I'm a big fan of books that read like your favorite fairytales and this gave just that. It was a cozy, feel good snack of a book.

this was such a cozy fantasy and something i was really in the mood for! it had such a light hearted feel and the characters were sooooo good! i loved how fairytale aspects were woven into the story so well!

thank you so much to netgalley, the publisher, and the author for this earc!

From the very first page through to the end of the book, I was fully captivated by the way Ry Herman wove classic fairytale stories into the fascinating, fun, and hopeful story of This Princess Kills Monsters. I found this book to be such a delightful read. The story kept me engaged and I was blown away by the representation, even seeing myself in the love interest, which I have to say is rare for me. I loved that the story revolved around stories and how each and every one of us has one of our own. Sometimes our perspectives are skewed and we end up stuck in our own narrative, and I think this book does a wonderful job confronting that. I found the story dreamy, whimsical, and full of adventure and hope. Exactly what I needed. <3

a queer , fun retelling of original Grimm fairy tales
advertised as specifically the story of The 12 Huntsmen but the author beautifully intertwined most of the well known stories just original versions
including puns, cameos, and the main characters backstory it featured the princess and the pea, cinderella, snow white, swan maiden, rapunzel
the story follows Melilot a magical princess working under the orders of her evil stepmother, the queen
after she is tossed aside as useless compared to her step sisters powers, she is commanded to marry a king
Melilots group is attacked by spider wolves and saved by the 12 identical huntsman who were sent to protector her as there is a plot out for her murder
melilot decides its safer to hide among the staff and is helped by sam on of the 12 identical huntsmen
melilot must work through her childhood traumas and unleash her magic while torn between her feelings for sam and her betroths sister

I choose to not finish this book after about 150 pages because the story really fell short. I will not be posting this publicly as I do not post negative reviews no matter the book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for an ARC copy of this story in exchange for a fair review.

This Princess Kills Monsters gives us the tale of Princess Melilot. Melilot has always lived under the thumb of her domineering stepmother, and feels like she will forever play third fiddle to her more talented step-sisters. When Melilot is attacked on the road to the castle of her soon to be husband, she's set on a path to adventure that may just lead to her Happily Ever After.

This story took me a moment to get into the flow of the tale. But once I did? Oh my goodness, how I loved this book. It was funny. It was heartwarming. It was adventure. It gave me "Into the Woods" vibes. I absolutely adored all the nods to the vast number of fairy tales aside from the Grimm's "Twelve Huntsmen" (on which the main story is based). Highly recommend this read to anyone who enjoys the twisted fairy tale genre!

This was a tough one to rate! For my taste, it was too predictable and slow-paced, especially at the beginning. The first half was a bit of a slog for me. But I also loved a lot about it, especially as the pacing picked up in the second half. I enjoyed all the fairy tale references (there were a lot more than just "The Twelve Huntsmen"), the LGBTQ+ rep, the protagonist's complicated relationship with her step-mother, the cultural differences between the two kingdoms, the supportive sisters, and the tongue-in-cheek humour. Melilot is witty and likeable, which is what kept me reading until the end. The whole thing reminded me a bit of The Princess Bride, which is high praise. I'm giving it a solid 3.5 stars. If you're in the mood for a light-hearted and feel-good story with a dollop of romance and a heaping of every fairy tale trope you know, this one might be for you.

4.5 stars; I really liked this book! I love the silly tone it takes, like the one minor character who always seems to have what’s needed for a bad situation like happening to have a mongoose when going against snakes. Why did he suggest bringing a mongoose? In case they ran up against snakes obviously. Oh the characters are trapped in a boiling hot torture chamber? Good thing one of them has magic to make the temperature drop. There were a lot of convenient ways out of tough spots, but the book treated it ironically and the main character was like “are you kidding me!?”

Melilot, the MC, was quite likeable and progressed through a lot of personal development. We love a bisexual disaster. I enjoyed identifying all the fairy tale hints that were dropped throughout; some more obvious than others. I thought her romantic relationship progressed very sweetly, as well as her relationship with her stepmother and sisters.

Overall a very fun read, especially in a stressful time. Thanks to NetGalley for the e-arc!

Ry Herman's This Princess Kills Monsters is a frenzied, humorous, and moving retelling of The Twelve Huntsmen by the Grimm Brothers. Princess Melilot sets out on a perilous adventure full of monsters, a talking lion, and twelve masked huntsmen after becoming weary of being overshadowed by her gifted stepsisters and sent on perilous missions by her stepmother.

Melilot is an engaging protagonist because of her sardonic wit and tenacity. The book's deft utilization of LGBTQ+ themes, encouraging female relationships, and gender-bending clichés gives the traditional fairy-tale formula new depths. Herman creates a story that feels like a lovely cross between Shrek and Ella Enchanted by skillfully fusing humor with genuine emotional depth.

