint of heart | lex croucher

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
_____

Captain Mariel Hartley-Hood, granddaughter of the ever-famous Robin Hood, is doing her best to live up to her legacy. When an assignment goes a little awry and she finds herself the kidnapper of an overly chipper (and kind of pretty) healer, she begins to wonder if the ways of the Merry Men have strayed from the days of her grandfather.

This book is all about the fun, the banter, and the vibes of this small and eccentric band of Merry Men. If you’ve read Gwen and Art are Not in Love, the pace of this book is similar. For the majority of it, we are following the Merry Men as they jaunt through the woods, occasionally making stops on the way to their final destination. I loved the slow, easy going storyline! Just like in Gwen and Art, the plot picks up around the 2/3 mark, where the stakes are raised and things start to get extra adventurous. The slow building of our characters and their backgrounds comes to a head, and the loyalty of this band of thieves is put to the test!

The banter between all the characters is snappy and delightful, and Clem’s positive energy had me giggling (because I am a chronic look-on-the-bright-side-er? errr…. maybe). The wide range of representation in the cast of characters was wonderful, and I enjoyed the found family vibes immensely!

If you’re looking for a lighthearted, Robin Hood inspired, sapphic adventure, pick this one up!


THINGS TO LOVE:
+ mideival romcom
+ Robin Hood’s granddaughter
+ an accidental kidnapping
+ an eclectic band of merry men
+ lgbtq+ rep
+ jailbreaks
+ grumpy/sunshine
+ counting squirrels
+ anxiety rep
+ hilarious banter

{a gigantic thank you to Lex Croucher, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for the advanced copy!! Out 11/26/24}

HOUGHTS

This book is tongue-in-cheek silly and fun, which is exactly what you might expect in a Lex Croucher book. Definitely not for a history buff, this book doesn't take itself too seriously. I enjoyed the read here, though I will say that the tropey goofiness didn't work quite as well here as it did in Gwen and Art are Not in Love, at least in my opinion. I found this book more silly than charming, but that might just be a matter of taste.


PROS
Tropey Romance: It wouldn't be a Lex Croucher book if it didn't play with some fun tropes, dealing out a romance that would have 2010s tumblr swooning. This book embraces a grumpy-sunshine pairing with a touch of enemies-to-lovers, and there just aren't enough beds to go around. And it's fun.

Casual Queerness: It's really nice to have a piece of escapist literature that doesn't put any sort of pressure on queer characters. Even in a fluff piece, authors can dig into the harsher realities of queer life, but that's just not the case here. People are allowed to be whatever they want, and there aren't any hard or probing questions asked in this book. And that makes for a fun little fantasy world to escape into, where everyone can, you know, just be.

Real Consequences: This is an adventure story at its core, and it is also a fluffy romance. And combining those two things can be hard, because an author might not want to tarnish the fluff with, you know, real bloodshed. But people get hurt here. There are definite ramifications of bad choices made. People die. And I can appreciate that, because it holds true to the nature of the adventure (while also not really diminishing the fluff).


CONS
Weird Anachronisms: This book isn't for the history buff. I get it. And somebody just looking for a fluffy sapphic romance probably won't mind these things. But they did rankle me a bit. Describing the Merry Men as "the most popular kids at a dance" doesn't feel right with the setting, and that's just the start of all the questions I had. Why does this Nottinghamshire forest girl know about octopi? How are there already potatoes in England? And why are we using the term "fascists," even if appropriate? It's not serious, but I don't think I was enjoying this book enough for me to forgive these little sins like I did in Gwen and Art. I just don't do a silly read that well.

Content Mismatch: Some of what made this book harder for me to enjoy is that Robin Hood isn't as interesting to me as the King Arthur myth, and I think this might extend to other readers simply based on the fact that more people will be familiar with the intricacies of Arthurian legend than the side characters of Robin Hood. I wasn't as excited about getting to know descendants of the original Merry Men because the name drops just weren't as meaningful, at least to me. Someone who adores Robin Hood more than me, however, might equally adore this book more. It just wasn't quite the right fit.

Tonal Confusion: I loved the sass in Gwen and Art, and this book has equal sass... with less developed characters. I think there are just more characters, so they all feel a little underdeveloped. This makes the sass come off more one-dimensional than in Croucher's previous YA work, and that meant the silly tone didn't work quite as well. Everyone felt more like a character archetype than an actual character, and that was a definite detractor.


Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
7/10
Fans of Lex Croucher's Gwen and Art are Not in Love will adore this tongue-in-cheek dive into another bit of legendary English "history." Those who enjoy The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle will like entering a world inspired by those Merry Men and what comes next.

