The Ballad of Robin and King Richard

by Artúr Faye

This book contains serious topics that might not be suitable for some readers. Topics include abuse of varying kinds, religious trauma, infertility, eating disorders/negative body image, and language that some readers might find offensive.


The Wright family has always been the picture-perfect Christian family. A hard-working father, a sweet and loving mother, and their beautiful smart daughter.

But cracks begin to show when their little girl wants to be called Robin and be referred to as a boy. He longs for adventure, to learn how to be a man, and to be the kid he is deep down.

While his father, Richard, accepts him, his mother doesn’t and blames Richard for confusing their child. As their marriage is shattering and Robin grows ill, Richard drastically decides to grab his son and run away.

As the two go off in hopes of escaping his mother and the laws that now hunt Robin, Richard must not only protect his son and keep him happy, but also have to face the truth about his marriage and his perception of the world they live in.

But if it’s all for Robin, it’s worth it.

Genres: LGBT

260 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 7, 2024

About the author

Artúr Faye is a queer American actor and author. Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, he had fallen in love with art and storytelling at an early age, which ended up leading him to doing theater and writing in his free time growing up.

Reviews

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book is heavyhearted, and I mean, grab your tissues because it’ll literally pull on all your heart strings. Prior to reading, please always check your books to see if there are any trigger warnings. Keep in mind that this book does deal with religion, gender, sexual identity, abuse, and much more. This book was very beautifully written, and I appreciate that it was written simply for anyone to easily understand and enjoy. I believe that this was specifically written for the LGBTQ community, and many can relate. However, I also believe that you necessarily have to be in the LGBTQ community to relate to the type of abuse and extremism experienced by Robin throughout the narration. I found this book very compelling, and it’s very raw and touching in so many ways. As a parent myself, I couldn’t fathom putting my children through such a harsh situation by not accepting them for who they are (within reason, of course, being a serial killer would obviously not count for a situation). I also grew up in a very conservative Christian family that had very high expectations of my sister and me. It was not a fun childhood, looking back. I could not remember a time when I was happy when religion was brought up (no offense to Christians out there, my faith has nothing to do with religion). It’s the control, the harshness, and the type of people that were around (not all people are like them, of course). It’s living by a certain code, that you’re forced to live by and follow. I truly believe that there are some parts of it that are wrong, and shoving it in someone’s way is a form of abuse. Being punished for it is a form of abuse. Being taught that it’s either black or white is a form of abuse. Not having choices is also, in my opinion, a form of abuse. I grew up in a family where being a part of the LGBTQ community was fairly taboo. I would say it’s also the generation that I grew up in. Many things were still considered taboo. Not that it is a pass. I’m glad that Robin got his HEA because he deserves it after everything. This book has all the wonderful tropes and Artur did a wonderful job with writing this novel!

[Priya Bansal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will start with a small warning: please keep tissues handy because this book is an emotional rollercoaster!

The story follows a young child, barely 11 years old called Grace/Robin, who was born female but is suffering from gender dysphoria. Growing up in a strict christian household, his discomfort is noticed by his father. What follows is a beautiful tale narrated by both- son and father, following their journey to one destination- safety for Robin.

The narration flows smoothly and it is a very reader friendly writing style. There are twists, adventures, tragedy, heartfelt discussions, meeting allies and finding sanctuary all in one novel. The book raises very simple yet astounding questions about gender, sexual identity, religion, upbringing and domestic abuse- which can happen even without physical violence.

This book will make you sob, question the life you have been leading, cheering for every small victory and rooting for the father-son duo at every step of the way. All the characters are well established and morally gray- which helps build the realism in the story.

The epilogue is a chef's kiss and I had to spend quite some time reflecting on the journey this book took me on. Absolutely recommended!

P.S. the title deserves a special mention because it is about the adventures of Robin and King Richard (the father is called Richard) 🥺❤️

[Luna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wanna start this review off by stating that this book was very emotional and at times heavy. In a good way. Raw, honest and overall powerful.

