The Frog Princess and Peter Pan (or, Wendy Darling and the Secret Prince)

The Princess Swap #4

by Kim Bussing

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Retellings, Fairy Tales, Adventure, Magic, Fiction

336 pages, Paperback

Published July 7, 2026

About the author

Kim Bussing is an award-winning author of fairy tales for adults and children. Books in her middle-grade series, THE PRINCESS SWAP, have been selected as Amazon Editor's Picks, featured as both Barnes & Noble and Publisher's Weekly New & Notable picks, and have been included on the Kids Indie Next List by the American Booksellers Association.

When she's not writing, you can find her at a bookstore (unsurprisingly), attempting to bake macarons, or listening to Broadway soundtracks.

You can find her online at her website or on Instagram.

Reviews

[emyrose8 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, I really liked this one in the end. It took a while to get hooked by the story (pun intended), but once I did, I thoroughly enjoyed it and couldn't put it down. It has elements of many fairy tales, some Peter Pan and the Frog Princess, but lesser known ones like Baba Yaga too. This book has a slightly different vibe than others in the series, a deeper thread of maturity and deep abiding grief that really impact character growth. Wowza. Realistic. True. I'm sure kids aren't going to love that part of the story, but I thought it was lovely in a bittersweet way. The plot kept me guessing and the epilogue makes me want book #5 right away. A couple hints were dropped about the fairy tales involved - 12 dancing princesses and the swan princess perhaps???

[L Tolbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner in the Princess Swap series! I love how Kim reimagines the fairytales we all know and weaves their stories together. My students will also love this story!

[Sirah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wendy Darling does not want to go to boarding school: she wants to go to Neverland and have all her wildest dreams come true, including finding her mother and living happily ever after. Little does she know that the princess of Neverland is hiding in a swamp, cursed to turn into a frog every night and unsure how to find a prince who will rescue her. The two simultaneously set off on adventures to find what they want and end up tangled in each other's stories.

Small rant: what's with children's fantasy and never letting the antagonist die? I mean, come on, it's not unreasonable that there might be more than one evil person on the planet, why do we have to keep recycling the same ones over and over? Boring. And I know this book is not setting out to be diverse, but the whiteness and amatonormativity are kind of starting to seem off-putting now that we're 4 books in.
But otherwise, this was a really fun read. I liked getting to see Peter and Wendy as well as the frog princess in a little different light. The fairy godfather is always a fun addition, and I really liked getting to see a huge variety of magical settings. The character arcs were well done, and the ending came together splendidly. I enjoy Kim Bussing's writing style in this series, and I'll be looking forward to more books in this series if she can find more princesses to swap. (But would it be too much to ask for one of them to be a person of color, disabled, or queer?)

[Holly Kocher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very fun. I love this series in general because I love fairytales, and the art of twisting them into something new and shining. I cannot pick favorites between all four books, but this one was very possibly more enjoyable to read than some of the others. Whether because of an undiscovered favoritism or simply because of the emotional stage of summer, I do not know. But nevertheless it was wonderful!

[Blue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic, super fun and spunky! Kim Bussing has a real talent and I enjoy each new book even more than the previous one! I keep coming back for more!

[Jacqueline · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[brianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

i love a good peter pan interpretation

[Rachel Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

so so so cute. also, huge fan of kid’s books having sprayed edges 👌🏻 more of this everywhere, pls

[Thomas C · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is delightful!

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute! I love the covers and sprayed edges in this series. Looking forward to reading more of them, as it sounds like the series isn't finished.

[Kristina Polino · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️ rounded up