Thank you to Macmillian Audio and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book I've been able to finish after being in a several month (nearly a year) reading slump. It was fun, relatable, and queer as hell. All the things that I adore in a book. I really appreciated that a classic trope of grumpy and sunshine came together in such a fun way. Clem's struggle with panic attacks and an uncompromising moral compass to help others coupled with Mariel's militaristic grumpy monster vibes were perfect. I also loved every single side character with Kit and Josie obviously being my ultimate favorites. I'd recommend this one to anyone.

Great LGBTQIA rep but it’s not the really a book that’s I’d usually read. Just because it’s wasn’t my cup of tea doesn’t mean it won’t be appealing to others.

Lex Croucher has done it again folks! They have created a beautiful retelling of Robin Hood while using the original characters from the old fable in their book. This book is an amazing story of unconventional friendship, found family, love, and loss, all in a neat little adventure package. The character and world-building are exquisite and you truly become absorbed into their writing.

Every since falling in love with Lex Croucher’s book Gwen and Art are Not in Love, I’ve immediately went back and read every book they’ve written. I love their writing style, their humor, and their characters.

As soon as I heard about this book, I knew I had to read it! And I was not disappointed! I expected the found family, the bigger cast, the queer rep, the adventure, but what I did not expect was actually shedding a few tears! My goodness, my heart. I love this little ragtag family and I need more of them.

Clem was a riot and I loved her optimism and her little quips. Mariel is Robin Hood’s granddaughter, and I enjoyed all the lore that was interwoven in the story with the merry men and fighting for the people. Also queer Robin Hood? Let’s go!

While Gwen & Art was a little less adventure, this one is all about the adventure and seeing where it takes you. It’s emotional and frustrating, and all over the place in the best way. It makes you feel like you’re right there in the thick of it!

Sapphic romance, enemies to lovers, historical fiction, medieval vibes, squirrels (IYKYK)

Please let there be more adventure stories with this group!

I felt like this was a let down for me. The writing wasn’t bad but the storytelling wasn’t there. I had high expectations from the way this was marketed.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is the second of Lex Croucher's books that I've read, and I can tell this is an author that I will always be reading. Retellings/reimagings of classic stories or legends always go one of two ways: either extremely well or extremely terribly. Luckily, this book is so, so fun and engaging. I recommend not only this novel of Lex Croucher's, but "Gwen and Art are Not in Love" too! Similar style, prose, and lovable characters with no Queer stereotypes and a genuinely fun story!

It pains me to rate this so low, especially after how much I adored Gwen and Art. I have been loving all the Lex Croucher books I've been reading lately, and historically a Robin Hood retelling practically guarantees that I'll love it. But I came away from this one disappointed.

It tries to do what Emily Tesh does so well in Some Desperate Glory, but doesn't execute it well enough for it to really land. Mariel spends too long being absolutely unlikeable and untouchable and when she does shift perspective she does it too abruptly for it to feel authentic.

Clem goes through the book telling jokes that don't always land and trying to heal everyone around her at complete disregard of her own safety.

They don't really have any chemistry together and so their romance doesn't feel like it has any depth or reason.

The strangely military Merry Men are too jarring compared to Mariel's more lighthearted company. The story sort of ping-pongs between the two and it makes the sections feel very disconnected. Especially when Mariel herself is trying so hard to fit in with the military leaders and prove herself to her toxic father.

I did love Mariel's company of queer misfits. They were all wonderful and I would have been much happier if it had been one of their stories instead.

I also noticed the complete and utter lack of happy non-queer relationships in this book. The queer relationships were wonderful, but it was like no one in the book actually had lasting relationships. Even Robin and Marian split so Robin could be with Will Scarlet, although all that happens off-page.

The audiobook was good. I had a little trouble keeping some of the characters straight but I don't know if that was on the narrator or the author. I think overall the narrator performed it well and gave everyone recognizeable voices.

*Thanks to Wednesday Books and Macmillan Young Listeners for providing an early copy for review.

I really love Lex Croucher’s writing style — the perfect mix of lighthearted, witty, serious, and swoony. This YA romance is super queer and explores identity and belonging along with complex family dynamics and one’s personal moral compass. This is my second Croucher novel and I’m really enjoying them.

3.75 stars

This is going to be super similar to my review for Art & Gwen because I feel very similar about it.

This was good! This book is a lot of things, some expected and some very unexpected. The expected were the cute relationships, especially the main grumpy-sunshine one; the story is both cute, sweet, and a bit heart wrenching.

