This month’s Saturday Spotlight theme is retellings. This month I have shared A Forgery of Fate by Elizabeth Lim- a Beauty and the Beast retelling, Golden Tangle by Suzanna Fowers- a Rapunzel retelling, A Captive of Wing and Feather by Melanie Cellier- a Swan Lake retelling, and A Batch of Bears and Bewitchment by Sarah Carlisle- an East of the Sun, West of the Moon retelling. You can find those posts here, here, here, and here.
This week I am sharing The Swan’s Daughter by Roshani Chokshi, a Wild Swans retelling.
I absolutely love this book! It has such a wonderful fairytale vibe that completely immerses you in the story. The magic was unique and well-thought out, beautifully woven into the story. The characters were amazing! We were given snippets of many different characters, making it feel even more like a classic fairytale. The main characters, Demelza and Arris, were the best. I loved their friendship and their growth into something more. They were also wonderful individually, and I loved both of them learning who they are. This is truly a wonderful book with fairytale vibes and wonderful characters!
In this lush and romantic novel from New York Times bestselling author Roshani Chokshi, a prince is only as good as his beating heart and a maiden is only as good as her honest word. But when love and the truth become impossibly tangled, the two must figure out how to survive together, or fall completely apart.
To find love is a curse …
Prince Arris knows that marriage means murder. Thanks to a poorly worded wish to a sea witch, all one needs to rule the Isle of Malys is the heart and hand of the kingdom’s heir. Historically, this has been construed quite literally.
Thus, Arris expects that the day after his marriage and murder he will wake up as a sentient tree alongside the rest of his predecessors. His only chance at a long life is finding true and lasting love. When Arris’s parents announce a tournament of brides to compete for his hand and heart, a slew of eligible, lovely and (possibly murderous) bachelorettes make their way to Rathe Castle. Amidst glittering balls in ozorald caves, strolls through menageries of daydream trees and pearl crocodiles, tea time on glass boats and kisses that leave his head spinning, Arris cannot tell who is here out of love for him…or lust for power.
Until he meets Demelza.
As a veritas swan, Demelza’s song wrings out the truth. Forced into hiding, Demelza strikes a deal. Arris will provide her with safekeeping in exchange for her truth-telling song to sort through his potential brides.
While Arris is used to dodging death threats and Demelza is accustomed to fighting for her voice to be heard, to survive the tournament of brides requires a different kind of bravery. And perhaps the bravest thing one can do is not merely protect one’s life, but find the courage to chase a life worth living.
The Bibliophile's Bookshelf 
Leave a comment