Dragon Princess by S. Andrew Swann is BOOK ONE in this humorous fantasy series & such a fun read! A highly sarcastic, slightly unfortunate, body-swap tale told by the unwilling protagonist: renown thief, Frank Blackthorne.
Plot:
Frank thinks highly of his skill and intellect, though he recognizes that he has fallen on hard times. A debt to the thieves guild left him desperate for any job. And when the "abandoned temple" he needed to hit ended up full of cult worshippers of the Dark Lord Natlac mid sacrifice, he made himself another powerful enemy. Down on his luck in a crappy bar, with a crappy drink, the court Wizard of Lendowyn offers him a new job: rescue the Princess from a Dragon. But Frank knows Lendowyn is broke, & that this job reeks of "ITS A TRAP" -- unfortunately, he can't afford to make another enemy. Frank agrees to save the Princess & fully accepts that he might die in the process. Miraculously, Frank manages to walk away from the wizard's evil deed unscathed, only....he walks away inside the Princesse's body. And thus, we embark on a quest to right this situation which went so terribly wrong.
He will go up against being rescued by a super sketchy knight, being sacrificed by royals worshipping the Dark Lord, confronting the gambling addicted dragon, negotiating with the King of the Elves, & countless other fantasy favorites slightly skewed toward the absurd.
Review:
This story takes a familiar concept, in a familiar setting, & makes it brand new by mixing a fast pace, with modern humor, & the overall tone of perpetually sighing at requests from your boss...'I'll do it, but only because I literally cannot say no.'
The voice of Frank's first person narrative is hilarious and immersive. He spins his tale like a bard, interjecting the humor obtained by hindsight into the action. Despite this, you remain concerned for him. The world has already been set up as a place where anything goes, so the stakes remain high, & as reader you wonder, 'how the hell is he getting out of this mess? Is he narrating from the great beyond?'
In Conclusion:
Rating: 4/5
Genre: Fantasy, Satire, Body-Swapping, Adventure
Length: 336 pages
Plans to Continue? Yes! Dragon Thief is Next
What This Story has to Offer You
Fantasy Humor
A Fantastic 1st Person Narration
No-nonsense Princess
Crooked Royal Wizard
An Elven Realm
Female Related Hardships
A Twisted Dark Lord
A Reluctant Hero
Do you have another Fantasy Comedy book recommendation? I would love to hear it!
Thanks for reading!
Amanda
Photo taken by me