The story is a bit slow for the most part, but the last 80% went crazy! I was not entirely expecting the bloody action movie it turned into, and what each of our characters had to go through. I definitely didn’t expect a certain betrayal. The ending was ultimately hopeful and sweet. But we definitely go through some super emotional moments to get there. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the preview. All opinions are my own.

This is an action-packed adventure that deals with some very profound subjects. As always, with Lex Croucher, social and economic injustice is front and center, but also in this case, the issue of growing up without parents or with parents who are unloving, gives this book a gravitas that makes calling it a 'rom-com' quite inaccurate. I loved the riff on the Robin Hood story, and the cast of characters were complex and deeply drawn.
Clem was the true hero, in my opinion - a young woman of great courage and conviction. I would recommend this book to readers of fantasy adventure who like to be left with much to ponder on after the last page has been read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

This is... Disney levels of quirky and barely 5% in I'd had enough. The main character is A LOT. I have to review every book or my ratio will never hit 100%, sorry.

I enjoyed this one, though for whatever reason it just didn't quite grab me the way their other medieval novel, Gwen and Art Are Not in Love, did. It was a good story, it just felt kind of like it dragged on, which was weird, because it was pretty action packed!

So, this is basically a, not really retelling, but its a story of the Merry Men post-Robin Hood. Robin has retired to parts unknown and there is new leadership and a new way of doing things that maybe not everyone agrees with.

Mariel is Robin's granddaughter and is trying hard to impress her father, the leader of the Merry Men. But it seems that nothing she does is good enough for him. After accidentally kidnapping a healer, Clem, Mariel's group of Merry Men is ambushed and her father and his next in commands are taken by the evil prince. Mariel sets out to get her father back, with varying degrees of success.

This is 100% a grumpy/sunshine story, with Mariel being SUPER grumpy and Clem basically being a ray of sunshine. Clem is also super funny, and takes to her kidnapping quite well.

Overall this is a fun story and I really enjoyed this take on the Merry Men.

This book was an adventure and I was so glad to be in it! The chemistry between Clem and Mauriel was so so good, and every single interaction of theirs was intense. I went from laughing to crying to back laughing throughout reading this book, which made the reading experience so exciting. It was a queer take on Robin Hood, and I really loved all the queer elements. The stakes are always high and the journey is intense. I need to read more from this author immediately.

NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART is a (mostly) joyous romp through Sherwood forest. All Clemence wants is to be a healer and perfect her medical experiments to help people. But when she is kidnapped by the Merry Men (aren't they supposed to be the good guys?!), Clem finds herself in a bit of a predicament. She's always yearned for an adventure but this isn't really what she is looking for. Now, as the captive of the youngest ragtag team the Merry Men have to offer, Clem begins to find that these noble heroes of yore aren't what she thought. But maybe this team... is? Clem wasn't supposed to get along with her captors but, unfortunately for her, she's always been an outgoing optimist.

Mariel just wants her fathers approval. As the youngest captain of the Merry Men and the daughter of their commander, Mariel needs to work twice as hard to prove her worth. That means following orders, wrangling together her unruly team, and definitely NOT staring at their cute new captive. But when her father is kidnapped and the Merry Men thrown out of balance, Mariel finds this might be the exact team she needs to rescue her father and prove her usefulness in the process.

Lex Croucher is wonderful at character work. It can be a challenge to write voice and yet Croucher is able to create two distinct characters that are engaging in completely opposite ways. I had a blast with this cast of characters and I think that is this story's biggest draw. Clem was bubbly, warm, and kind while Mariel was standoffish, strict, and unsure. They fit together as a pair beautifully and it was exciting getting to see them fall for each other. They were the epitome of opposites attract. Not to mention the complete cast of characters completely captured my heart. I laughed with them, I cried with them, I hoped with them. If you're a character person, get ready to be sucked in by a ragtag yet badass yet warm group.

This book, however, was far from perfect. For one thing, it was loooong. Or, at least, felt long. It was often uneventful and slow going. While this book excelled (mostly) at character, it had a big pacing issue. There was a lot of sitting around until random bursts of action that quieted back down until the next one. For that reason, it took me forever to finish it. And by the story's end, it felt like many storylines ended limply, getting little to no closure.

I've also noticed something about both of Croucher's books, they will often maintain a romcom-y vibe up until the end where it gets suddenly serious. Like, kill off characters serious. Which is crazy because I often complain that fantasy authors have a hard time killing off their characters, and the one time someone does, it's exactly when I DON'T want it. How dare you make me laugh and kick my feet, only to rip my heart out later?! But jokes aside, I do think my issue here is that the tone takes an abrupt change. At least this book maintains less of an abrupt change to her other story as there is more violence and fighting sooner in the novel.

