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This Knight Topples Empires
Not yet published
Expected 3 Nov 26In this raucous, tongue-in-cheek fairy-tale retelling from the author of This Princess Kills Monsters, a knight embarks on an adventure to thwart an invasion, save the most beautiful woman in the world, and finally get away from their sisters.
Jules is tired of running low-stakes errands with their five magically mismatched sisters, whose skills include killing plants, inducing sneezing, and making smaller windows … slightly larger. Blessed with a poorly controlled ability to make flowers bloom, Jules longs for a mission where they can actually prove themself. And when the siblings stumble upon a rival kingdom’s plot to overthrow their royal family, Jules sees an opportunity.
What follows is a whirlwind of botched disguises, accidental heroics, talking animals with surprisingly strong opinions, and one very inconvenient crush on the most sought-after princess in the land. And through all this, Jules learns that happy endings are indeed possible, even if you’re not quite Prince Charming. A cozy yet epic retelling of a Romanian fairy-tale, This Knight Topples Empires proves that the greatest victories of all are love and self-acceptance.
Jules is tired of running low-stakes errands with their five magically mismatched sisters, whose skills include killing plants, inducing sneezing, and making smaller windows … slightly larger. Blessed with a poorly controlled ability to make flowers bloom, Jules longs for a mission where they can actually prove themself. And when the siblings stumble upon a rival kingdom’s plot to overthrow their royal family, Jules sees an opportunity.
What follows is a whirlwind of botched disguises, accidental heroics, talking animals with surprisingly strong opinions, and one very inconvenient crush on the most sought-after princess in the land. And through all this, Jules learns that happy endings are indeed possible, even if you’re not quite Prince Charming. A cozy yet epic retelling of a Romanian fairy-tale, This Knight Topples Empires proves that the greatest victories of all are love and self-acceptance.
Kindle Edition
Expected publication November 3, 2026
About the author
Ry Herman
6 books273 followersRy Herman is the author of This Princess Kills Monsters, Love Bites, and Bleeding Hearts. Born in the US, they are now a permanent Scottish resident. Ry is bisexual and genderqueer.
Their upcoming book, This Knight Topples Empires, is a raucous, tongue-in-cheek spin on the Romanian fairy tale "The Girl Who Pretended to Be a Boy". A knight attempts to thwart an invasion only to get caught in a whirlwind of botched disguises, accidental heroics, talking animals with surprisingly strong opinions, and one very inconvenient crush on the most sought-after princess in the land.
Ry has worked at a variety of jobs, including submissions editor, theatre technician, and one job which could best be described as typing the number five all day long. Ry acts and directs, and has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Their hobbies include baking bread, playing tabletop roleplaying games, and reading as many books as humanly possible.
Their upcoming book, This Knight Topples Empires, is a raucous, tongue-in-cheek spin on the Romanian fairy tale "The Girl Who Pretended to Be a Boy". A knight attempts to thwart an invasion only to get caught in a whirlwind of botched disguises, accidental heroics, talking animals with surprisingly strong opinions, and one very inconvenient crush on the most sought-after princess in the land.
Ry has worked at a variety of jobs, including submissions editor, theatre technician, and one job which could best be described as typing the number five all day long. Ry acts and directs, and has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Their hobbies include baking bread, playing tabletop roleplaying games, and reading as many books as humanly possible.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
they-told-me-to-read-it
May 6, 2026
Want to Read
March 25, 2026Ohmyhgoshhh, let’s hope that this book is just as good as "This princess kills monsters" because I absolutely need more of that energy in my life and I’m not emotionally prepared for anything less.
remind-me-once-out
May 7, 2026WHAT?? WHEN??? WHO???
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This is a semi-sequel to Herman’s 2025 fantasy novel, This Princess Kills Monsters, focusing on Jules, one of the six siblings from the first book and who is fairy-blessed/cursed to make flowering plants grow. Much like the first book, this reimagines various fairy and folktales alongside the main retelling of “The Girl Who Became A Boy” through a queer and feminist lens with the tone and energy of The Princess Bride and the Shrek franchise. I found this second outing to be somewhat denser than the first book, partly because of Jules’ more introspective POV and also because of what I felt like was one too many plotlines.
I really enjoyed Jules as the main character and appreciated the way Herman wove their backstory into the progress of the story. Functionally, Jules acts as the straight person to a large cast of funny folks, but they themselves are not free from hijinks and goofy decision-making. I found their gender and sexuality journey to be relatable on a personal level, and I appreciated how other characters helped Jules navigate what is really a journey of self-discovery. There’s a lot of the same thematic story beats as the first book, but there’s sufficient difference in their contents. I particularly liked the dungeon scene where Jules manipulates plants to try to break a hostage free.
