Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I first heard about this book based on the Netflix adaption that is happening with Millie Bobby Brown. I was really excited when I read the blurb, and knew this would be right up my alley.

I think this was a decent YA fantasy, but I was hoping for more. Elodie was a strong heroine who stood up for herself, but brought nothing new to the table as far as YA heroines go. The story itself was interesting and entertaining, but I was never wowed by it. I think I'll probably still tune into the adaption to see how they do it though.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing/Ballantine for allowing me to read and review this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Damsel is about twenty year old Elodie, who is put into an arranged marriage with Prince Henry from a different land. While her home is starving and is in a seventy year drought, Prince Henry's is flourishing but for a terrible price. Three women are unknowingly chosen to be a sacrifice to the dragon in the mountains. As long as these sacrifices are made, the land will continue to grow and the people won't suffer.

I really liked the first half of Damsel and I enjoyed the fairytale writing for the most part... but I started to lose interest after the 50% mark. I like Elodie and the idea of following her as she is trying to survive the clutches of a dragon filled with blood lust. The story itself dragged at the halfway point and the pacing suffered for it. Damsel should have been a couple of chapters shorter and only have Elodie's POV. I get why the other POV chapters were written but they didn't flow well with Elodie's adventure. There are a few flashbacks that referred to other princesses who didn't survive and, while that's a cool insight, I didn't care very much for it.

Damsel is a stand-alone book and I liked how Elodie's ending was written. I enjoyed the sisterly bond between Elodie and her thirteen year old sister Floria. It was very sweet and endearing.

I've tried Evelyn Skye's other duologies like The Crown's Game and Circle of Shadows but I couldn't connect with them. I wanted to give Damsel a shot because of the premise and honestly the cover is gorgeous but I think her writing might not be for me.

3 stars

I will admit that the beginning of this book was a little slow. It was hard to imagine Elodie as a twenty year old. She was really innocent, close to her family, and completely oblivious and trusting of those around her. But when the dragon shows up in the story, the pacing takes off!
I would recommend this to fans of strong willed female protagonists who also offer a touch of femineity. It was a quick read that scratched that itch for a good ol' dragon story.

Elodie, although the daughter of a ruler, is used to living a difficult life in her harsh homeland. So when she receives an offer of marriage from a wealthy prince who is willing to give her homeland enough wealth to save her people, she knows she can’t refuse. Once she and her family arrive to her betrothed’s kingdom, they are astonished by how lavishly they’re treated. But Elodie notices some strange things before her ceremony, and too late realizes that she was purchased to satiate the hungers of a dangerous elder being.

This work started off strong. I was drawn in by the author’s writing style and the great descriptions that were included and added immersion to the work. Though the worldbuilding wasn’t that interesting and was never really explored or incorporated into the story in a meaningful way. I started off enjoying Elodie as a protagonist and felt that she was going to be a strong female lead that I could get behind. I also liked her and her sister’s relationship and how lovely it was.

Unfortunately, things became much too below-average YA for me to continue enjoying it. While I enjoyed Elodie at first, she didn’t undergo any growth during the work and actually felt like she regressed as the book went on. Her character was written with all the stereotypical YA protagonist tropes (supremely special, not like other girls, best at everything, smarter than everyone, etc.) and never really had any agency – nothing she did changed the plot, she just reacted to things that happened. It didn’t help that the author always told us how characters felt rather than showing how they felt, which made them all feel flat.

There was nothing unique or groundbreaking or “epic twist” related (as the book was touted as being), but there were plenty of plot holes. Unfortunately, I don’t recommend this work – hopefully Netflix will do a better job with this story. My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for allowing me to read this work, which will be published in March 2023. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Thank you kindly, NetGalley for the eARC for my honest review. Honestly, I loved and enjoyed the start of this but as I continued reading I lost interest. The general plot of the story seemed repetitive to what I've read, but I did like that Skye put their own flare to it.

