Such a fun and campy mix of Celtic myth and Legally Blonde! So much heart and humor and lovely romance. Refreshing and so much fun!

The Princess Knight is a fun and adventurous medieval-ish story that feels familiar yet fresh and captivating, filled with amazing characters, a cute animal sidekick and a magical world-building steeped in Irish folklore.

This book was not what I expected- in a good way! I like romance but lean more toward yearning than I do for explicit scenes so this hit the mark for me. If you’re going into this expecting a love story first, it might not be for you. Most of this book centers around overcoming obstacles and political intrigue, which I personally loved! I also really loved all of the characters. A lot of big personalities that brought much needed funny moments to the story.

Now for a few nit-picky spoilery bits-
There is a part where Domhnall tells Clía that his father has approved of his engagement to Niamh while she’s sitting in the library with her legs draped over Ronan, so I assumed he knew then. But then a few chapters later after Ronan finishes training with Kian, Domhnall runs after him to tell him again. I found that a bit confusing?

Also, towards the end of the book during the battle, we get this quote:
“His legs, they’re injured. The left leg must’ve been a deeper wound- he’s favoring it” Ronan whispered.

Wouldn’t Kordislaen be favoring the least injured leg?

Other than those small things, I really enjoyed this book. (Kind of holding out for a sequel with Niamh & Domhnall’s wedding? Please?)

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Voyager for the ARC! I've been waiting to get the chance to read this book since the author first posted about it.

The haters do NOT get this book like I do. I can't believe how many low reviews I saw. This book was so creative and well thought out, I'm so impressed that this is Cait Jacobs' debut!

I loved the Legally Blonde inspiration and how creative Jacobs got with the parallels, it made for such a fun read! But that's not to say this book didn't surprise me, despite the well-known plot there were plenty of twists and unique storylines. The biggest one leaving me jaw dropped; if there's one thing I had to say Jacobs was best at writing, it would be hiding their true twists behind obvious ones.

This story is multifaceted—in a way, it reminds me of how I felt watching The Princess Bride for the first time. Like how the grandson expected one type of story going in, but was surprised how packed full of adventure, action, and betrayal it was. The care and effort poured into this book is clear, especially in the culture and folklore included. The world building felt very intricate and fleshed out, which is always characteristic of a great fantasy novel.

The only thing I wished we got more of was Clía's dynamic with her parents, specifically after she returns from Caisleán Cósta to confront them and prepare her kingdom. I feel like that was an unresolved part of her story I would have liked to see, but I have very little complaints and loved this book so much!

🇬🇧 The Princess Knight by Cait Jacobs
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I can’t even begin to describe the joy I felt when I got the ARC of this wonderful book!
I truly believe “The Princess Knight” by Cait Jacobs is a real gem in the romantasy world—a brilliant debut and easily one of the best reads of the year!

This story is a perfect blend of medieval adventure, freshness, sharp humor, slow burn romance, and deep emotions, with a protagonist on a journey toward self-empowerment who had me rooting for her in every single chapter.
At the center of the story is Princess Clía—raised to believe she’d marry a prince, not wield a sword—who is publicly rejected by her betrothed, Prince Domhnall, who claims she’s “just a pretty face” and not a strong woman capable of ruling a kingdom. Clía then decides to enroll in the brutal military academy of Caisleán Cósta—where Domhnall also trains—in order to prove her worth and convince him to marry her.
What begins as a mission driven by pride quickly turns into a true path of growth, rediscovery, and self-affirmation. With the help of Ronan, a fellow cadet and captain of Domhnall’s guards, Clía learns to fight—and does so like a true badass!

Watching Clía transform from an inexperienced and somewhat naïve princess into a determined warrior was incredibly satisfying. She has plenty of flaws, but that’s exactly what makes her so real: her imperfections make her human, her strength is earned step by step, and her voice grows more powerful with each chapter.

As a romance lover, I have to say—the love story with Captain Ronan is one of the most beautiful parts of the book. Ronan, former guard to Prince Domhnall, stands out as a male lead in the genre: kind, patient, and living with chronic pain that never undermines his strength but rather adds depth to his battle against injustice and to his worldview.
Their relationship develops slowly—through sword lessons and combat training, early mornings, cheeky banter—all built on mutual respect, true friendship, heartfelt conversations, and so much tenderness. It’s a romance that blossoms in silence and understanding, and I adored it deeply.

My heart broke during the scene where Clía, manipulated by Kordislaen—the academy’s director and the true villain—starts believing she’s not worthy, that she only made it at the academy because of her status as a princess. She decides to leave and abandon Ronan… and his heartbreaking plea for her to stay, begging her “not to do this” to him, will be burned into my mind forever. I cried so hard!
I definitely have a soft spot for strong men who aren’t afraid to be vulnerable when they're scared of losing the woman they love.

In this book, the author builds a Queer world rich with Celtic folklore, where political intrigue shapes the lives and choices of the characters. The military academy setting is unexpectedly gripping, with vivid, emotionally resonant training scenes.
Even the secondary characters are memorable—each with their own well-defined arcs that add richness to the story in every way. (P.S. I adored Murphy, the otter-like creature who accompanies Clía! He’s so sweet I wish there’d been more scenes with him.)

Yes, it’s true what many other readers say—that the book starts out a bit like a medieval “Legally Blonde” (I believe the original title was actually “Medievally Blonde”), but to me it goes far beyond that: the plot takes unexpected turns, with twists, “family” betrayals, and deep emotional currents (especially Ronan’s feelings for Clía).

Ultimately, it’s a story that warms the heart and reassures us all that it’s possible to find strength within ourselves, overcome rejection, and choose our own destiny—regardless of what others expect of us.

I also loved the ending, which is definitely a happy one for the two main characters, though it left me with a few questions.
Will Clía and Ronan be able to marry, or will their different social statuses (princess vs. soldier) be a problem?
The final scene is a bit ambiguous—are they meeting in secret, or is their relationship now public?
Also, the plot leaves the door open for a potential future war over control of the Continent.

Any flaws? Honestly, the only downside is that it’s a standalone (at least for now).
I really hope there’s a sequel for Clía and Ronan—with maybe a bit more angst and suffering—and that we get happy endings for other characters too, like Prince Domhnall and Niamh (not necessarily together!), and Clía’s friend Sarait.
Also, the war scenes are maybe a bit too long and detailed, and there are quite a few hard-to-pronounce names to keep track of.

In short: If you love slow burn romance, badass heroines, inclusive and well-built worlds, and emotionally gripping stories, “The Princess Knight” absolutely deserves a place on your bookshelf.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for the ARC of this powerful, emotional, and compelling fantasy that won me over from the very first page.

Tropes:
- YA Fantasy Romance
- Mild spice
- Dual POV (3rd person)
- “Legally Blonde” retelling
- Medieval Military Academy
- Princess / Warrior Captain
- Ex’s Best Friend
- Found Family
- Slow Burn
- Grumpy / Sunshine
- Queernormative World
- Celtic-Folklore

Book Review: The Princess Knight by Cait Jacobs
5 stars

A massive thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager Harper Voyager, Cait Jacobs, and NetGalley for sending me this utterly delightful book. I am unwell. Emotionally compromised. Deeply obsessed. And wildly impatient for more.

Clía is a princess with flawless fashion, a bruised heart, and a mission. She follows the prince who dumped her to his elite military academy, determined to prove she’s not just crowns and curls. But what starts as a plan to win him back turns into something much bigger—saving kingdoms, learning her own strength, and accidentally catching the attention of a certain brooding warrior who is absolutely not ready for her kind of chaos.

This book is Legally Blonde meets medieval fantasy in the best possible way.
Clía is one of my favorite female main characters now. She’s fierce, funny, and completely lovable. Ronan is grounded, loyal, and exactly the kind of male lead I want more of. Their dynamic? Incredible. The tension? Off the charts. The pacing? I read it in a day because I physically could not put it down.

Yes, I got a little lost in the worldbuilding here and there, but I honestly didn’t care. The charm, the heart, the characters, the vibes—everything else was so strong I was completely swept away. Cait Jacobs absolutely nailed this debut. I will be devastated if we don’t get another book. I need more Clía. More Ronan. More of everything.

Tropes you’ll love
princess at a warrior academy
grumpy x sunshine
proving everyone wrong
animal sidekick goals
slow burn with sizzling tension
girl in gowns and armor
found friendship
he trains her and accidentally falls for her

Go read this immediately. Then come back and scream with me about how perfect it is

ARC Review: A fantasy medieval retelling of Legally Blonde that will make you wish you were just watching Legally Blonde.

I think this had an interesting premise, but was not executed in a way that was enjoyable. The romance was okay, but almost everything else fell flat.

My primary qualms:
- The story attempts to hit every plot beat of Legally Blonde. Because it sticks to this so tightly, there's plot points/scenes that just don't make sense with what else is going on.
- The politics are wacky and do not make any logical sense. There's multiple betrayals that occur, but the characters' motivation for this makes absolutely no sense and they don't really seem to have much, if anything, to gain.
- The story takes place at a war college where absolutely no learning takes place. There is no combat training other than the students training each other outside of their school obligations (which are.... ?????)
- SPOILERS BUT I'm supposed to believe that a princess who picked up a weapon for the first time maybe ~6 months ago has learned enough to [defeat the like renowned veteran general that's like the best in the country?? okay

I think if it was a little more exciting, I'd be able to forgive some of these buuuuuut I was also mostly bored while reading.

I didn’t personally love this book, but I can see how others would have enjoyed it.

The legally blonde retelling was very fun! But I did unfortunately find myself bored through parts of the book, and guessing things too far in advance.

3/5 stars

The Princess Knight is a mishmash of medieval times, romance, and fantasy! I went into it without preconceived notions other than, "dang that cover is gorgeous."

The good things about this book:
- Ronan
- Sword fighting lessons

The not so good things:
- Clia (whiny, privileged, irritating)
- Domhnall's villain story arc (they have to give him a ton of flaws to make him the hate-able character to justify him not wanting to marry Clia *insert eye roll*)
- Stereotypical fantasy war college
- The big bad was who I thought it was
- Magic (it was veryyyyy light on magic and I am a gal who loves learning new magic systems, so thats a no from me dawg)

I am so sad I didn't like this book but it might be your cup of tea for the exact reasons I didn't enjoy it!

ARC Review

Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for providing this ARC!

This book was okay, 3 stars overall. The writing felt clunky at times and read more like a young adult novel instead of adult like I was expecting.

I did find parts of this book quite fun and I thoroughly enjoyed the Legally Blonde retelling in this. However, the military academy feels unrealistic.

I do think someone else will like this more than me though!

I absolutely adore a Medieval retelling of anything. But this just takes the cake. It was soooo good and I loved the characters. The banter was terrific and I just ate up all the lore.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for providing this ARC!

Unfortunately this book was just okay. The writing was a bit clunky especially with dialogue and it was very jarring at times. It read a little more like a YA novel as it felt a bit juvenile.

The story itself is fun but I think the whole military academy section gets a tad unrealistic and nonsensical. The Legally Blonde retelling was the most entertaining part for me! I think this is a fun read but not really anything show-stopping writing wise. Maybe someone else would enjoy it more than I did.

This book was SO FUN! Exactly the vibes I expected and wanted and they were met. Clips was such an endearing character and I loved the cozy fantasy and medieval vibes of it all. Very well done and the cover is absolutely gorgeous!

Thank you for the chance to read and review!

What a lovely delight this was! An FMC who has a plan to live up to her family and kingdom’s expectations, but it doesn’t go how she plans. Clia thought she was going to marry her childhood friend and neighboring kingdom, but Domhnall rejects her! She must prove him wrong and woo him back! So she endeavors to become a warrior and prove her strength as a future leader at the Military Academy. Enter Ronan, who trains and befriends Clia and helps her see herself as the strong woman she has always been! Adventure, political intrigue, betrayal, love and happy endings ensue!

This is a great story for those who like medium stakes adventure and fun love stories based on some of our favorite romcom movies ;)

Cute and cozy, but kinda boring.

I was really, really excited to get my hands on The Princess Knight, and while it wasn't bad by any means, it lacked a certain "spark" that I was waiting for. The premise was so fun with a princess who follows a prince to a military academy to win him back, but it just didn't fully deliver. With the book title, cover, and the way the author has talked about this being "Legally Blonde but medieval," (and I LOVED Legally Blonde growing up) I was expecting it to be more quippy and campy like a rom-com, but it ended up trying to be more serious in tone, which just didn't work. The first half of the book had a more "unserious" and "fun" vibe, but as the story went on, it felt like it was trying to be something it wasn't by switching gears to be more serious.

The world-building was a bit lackluster as it was hard for me to imagine some of the descriptions in my head because they were so vague. Additionally, the plot moved at a snail's pace even though we had a few time jumps, which made certain parts a slog to get through. I appreciate that the romance was cute and nontoxic, but the main characters didn't have much individualized personality, so they seemed kind of generic.

All in all, this was a good "palate cleanser" book to break up my more intense fantasy reads. I think if The Princess Knight leaned more into the campy/satirical vibe, I would have enjoyed it a lot more because as a straight-up "romantasy," it lacks a lot of substance that I typically look for.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was a solid 3 stars for me! As we all know, The Princess Knight is a medieval-inspired fantasy romance retelling of Legally Blonde. As a certified member of the Elle Woods fan club, I knew I had to read this! I think fans of the movie will enjoy reading about Clía and her coming-of-age journey.