The sisterly closeness is a gem, and the romance is subdued but endearing. I loved the pacing, the world-building and the relatable characters. Strongly recommend!

First 5/5 book of the year!

I loved this. It was just genuinely <i>fun</i>. From the way Melilot's POV was written (friendly, funny, and realistic) to the way each character told their own Once Upon a Time..., I was loathe to put this book down. This reminded me of stories like <i>Shrek</i> where you can spot the fairytales as they're referenced, though referenced with hilarity. You can pick out which fairytales Melilot has lived through, or at least heard rumor of, as it goes.

<i>This Princess Kills Monsters</i> is the story of Melilot, the bride-to-be of a prince who lives in a land much different than her own. While she, the stepdaughter of a Sorcerer Queen, is used to magic and extraordinary adventures, the place where she's going is far from that. What they do have are 12 identical huntsman (who seem to not want the princess around at first), deformed hybrid creatures that live in the forest and are after her (and others!) blood, and a murder plot that she's trying to squash. All while trying to come into her own and stop her stepsisters from saving her - again - with their more impressive magical skills.

I really appreciated the way relationships were handled in this one. It is very LGBTQ+ friendly because love is treated as <i>love</i>, no matter who its between. There's no awkward looks or people throwing fits. Just normal, as it should be treated.

I'm recommending this to everyone I know that likes this sort of story and buying it for a few friends myself!

The world building was so well-done and it was fast-paced! I love reading about bi main characters since I identify with that myself. Bring back fairy tale stories!!

This was so much fun! There are so many references and it doesnt take itself to seriously. Just an absolute delight to read. Everycharacter was amazing no matter how small a role and I want more of them.

This was honestly a cute and delightful read. While a lot of it was quite predictable, I really enjoyed all of the characters and the ways in which it was predictable. While it ‘s a lengthy enough book, it was also an incredibly quick read, I read this in a handful of hours. Honestly I would absolutely recommend this to anyone looking for a quick, easy breezy, near-cozy fantasy novel about being the overlooked daughter of a family that’s trying their best to be a good family. I also just really appreciated that this book wasn’t an instance of all the women being against each other, but had actual supportive women’s friendships and sisters.

Thank you to Netgalley & Random House Publishing for approving me this e-book I enjoyed this one! This was a quick read for me but not my absolute favorite but I still enjoyed reading this story. This retelling of the Grimm’s tale of the Huntsmen gives off Ella Enchated vibes or even Shrek given the humor in this story. Which is why I gave it a 4 star due to how funny it was. The writing style was nice I thought it was easy to read and understand the characters without getting confused.

The sisters would be my favorite in this book but the rest of the characters were meh to me but still enjoyed reading about them. The author introduces the beginning of the book about the twelve Huntsmen which I wasn’t really familiar with so it was nice to read that at first and understand that story in more detail and then getting into the rest of the stories throughout the book.

The romance and the adventures were great to read as it keeps you on your toes and I felt I was imagining this in my head which is what I look forward to in books. Overall, I would suggest this to readers especially if you’re into retelling stories 🫶🏼✨📚

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I LOVED this!! It was so, so much fun! Hilarious and such a fun adventure. If you’re a fan of T. Kingfisher, this is *right* up your alley.

I need a whole book just for Gnoflwhogir. Like I need, at minimum, 400 pages devoted to her insanity. More Gnoflwhogir!!

This is probably the funniest book I've ever read! I think it's perfect for those who are fans of movies like Shrek and Ella Enchanted, especially if you love the way modern humor is mixed with twisted fairytales. This book sucked me in immediately, and I knew I was going to love it from the first page. The writing style is SO good, especially when the characters are telling their own versions of fairytales; there were several times I actually laughed out loud. I absolutely adored the characters, especially Melilot's siblings and their partners. My favorite thing about this book, though, is that it doesn't take itself seriously. The author knows the story is ridiculous and allows themself and their readers to have fun. I would recommend this for anyone looking for a light, enjoyable read.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC.

Normally, I do try to read my ARCS closer to the publishing date but after just reading disappointing read after disappointing read I wanted to treat myself to the book that was calling my name: This Princess Kills Monsters by Ry Herman. This was a request on a whim based purely on the cover art AND the title. I knew nothing else about the story as I didn't read the synopsis.

This book was such a treat. Once I discovered This Princess Kills Monsters was a fairytale retelling I was over the moon. I have such a soft spot for them... it's something about the whimsical nature that just makes my heart sing.

Typically I find they also come with their own humor that just elevates the original fairytales and makes them a blast to read a retelling of. This Princess Kills Monsters delivered on my expectations and kept me on my toes as I waited to see what would happen next. I loved the little tongue in cheek jokes and references to other popular fairytales. I could not stop smiling and giggling as the story continued to unfold, and grew even more appreciative with the LGBTQ+ twists added in.