All this to say, I did enjoy it but I didn't love it. But that's okay! Sometimes that's what you want in a book and it kept me comfort as I sought out entertainment for the long hours spent diffusing my hair (people with curly hair get me, Clem included). I'd happily still receive and read Croucher's next work just because it's always a bit of fun.

3.5 stars rounded up

This book was wonderful!! I loved the cast of characters, especially the main two, Mariel and Clem. The romance was sweet and the plot around the Merry Men was gripping and well-done.

thank you so much to netgalley and wednesday books for the arc! i love gay robin hood! i really enjoyed this book- i liked the fast pace of the story and this unique take on the story of the merry men. clem and mariel together was so cute- we love a grumpy/sunshine trope!! i very much enjoyed that they taught one another a lot- especially in terms of who they are at their core. i also loved that the romance plotline was well balanced with the main storyline. i never felt like one over took the other at any point. clem was such a delight, truly just wanted to help people no matter what and wore her heart on her sleeve always. seeing her grow and build these beautiful relationships with kit, baxter, morgan, and josey was so lovely. i loved our lil misfit gang- i loved that none of them felt one dimensional and that they each had true purpose in the book and none were used solely for throwaway plot development. the squirrel game they played had me cracking up throughout the book! we love a diverse character group! morgan is a nonbinary icon!! mariel- love that stubborn gal! seeing the way she was at the end of the book compared to the beginning was chef’s kiss character development!! truly so proud of her! also the lowkey political themes in this book absolutely hit hard and croucher did a phenomenal job getting her message across with them. i really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it! truly a great modern take on a classic story!

Not For the Faint of Heart is a grumpy/sunshine trope embedded within Robin Hood's band of Merry Men once he's old enough to be a grandfather and passed the torch, so to say. It's core themes are that of friendship, coming of age, trust, and inclusivity - this is a queerer branch of Merry Men (and Women and Genderqueer folks) than we've ever read on the page. It's more adventure than romance and the later action scenes are striking, well-paced, and where the majority of the character work happens. This book is teen-appropriate and explores the stories we are told by elders and learning how to think critically about them - and others' - for one's own wellbeing. The primary issue is pacing, which is the cause of my reduced star review, and detailed below with spoilers.

<spoilers ahead>

The primary issue this book suffers from is poor pacing. The majority of the book is getting into scrapes that allude to /very/ small bits of each character's history, so the reader never truly bonds with the characters emotionally. They are endearing and kind and loyal and you /want/ to be friends with them, so you will be. But you don't really get to know them much. The most forthcoming, to a point, is our golden retriever character, Clem, who has been conditionally kidnapped by Mariel's command. In my opinion, this book would have benefited from more intimate, character-narrated moments to bring the reader closer to the fold. The characters are all distinct and lovely, but surface-level in the end - including a main character, Mariel. She never has a chance to connect with readers and explore, even briefly, the emotional impact or source of her discontent/disappointment/parental emotional abuse. Mariel is a girl of action and the book reads that way, too. Clem, on the other hand, is more fleshed out and better explored in narrative form, perhaps because she's more forthcoming as a character to begin with. But it makes Mariel feel like she's held even more from a distance than she ought to be as a lead.

The second pacing issue - and perhaps more important for a book billed as a romcom - is that nothing happens or builds between the characters until page 253. That is over 2/3 of the way through the book. Because Mariel is held so much at a distance, including from Clem, this makes the stumbling into it drunken kiss even more surprising. You've been waiting for it, but is this how it's really going down? After that, it is accepted that they're together, but there's been little reason to believe so far that they'd like each other, let alone lust after each other. The characters decide to be together, so you as the reader go with the flow. However, once they are together, the last 100-ish pages are great and what I wanted from the book all along. There's great banter, emotional stakes, skirmishes and escapes that mean something, and character growth. Knowing that this writing was possible makes the earlier 250 pages disappointing.

The third pacing issue - the book tells us this story takes place over the course of a week. Romcoms love a time-contained story and high schoolers can probably relate to the bonds made over a weeklong event like camp, but the novel feels like it could have been set over a matter of weeks or months, and likely should have been to build the care and affection and investment in this band of Merry Men that the reader wants to have. That said, a single week makes it more understandable why you know the characters so little, and why character growth is hard to come by in the first 2/3 of the book.

Overall, Not for the Faint of Heart is a romp riddled with adventure, trick stories, and the hope of something better to come. This book is all about learning to "see the forest through the trees" while maintaining your core values and loyal, well-earned camaraderie, a valuable life lesson for all at any age.

I also can't believe they missed the chance to call it "Not for the Feint of Heart"!!!