keira anne with an e

This book follows the story of Alyssa, who finds herself lost one night, and stumbles upon a castle. When she enters it, she discovers it is the home of the royal family, who is currently looking for a ‘princess companion’ to take care of the two young princesses.

However, as she spends time with the royal family– especially a certain young crown prince named Max– Alyssa finds herself in a web of royal intrigue that threatens the very kingdom itself.

This retelling of a classic breaths new life to an old tale, weaving an unforgettable tale of love, royalty, and a touch of magic.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5 stars)

“If anyone had told me a year ago that I would find true love through a pea, I would have laughed.”

Take a slightly-ridiculous fairytale (a pea? Really?) add in an adorably banter-filled romance, a couple of troublemaking young princesses, some royal intrigue, and just a touch of fantasy, and you have a book that will probably leave a smile on your face.

Honestly, if I could recommend one book to anyone who grew up loving the Disney Princess movies and re-watching them over and over again, this might be it. Really, this felt like such a timeless story. Reading it really transported me to this storybook kingdom, like I had stepped inside this fairytale and was now living alongside these wonderful characters.

Alyssa and Max were just about the cutest couple I’ve ever read about. I loved all the banter between them, and his protective moments. It just made me happy. I also loved how their friendship turned into more… it was just about perfection.

I listened to the audiobook (Esther Wane did a beautiful job), and immediately knew that I needed to own this book. One quick Kindle purchase later– I love a good impulse buy– I was basically re-reading it just so I could go through and highlight all the cutest moments– which is often the best sign I really loved a book.

In terms of content, I think this book was very sweet and clean. I didn’t find anything that made me uncomfortable. Although there is magic in this series, this one was very light, only having a brief scene with a fairy godmother in the prologue. I would definitely recommend this book for young adult or adult audiences. (For more information about my content rating system, check it out here.)

This is the first book in The Four Kingdoms series by Melanie Cellier, and there are a couple of spin-off series from that. I believe (at the time of publishing this post) all the books are available on Kindle Unlimited, but please verify that before trying to borrow it. If you’re anything like me, you don’t like it when you go to get a book on Kindle Unlimited only to realize that its no longer available. (Yes, I know I am spoiled. No, it doesn’t make the blow any less devastating. 😂)

In summary, though, this book is fun. It’s a princess story. It’s a story of royalty and adventure. It’s a story of true love. And if any part of what I’ve said about this book makes you think it might be your kind of story, do yourself a favor, and give it a try. You might just enjoy it.

EMOJI REVIEW:

• 🫛 retelling of the princess and the pea
• 👑 princes, princesses, and royalty
• 📚 sweet library romance scenes
• 🏰 palace intrigue
• 👩‍❤‍👨 beautiful clean romance
• 🎧 great audiobook narrator
• 🎬 Disney princess feels

Thank you, dear friends, for finishing this review. If you’ve read this book, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it, and if you haven’t, I’d love to hear if you’re interested in reading it now!

Goodbye for now, sweet friends!