I highly recommend this book to fans of fairytale retellings: This Princess Kills Monsters will be right up your alley!

Before I begin, I would like to thank Ry Herman for allowing me to read a Net Galley copy of their upcoming book, This Princess Kills Monsters, which will be available on Amazon on June 17th, 2025.

Princess Melliot is tired. Her controlling stepmother, the queen, keeps sending her on dangerous quests, and now the monarch has arranged a marriage between Melliot and a king the princess has never met. On her way to the king’s castle, she’s attacked by spider-wolves and rescued by twelve huntsmen who look too alike for comfort. Add in the fact that people keep trying to kill her, a talking lion that insists on bizarre gender test, a king that can’t recognize his true love if she put on a pair of trousers, and Melliot’s attraction to one of the huntsman and the king’s sister, the princess is beyond stressed. Melliot has to figure out what’s going on without dying otherwise their kingdoms will perish, and even worse, she might be married to someone she doesn’t love.

This book was fantastic. You have Melliot, a beautiful, sassy, intelligent, and cunning princess that is used to awful quests from her stepmother and having an envious and loving relationship with her sisters. This story is a satirical version of The Twelve Huntsmen fairy tale published by the Brothers’ Grimm, and the way tales are told by the characters is an absolute delight. There were so many secrets kept by the huntsmen, the king, and a lot of people that Melliot encountered, and the twists were well-written and enjoyable. There were honorable references of other fairy-tales that were incorporated flawlessly into the worldbuilding, and the dialogue was charming and funny. There were a lot of twists in this story, and they were expertly done. Overall, if you like complex characters, fantastic worldbuilding, great sibling dynamics, wonderful LGBTQ+ representation, and sweet romance with low on-page spice, then I would highly recommend this book. Here’s the link for more information: Amazon.com: This Princess Kills Monsters: The Misadventures of a Fairy-Tale Stepsister eBook : Herman, Ry: Kindle Store

This Princess Kills Monsters is a fun retelling of the Twelve Huntsmen and Rapunzel, where the Rapunzel character, Melilot, is sent off for a political match with a prince.

After what seems like a lifetime of doing her royal step-mother’s bidding (including a lot of dangerous quests that her sisters seem so much better at), Melilot is assigned to marry the prince from a faraway kingdom which needed one of the magical princesses for protection against the hybrid creatures that started coming out of the forest. When these creatures attack her in the woods on her way to her betrothed’s kingdom, Melilot takes the opportunity and claims that she is the princess’s handmaiden so that she can get to know the kingdom without the guides they might assign visiting royalty.

Alone and unaided for the first time in her life, Melilot faces mysterious magic, a very gender-segregated kingdom, and truths about her relationships, magic, and family in this fun fairytale retelling.

All-in-all, this story is a fun, quirky read for anyone who likes unexpected fairytales.

4.5 stars

The best bits:
- Feminist retelling
- Queer
- Badass characters
- ALL THE HUMOUR!!!!

This book was SUCH a good time. I gotta admit, the main appeal was the cover, but then i read the blurb and was sold. I am a sucker for a good fairytale retelling, and this one did not disapoint.

This Princess Kills Monsters is first and foremost a retelling of the Grimm Brothers' The Twelve Hunstmen, but it is full of references to pretty much every other tales there is. I was immediately taken with the Princess Bride-esque narrative and the meta about fairy tales, but more then that, the meta about princesses being told what do to and never being asked what they thought and what they wanted.

Princess Melilot, step daughter of an evil sorceress, is being told she has to set off to a different kingdom, where she is to marry the newly appointed king, King Gervase. Along the way, after her pumpkin carriage and her teeth guards are attacked with wolf-spiders, she is rescued by the King's twelve huntsmen. Worried that the attacked was targetting her, she lies on her identity, and is escorted to the Tailliz palace. There she finds out that her future husband did not need a bride - he needed someone to rescue them from some sort of evil - but what HE doesnt know is that Melilot never grew into her magic.

What i loved about this? Pretty much everything. The characters are pretty great, even the villains, and especially the side characters. I mean, how can you not like a dragon riding princess and her stabby fairy wife, genderqueer hunts(men) and a talking lion with really really set views on gender (not that i agree with him!). Melilot's biggest power, i.e. the ability to grow her hair in times of extreme stress was also HILARIOUS to me. There are so many funny and weird things in this book this review could go on and on and on.

If you like sorcery, feminist tales, queer positive worlds and laugh out loud stories, i would definitely recommend this book. And while, yes, there is romance, it is not the main focus: the sorcery, humour, and saving the kingdom parts are front and center.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!