This books strengths were in the fleshed out political world, the fun characterizations, and the sweetly supportive romance between Clía and Ronan. Its weakness lied in how closely it mirrored the plot of Legally Blonde, to the point that some conversations and plot points felt more like a regurgitation of the film than a true unfolding of the story. My hope is that future books in the series will feel fresher because it won’t be chained down by the movie.

Overall, this was a fun and enjoyable palette cleanser and something I would recommend to readers just starting out in the genre!

*Thank you the author and NetGalley for providing a free e-arc in exchange for an honest and fair review.*

Legally Blonde but make it knights was such a fun experience to behold. It was much more lore focused than I was expecting, it has some rich world building that I feel we honestly only scratched the surface with.

While the plot loosely follows the Legally Blonde plot points there was so much more involved within it and it definitely went " off script" many times which kept the book fresh and not *just* a Legally Blonde retelling.

Overall I really liked the characters within this story, especially the two main characters and love interests in the book. I think character motivations were very clear for all of the "good guys" though I will say I struggled to connect with why the "bad guys" were choosing to do what they were doing. Their motivations didn't make much sense to me and some of the betrayal felt hollow (if not kind of expected).

I've seen this mentioned in a few other reviews and I have to agree, this reads more like a Young Adult novel than an Adult novel. There's no spice whatsoever (even though there's some great tension between the two MCs).

Overall this was a very feel good story that focused a ton on personal growth and friendship which I greatly appreciated in this time in my life.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the copy of this ARC.

The Princess Knight is a light-hearted romantic fantasy in a Celtic-inspired world.

Clia is a princess and the only child of her parents, who put high hopes and lots of pressure on her to be the "perfect daughter". When a prince of another kingdom breaks his betrothal with her, everyone treats it as a sign of Clia being "inadequate". To prove her worth, she decides to follow him to a military academy and win back his respect. But instead she catches the eye of her ex-fiance's guard captain, Ronan... There's also a looming war over the island and it might arrive faster than the current rulers expect.

I loved the casual representation here: Clia is autistic-coded, however most people underestimate and dismiss her not because of her autism, but because they believe in stereotypes that she's too pretty to be smart. Clia is in fact very clever and always has a plan, however her perfectionism causes her a lot of anxiety. She's also bisexual and it's mentioned she was in the past in love with a queen of another country (there are 5 countries on this island).

Ronan has chronic joint pain he struggles with, and like many people with invisible disability, he tries to hide and dismiss it and power through it, because he doesn't want the illness to define him or block him from advancing his career.

Overall the tone of the novel was fairly light-hearted despite serious subjects. Murphy, the cute-but-deadly animal sidekick was surely stealing the show. The romance was very sweet and wholesome. I would recommend this book for readers of adult fantasy with light-hearted tone and sweet & wholesome romance, it's also suitable for YA readers.

My only complaint is it was hard to get around all the names of the kingdoms and side characters, but once the story settled, it flowed.

I received an ARC from Netgalley & Harper Voyager for the purpose of leaving a honest review.

I don’t think this book is for me

If you’re a big fan of stories inspired by other stories and romantasy, I think you’ll love this.

Unfortunately for me, it just didn’t hit right. I also found the beginning to be information overload. Some information that was randomly thrown at you wasn’t used till much later in the story if at all and by the time I got to the parts that needed me to have this background knowledge, I had to flip back to the beginning to figure it out. I think this book was really ambitious and wanted to accomplish a lot so it ended up losing plot points in the bigger picture.

I love love Legally Blonde and I really enjoyed seeing the way the author took parts of the movie and twisted/changed it to be fit her story. The characters were well fleshed and the writing was nice, simple but had its own style.

I really wanted to love this and I’m very interested in picking up more books by this author. Pretty solid for a debut!

This was a decent time, but I struggled with some of it. A lot of things were super unrealistic — like how Clía was easily taking down people who had been warriors for most of their life with only a few months of training. Multiple things like that just felt too convenient and took me out of the story.

Also there was minimal world building for this being a fantasy story, it was more just info dumping but never exploring the lore deeper than at a surface level. And the reasons for a lot of elements — like why Clía’s and Domnhall’s marriage would be beneficial for their kingdoms, the villain’s motivation, and other things — were just not explained. This may have benefited from being longer or having multiple books so that those things could be fleshed out. Otherwise it was pretty fun, kept me entertained, and the romance was fine.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon, and Harper Voyager for the ARC!