The central plot with the Red Emperor is clearly a more lighthearted commentary on our times, and it’s fairly easy to map the Red Emperor and his grand vizier onto various world leaders. I was, however, more interested in the numerous (and I mean numerous) side plots and the relationship Jules has with others as these are the heart of the novel. The Red Emperor plot was both overly predictable and hamfisted, and I never really felt any narrative tension or urgency to resolve it—and neither do the characters involved, really. This unfortunately makes for a satisfying but mediocre ending. As this book is going to be published at the beginning of November, it might be what some folks need: not a total escape from the reality we live in, but one that offers hope for better outcomes.
Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing this ARC.
I really enjoyed Jules as the main character and appreciated the way Herman wove their backstory into the progress of the story. Functionally, Jules acts as the straight person to a large cast of funny folks, but they themselves are not free from hijinks and goofy decision-making. I found their gender and sexuality journey to be relatable on a personal level, and I appreciated how other characters helped Jules navigate what is really a journey of self-discovery. There’s a lot of the same thematic story beats as the first book, but there’s sufficient difference in their contents. I particularly liked the dungeon scene where Jules manipulates plants to try to break a hostage free.
The central plot with the Red Emperor is clearly a more lighthearted commentary on our times, and it’s fairly easy to map the Red Emperor and his grand vizier onto various world leaders. I was, however, more interested in the numerous (and I mean numerous) side plots and the relationship Jules has with others as these are the heart of the novel. The Red Emperor plot was both overly predictable and hamfisted, and I never really felt any narrative tension or urgency to resolve it—and neither do the characters involved, really. This unfortunately makes for a satisfying but mediocre ending. As this book is going to be published at the beginning of November, it might be what some folks need: not a total escape from the reality we live in, but one that offers hope for better outcomes.
Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing this ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
3.5 stars
Jules is on a journey to stand out and save the day, that's kind of hard to do when you're one of six identical siblings. It's made even harder by the fact that Jules depends on one of them to not die every time they go to sleep.
In this story we follow Jules trying to navigate the intricacies of a functioning dysfunctional family. There's a talking horse with an abundance of sass, there is political intrigue and trying to track down assassins. Jules decides to Mulan their way into an army and the quest that snowballs from there is so much fun.
This book really leans into discovering non-binary sexuality and the absurd humor of the logic of fairy tales. It's a fun story and is well written but the characters lack the depth of the first book. Near the end we really get a look into who these characters are underneath the surface of their abilities and limitations.
I really love the author's note and getting an inside look into Ry Herman's research and inspiration process. It's so interesting to see all the different myths and folklores that contribute to this story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Jules is on a journey to stand out and save the day, that's kind of hard to do when you're one of six identical siblings. It's made even harder by the fact that Jules depends on one of them to not die every time they go to sleep.
In this story we follow Jules trying to navigate the intricacies of a functioning dysfunctional family. There's a talking horse with an abundance of sass, there is political intrigue and trying to track down assassins. Jules decides to Mulan their way into an army and the quest that snowballs from there is so much fun.
This book really leans into discovering non-binary sexuality and the absurd humor of the logic of fairy tales. It's a fun story and is well written but the characters lack the depth of the first book. Near the end we really get a look into who these characters are underneath the surface of their abilities and limitations.
I really love the author's note and getting an inside look into Ry Herman's research and inspiration process. It's so interesting to see all the different myths and folklores that contribute to this story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Want to Read
July 4, 2026🛡️🌸 This Knight Topples Empires 🌸🛡️
📖 Bookish Thoughts
Eek! So excited for this one!!! My full review will be shared closer to the publication date.
✨ What to Expect
• Cozy Fantasy
• LGBTQ+ Rep
• Found Family
• Quest Adventure
• Princess Romance
• Talking Animals
_ _ _ _
📅 Pub Date: November 3, 2026
Thank you to Random House, Dial Press Trade Paperback, and NetGalley for the advanced copy.
📖 Bookish Thoughts
Eek! So excited for this one!!! My full review will be shared closer to the publication date.
✨ What to Expect
• Cozy Fantasy
• LGBTQ+ Rep
• Found Family
• Quest Adventure
• Princess Romance
• Talking Animals
_ _ _ _
📅 Pub Date: November 3, 2026
Thank you to Random House, Dial Press Trade Paperback, and NetGalley for the advanced copy.
Read
July 2, 2026I received a free copy from Dial Press (Random House) via Netgalley in exchange for a fair review. Release date November 3rd, 2026.
Review held until November 3rd by request of the publisher.
Review held until November 3rd by request of the publisher.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews