This Princess Kills Monsters

The Misadventures of a Fairy-Tale Stepsister: A Novel

De: Ry Herman

Narrado por: Kristen Sieh, Ry Herman

A princess with a mostly useless magical talent takes on horrible monsters, a dozen identical masked heroes, and a talking lion in a quest to save a kingdom—and herself—in this affectionate, feminist fairy tale satire.

“Exactly the sort of queer fairy tale for grown-ups that I have yearned to read . . . thrilling, irreverent, wondrous—yet unswervingly true to the heart.”—Ryka Aoki, author of Light from Uncommon Stars

A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK: Autostraddle, Fangirlish, Reactor, Book Riot, Reading Glasses Podcast

Someone wants to murder Princess Melilot. This is sadly normal.

Melilot is sick of being ordered to go on dangerous quests by her domineering stepmother. Especially since she always winds up needing to be rescued by her more magically talented stepsisters. And now, she's been commanded to marry a king she’s never met.

When hideous spider-wolves attack her on the journey to meet her husband-to-be, she is once again rescued—but this time, by twelve eerily similar-looking masked huntsmen. Soon she has to contend with near-constant attempts on her life, a talking lion that sets bewildering gender tests, and a king who can't recognize his true love when she puts on a pair of trousers. And all the while, she has to fight her growing attraction to not only one of the huntsmen, but also her fiancé’s extremely attractive sister.

If Melilot can't unravel the mysteries and rescue herself from peril, kingdoms will fall. Worse, she could end up married to someone she doesn’t love.

©2025 Ry Herman (P)2025 Random House Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Madcap, monster-packed, and swoon-worthy, This Princess Kills Monsters is a romp through deftly reimagined fairy-tale terrain. Melilot is a princess with humor and heart amid a cast of characters who are likewise uproarious and sparkling, yet grounded in real emotion. This delightful adventure is as enchanting as it is hilarious.”—Julia Seales, nationally bestselling author of A Most Agreeable Murder

“A satire of the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale The Twelve Huntsmen, this novel follows a princess as she, well, kills monsters. Melilot[’s] evil stepmother is constantly tasking her with dangerous quests, and now she’s being commanded to marry a man she has never met. The book features queer and trans characters and will surely appeal to fans of queer fairytale reimaginings.”—Autostraddle, “Our Most Anticipated Queer Books for June 2025”

“I laughed so much while reading this book. Such a fun and adventurous story of a retelling of a Grimm fairy tale . . . an absolute wild ride with hilarity, romance, and adventure!”—The Nonbinary Librarian

Engaging story, likeable characters, dense with fairy tail references

This book takes place in a fairy tale world, and is dense with self-aware fairy tail tropes and references. The title character is also strangely well informed in 20th century medicine and science. It isn't a recipe that would normally work for me, but in the end I was pulled into the story. The book has wry humor and some real heart.

This was so fun

I loved this book. It was fun and silly, but still kept you guessing what was coming next.

Feminist, queer fantasy!

I loved this book! It is a brilliant combination of Grimms fairy tales and unexpected heroes.

Fun, Cozy and lots of Adventure!!

I loved this book cover to cover!! This was Fun, Cozy and filled with Fairytale Adventure!! I couldn’t put it down and devoured it within two days!!

Wow!

I spent the entirety of this book delightfully bewildered! I loved the storyline and all the characters! The narrator did an excellent job with this book!

Not your ordinary fairy tale

An interesting story that puts a different spin on the fairy tales I grew up with. The base of the story is about a princess who has a stepmother and two stepsisters. In this version, everyone gets along and loves each other. The main princess has an attitude about her stepmother and resents her stepsisters for always helping her, especially since all she wants is to be left alone. She is sent to a foreign land to marry a prince. She has to come to terms with who she is and the assumptions she has made of past actions by her stepmother and stepsisters.