Overall, it was an okay read. VERY YA, which isn't a bad thing but it was a flat story with somewhat boring characters that needed more "oomph" to them to grab the reader and get interested in their journey.

Damsel she is not. This story has major Joey King in The Princess (Hulu) vibes.

A loving sister, determined, brilliant, and empathetic, Elodie would do anything to ease the suffering of her people. If you’re looking for a book with a strong female MC, woman supporting other woman, and dragons, this book is for you! The world building and rationale for the plot were slightly lacking, there was little dialogue with other characters (most of the book focuses on Elodie’s internal monologue), and the ending was rather abrupt, however this was mostly a fun and quick read. My favorite part was how the past princesses looked out for their future iterations. I look forward to seeing the Netflix adaptation as I do think this story may translate better on film.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing/ Ballentine for the eARC of Damsel!

This was a fun Young Adult Fantasy with a no-nonsense princess who doesn't need anyone to save her. She's on a mission to save herself! I really enjoyed reading Damsel and I am excited to hear that this will be made to screen on Netflix, with Millie Bobbie Brown starring and producing!

#Damsel #NetGalley Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out!

Unfortunately, this book was close to being a 4/5, but the ending ruined it for me.

I really wanted to enjoy this book and was intrigued by the synopsis, but Damsel felt like a book that didn't know what it wanted to be. From bold innuendos and slightly graphic scenes to very YA dialogue and exchanges, I felt like it was trying to decide between YA and new adult.

There were several things that I liked about the book. I liked the addition of the invented language and how it was interpreted and utilized throughout the story, but some aspects of the translations felt a little far-fetched, even for fantasy.

There is nothing more annoying than the main character, which is incredibly naive for half the book, and suddenly becomes brilliant in the blink of an eye.

The ending was the worst part of the book for me. There were small elements of mystery at the beginning that helped enrich the story, but the way it ended just left a sour taste in my mouth.

I'm optimistic about seeing the movie when it releases, but this book left much to be desired.

I’ll start by saying that I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

For a book published as a written form of an upcoming film, I think this novel did really well at telling an interesting story. It makes me curious to see what the film will look like when it is released on Netflix.

In the copy I received, there were a few typos and mistakes, so I think the book could use another edit to eliminate these. I appreciated the fantasy language that the author built (with help) for the story. It helped immersion and it became a key part of the plot. The setting proved to be captivating and somehow reminds me of Hawaii a little.

The main character is intelligent and I valued her portrayal as a rational and quick-thinking individual who was also compassionate. She doubts herself a lot in the beginning, but I feel like it’s easy to understand why when she’s been offered so much splendor and what seems to be the start of a happy marriage. The story takes a few unexpected turns and it makes it more thrilling that way as secrets are revealed when the stakes get higher.

As for criticisms, I felt a few of Elodie’s “unique” characteristics were only introduced in the beginning to set her apart, and they vanished once the action truly began. I feel like I didn’t need to be told that the main character is “not like the other girls”, but the rest of the story does well to make up for it by including a wide cast of other women in the story who shared Elodie’s struggles. I also found some of the writing to be a bit bland and the narrative to be worth skimming through, but I understand this novel is adapted from a film script, and that the author does the best she can to put everything on the page. I normally enjoy a more blunt manner of writing rather than the purple prose that is popular today, but there was something about this novel’s prose that sometimes just didn’t do it for me. I found myself skipping over filler text to the next lines of dialogue in order to press the story on. Maybe that’s a good sign that I wanted to figure out how this would end. Maybe it’s a bad sign that I couldn’t seem to enjoy the journey there as much as I normally do.

Overall, 4/5 stars. This wouldn’t be the first on my list of recommendations, but for those who enjoy a book with action, a pinch of magic, and no romance, I could see myself suggesting this book to them. I’d like to thank the publisher for sending me an ARC copy of this book to review. I hope that my feedback is insightful.

What a fantastic story. I could not put this down and then I saw on the cover it’s going to be a movie on Netflix?! Ugh so excited!!

