The Bibliophile's Bookshelf

Title: The Rogue Princess: A Retelling of Puss in Boots

Series: Return to the Four Kingdoms #5

Author: Melanie Cellier

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling, Clean Romance

Rating: 4.5 stars

Review:

Kali has always dreamed of adventure, but she never expected to find it in the company of a talking cat. Puss definitely has an agenda, but he isn’t sharing it with her. All she knows is that he wants a miller’s child to accompany him across the Great Desert to the mysterious lands beyond.

Kali doesn’t mean to let her opportunity go, even if she doesn’t understand the purposes of the mysterious creature at her side. But when she encounters thieves and misadventure, she realizes something bigger is underway. Her people are under threat, and she can’t turn her back on them—no matter how irritated she is by the fellow traveler who turns up wherever she goes. Kali knows Xavier isn’t to be trusted, but she and Puss need his help. Only together can they avoid the traps laid for her and uncover the truth.

In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, Puss in Boots, a miller’s daughter will have to trust a tricksy cat and a handsome young man if the three of them have any hope of saving her people. – summary from Goodreads

The Rogue Princess was an absolute delight to read, with amazing characters and fun adventures throughout!

I loved Kali! She was a delightful character to read, and I adored how adventurous she was. She wanted to do everything and see everything. One of the big parts of this book was her realizing that being adventurous wasn’t a bad thing, and it can be beneficial. She was also very sweet and kind, while also being a little snarky.

I loved Xaiver, as well! He was introduced in the previous book, as one half of the troublesome twins of Kuralan. We got to know Xavier as an individual this book, and he was so great. I love how fun he was. He was constantly laughing at everything (though this did cause some problems) but also knew when it was time to be responsible. He also helped Kali realize there is nothing wrong with being adventurous.

Their romance was so cute! It did start out as a misunderstanding, which was kind of hilarious when you find out. There was a lot of Kali struggling with liking somebody who couldn’t commit, and I liked how that storyline was concluded. My all-time favorite part of this book was part at the end when she leaned over a balcony and Xavier gripped onto her, and she was like I always knew he would be there to hold onto me. I am not at all doing this moment justice, but it was so sweet and romantic, and you realize that he has been catching her all through the book! I always love when a love interest protects their girl but doesn’t encroach on who they are as a person.

There was a talking cat! I don’t love cats, but I often love a good fictional cat, and Puss was no exception. He was similar to Arvin with this superiority complex, but he also had no interest in humans, either. He was mischievous and so flippant, it was incredibly entertaining to read. Definitely one of my favorite characters!

We got to see Evie and Tillie and Frederic and Cassian and all of their children! I wish Cassian and Frederic were in the story a little more, and we got to see the kids a little bit more, but I adored these moments! I love seeing these characters married with kids. It made me so happy! I loved getting this little glimpse into their lives, and I felt like this was a nice goodbye to these characters! One of the best parts of this was getting to know more about Tillie. We didn’t get to know her all too well in The Princess Search, so I enjoyed this closer look. I also loved how Evie was still making dresses, and we got to see how she uses that to benefit her kingdom!

I loved the adventure that took place! Most of the books in this series have had some adventure, but this is definitely one of the most adventurous books in the series. I loved the travel elements and all the different places we got to see throughout the book!

A new rebellion did pop up in this book, that was reminiscent of the rebellion in The Princess Search, so I did enjoy some of the parallels. I will say I found the reasoning behind the rebellion a little confusing. I really wanted a stronger reasoning than was given. Here is a slight spoiler: there was a populated city in the desert. This community definitely felt a little cultish (though it wasn’t super overt). I will also say that this part of the story, with the antagonist, wrapped up really quickly and somewhat easily, and I wish that more time was given to this part of the story. I did like this part of the story and thought it added a deeper layer to this world!

The Rogue Princess was an adventurous retelling of Puss in Boots, with travel, romance, and wonderful characters, including an adventure seeking main character and a carefree love interest! Definitely a wonderful book to go on an adventure with!

Quotes:

“‘I love you far more than is sensible, my darling Kali. And I have every intention of chasing you for the rest of my days, so please have pity on me and stop running.’”

“‘Your brain is a beautiful thing, Kali. Let it do what it needs to do and stop getting in its way.’”