Definitely a book that I’ll think about for a long time.

Please read CW. This book covers gender, sexual identity, religion, and domestic abuse. It makes you sit there and also question a lot of these things while you’re reading it. At least it did for me.

The way I sobbed reading this. Truly an amazing book. A book that makes you feel so much, is a good book.

I think everyone should read this book, especially if you are a LGBTQ+ ally and have loved ones whom are part of the community. To love is to be educated on hard truths and experiences you may never be able to understand. Especially given where our society is today.

The epilogue was perfection. I just wish I could have seen more of Arthur’s HEA.

THIS IS ARTÚR FAYES DEBUT. Like to me that’s crazy because how beautifully written it was. Absolutely no complaints. I highly recommend ✨

[P A-S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved the bones of this book - a not too unrealistic parallel or near future society in the US where Christian extremism is the cultural and legal norm, a child struggling to understand their feelings around their gender, and parents who disagree on how to support their child. Given how our society is today, this is a compelling and relatable story!

As I read, I found myself wishing the book was longer! (The book was a bit shorter than the average novel, but also longer than a novella.) At times it felt a bit rushed, and I wanted the pacing to slow down so I could be more present in the story. I just wanted more - I wanted to get to know the characters more deeply, I wanted to understand their relationships better, I wanted more of the political and social climate.

This is Artúr Faye's first book, and I think he has a good thing going. It's clear that a lot of heart went into this book. I look forward to more from this author!

[Cait Gordon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my heart! I just finished reading The Ballad of Robin and King Richard and want to dissolve into a puddle of tears, and not just the sad kind. The simple-to-read storytelling reveals such depth that goes straight to the feels: religious indoctrination against queer folks, the division of parents where one rejects and one accepts trans folks, the point-of-view of the child who is discovering their gender and that he is not the only one in the world like this, the sacrifices Richard the dad made to keep Robin safe, and the healing that cubed from of found family. I love that there are characters named after those found in the Robin Hood stories too.

I’m probably going to pester my fellow queer friends to read this book because I just gobbled it up. A very important story to be in the world these days too. Highly recommend.

[Ash Berrell]

This book is emotional and heart-wrenching. I could feel Robin’s distress and fear and hope and courage.
It was not entirely what I had expected based on the cover art and title, but a modern setting in America. It touches on religion, politics, sexuality and gender and the way these topics intersect to impact on Robin’s life.
I would love to have seen more of Robin’s happy ending with his new found family, but I’m just relieved that he got his happily ever after.

[Veronica Hooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very emotional and raw. I think it is something that everyone needs to read, especially if a loved one identifies as queer in any sense of the word. This is eye opening for our country and I hope we someday can get to a point where we all love one another for who we are and that we always have the freedom to love whom we choose to love and be who we are without any hate. I’m so happy that Robin found his HEA!! Definitely recommend!

[P McDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a work of art and a much needed insight into the life of a person growing up queer and finding their identity. As a queer person myself so many aspects of this story resonated with my own experiences and I commend the author for laying this story out in its rawest, most true form for the reader to experience too.
A beautiful read, tear jerking and heart warming all in one!
Thank you for sharing this beautiful novel with the world!

[Joyce Fernandez (Prestel)]

DNF at 52%.

I wanted to like this. I wanted to finish. I put it down a couple different times in the hopes that I could jump back in with fresh eyes. BUT, the writing was too simplistic and a lack of some basic dialogue punctuation made it a bit annoying to read.

This perspective is important to better understand for our society. I think it could have been better executed.

[tash · Rating 5 out of 5]

thank you to netgalley and bnf publishing for providing me with this arc of artúr faye's the ballad of robin and king richard!

this was one of the best books i've read this year and ever!! i am lost for words because of how good this book is! i will be thinking about this forever!

[Brooklyn L. Wolves · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book it was beautifully written and the character development was done so well.

[meevreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excuse me while I go silently cry in a fetal position as I try to process my emotions.

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