I’ve never read a story with so little dialogue and interaction with other characters. Most of the story is the author telling what’s happening to Elodie/her thoughts or what happened to the princesses before her. The story arc was simple, but I thought there would be more intensity with there being a dragon and the mc fighting for her life. I didn’t find myself engaged throughout the story. I so badly wanted this epic action with the mc and the dragon. That’s not what this story is. I hope the Netflix adaptation is more exciting. I will say, the twist at the end was unexpected in an interesting way.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Worlds for the eARC

I read an ARC of Damsel by Evelyn Skye. Thank you for this opportunity Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine.

The book starts with a princess riding with her father as they check on their people. He is a jolly king, aware that his people are suffering, but outwardly showing a smiling face and offering positive affirmation to any idea or outlook for the future of their people while the princess goes to the women and others who will listen, as her mother used to, and makes the actual plans with her people that will actually help them in the hard months to come. She loves her father, but after this particular trip, they meet with an incoming ship, where it’s announced that a foreign prince has agreed to marry the princess.

Thankfully, the princess has a few months to send letters to the prince and she finds out he’s kind and caring, and finally, when she does go to meet him months later with her family, including her stepmother and little sister, she finds out he’s handsome as well. While they get to know each other personally, she’s showered with gifts, and he takes her around on extravagant dates where everything seems wonderful. The princess finds it sad that the people of this land have so much food and gold and goods while her people suffer, but she’s also concerned when she helps a girl who’s being bullied, and the little girl asks who’s going to save her.

Still, after that, everything else goes perfectly. She even gets to design her wedding dress, and then she goes to her wedding, and then the plot really begins to take off and the dragon statues finally start to make more sense.

Let’s get something out of the way. The fact that there is something wrong with this bountiful land is not a secret. It’s not just obvious because of “no duh, book conventions” and foreshadowing. The prince and queen literally talk about it. Which is weird, because the book also tried to pull off the “step-queen is jealous of the princess getting such a great deal, but not really” twist, which only really works if we think that the princess is getting a good deal, or at least that we don’t think the prince himself is in on it, which he obviously is from all the hints we get right away and then he just states it even before the wedding so… And no, I don’t consider this a spoiler, it happens too early in the book.

Also, once the book gets into the action, the action is stopped, basically full stop, in order for the princess to contrive a way for her to have visions of the past of this bountiful land and why it is the way it is. I personally do not like this. I liked how she responded in the end to the characters, but I wasn’t thrilled about how she had visions of the past.

Overall, the book had a wonderful fairytale feel to it. I have a love of books that not only read like fairytales, but also look to tackle and deconstruct them, so I’m a little sad that I didn’t really enjoy that middle part at all. The ending was amazing, which is all I’ll say about it, but it can’t really make up for some of the clumsy beginning and boring middle. Still, I could see where a lot of people, especially people who like it when they get to really know the past of a fantasy world they’re learning about, might love this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

First off, that cover is gorgeous! I'm a sucker for a pretty cover and Damsel is no exception. Honestly, I admire the author's intentions with this book, which alone made me pick it up in the first place. However, the end result spoke to inexperience and/or laziness. That sounds harsh but it was my general impression of this book. Even as I read the first chapter, my heart sank, because I knew this wasn't the epic, brave fantasy I thought I'd picked up. But I knew I shouldn't judge it by just one chapter, because it was bound to get better. But it really...didn't.

The worldbuilding is almost nonexistent and/or ludicrous. It felt recycled and unoriginal, like when I tried to make my own fantasy world at 15 (that manuscript is never seeing the light of day). The pacing drags and I found myself getting bored only a few chapters into the story. That did not bode well for me. Not only that, but the characters felt really stiff and flat and I didn't find anything distinct about them; I can barely even remember their names. The main character, Elodie, was not memorable in the slightest, and more than that, her passiveness frustrated me because I really, really wanted this story to come to life.

I feel like this book wasn't meant to stand apart from the Netflix show and I really don't think it needed to be adapted into a novel. It just felt like an attempt at bringing more money in. I don't intend any hate to the author, I'm sure she's a lovely person but this book simply did not work for me.

Thank you to the publisher/NetGalley for allowing me to review this book!

Wow okay so the synopsis immediately drew me in. I was so excited to read this book! Sadly I didn't enjoy it as much as I was hoping. The overall theme this was presenting was great and the execution was as well. The beginning was what fell short for myself. It seemed to lag on and its not until about 40% into the book that the real plot started to be honest. The second part of the book was truly amazing. The ending was by far one of my favorites. This is a book that represents womanhood and the issues surrounding women. The sister bond that you see was so heartwarming. I think the characterization, the detail and the flow were on point. I just think that the start point that was chosen was not the best one.

ALSOOO that fake but could totally be real language was so cool to see!!

I would recommend this to anyone wanting a feminist take on fantasy for sure.

A princess sent into an arranged marriage her kingdom doesn’t realize that in order to save her kingdom... she’ll be sacrificed to a dragon immediately after her wedding. Elodie grew up in a kingdom where people are starving and barely surviving. She tries her best to help her people but there is never enough resources. When a representative from a wealthy reclusive kingdom offers her family enough wealth to save their kingdom in exchange for Elodie’s hand in marriage, she accepts without hesitation. The moment she gets into the kingdom of Aurea, something is off... the place is gorgeous and the kingdom is wealthy... but there is something strange about the way people treat her and she feels like something is definitely off. But she is swept away by the possibility of saving her kingdom and that her handsome betroth might be a good partner... except while undertaking the rituals to become an Aurean Princess she discovers too late what is actually happening... she is going to be sacrificed to a dragon to help the kingdom prosper... her father sold her off to her death. Her husband has thrown her off the mountain into the place where the dragon lives... but Elodie isn’t going down without a fight and she’s going to do everything she can to survive. The more Elodie ventures into the cave the more she realizes that she isn’t the first princess that has been sacrificed and that the others before her have all left notes and little tips on how to navigate the mountain in hopes of trying to escape. The dragon stalks the mountains for Elodie, demanding she come out so it can eat her... but Elodie realizes that there must have bene a start to this tradition and that she will have to find a way to solve it and save herself before it’s too late because the only person who can save her, is herself. This was an interesting read and I definitely can see how it would translate well into a netflix movie ( definitely looking forward to seeing it!). It definitely gave me The Princess (2022 movie) vibes, with a princess who is willing to do anything to survive and is trapped in an isolated location and must fight her way out in order to save herself and her family. If you’re looking for a action story with a princess then this is for you!

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Random House Worlds for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

good story about a girl and a dragon and trying to survive . The prince family was trash and loved her sister and step mom. Great story.

Beautiful new take on the classic damsel in distress fairytale. A girls dream slowly erodes and she realizes she will not be lavishly provided for. Instead she has not only to save herself, but everyone else as well. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of the book for my honest review.

Damsel is a enjoyable story with everything you want in a damsel in distress book but better. Swept away across the world to meet your
Prince charming, beautiful kingdom, parties, riches, food, great in laws, all the perfection of the happily ever after fairytale except for one tiny tiny little detail. That Royal treatment doesn't last very long because you are chosen as a princess for this isle of perfection only because the kingdom needs royal blood sacrifices every year to a dragon for their perfect little world to continue receiving it's blessings. Except this time they chose a princess that doesn't want to go down quietly and will do everything to fight for herself and her family with a bit of help from the past.
Great book, great cover, flows well, entertaining. I hope the movie/show? Coming next yr does the story justice.
Thanks so much to NetGalley for sharing this early ARC with me. I loved the book!

Big thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to review this book pre-release. I really liked this book. It had dragons and adventure, was a fresh take on a hero story, and didn't rely on a love interest to change his whole personality to justify his actions, which would of course then save the heroine of the story, and they would fall madly in love. It was unique, and a fast paced read I didn't wane interest in.