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Return to the Four Kingdoms #3
The Desert Princess
Cassie knows she was made for more than a life buried away in her uncle’s remote forest estate. Eager to meet the great spymaster, Aurora, she jumps at the chance to travel to her distant kingdom. But meeting Aurora isn’t enough—Cassie wants to prove her worth. So when she’s presented with an opportunity to gather intelligence, she acts.
When her plans go awry, Cassie finds herself living on the streets in a distant city. But despite the passing years, she hasn’t given up on her dream. Kingdom-shaking danger is brewing in these lands, and if she can save them—and the Four Kingdoms with them—Aurora will have to offer her a position in her network. Cassie won’t let anything stand in her way—not the biting heat of the desert, not the prince who keeps showing up at inconvenient moments, not the layers of secrets hiding beneath the surface of her new home.
In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, Aladdin, a girl from the streets must work with a prince if she wants to rescue herself and save both their lands as well.
If you enjoy clean romance, adventure, and intrigue, then try the books in the Return to the Four Kingdoms series now! These interconnected fairy tale retellings each feature a different heroine who finds herself friendless in a strange land and who must fight to save her new home and win her happily ever after.
When her plans go awry, Cassie finds herself living on the streets in a distant city. But despite the passing years, she hasn’t given up on her dream. Kingdom-shaking danger is brewing in these lands, and if she can save them—and the Four Kingdoms with them—Aurora will have to offer her a position in her network. Cassie won’t let anything stand in her way—not the biting heat of the desert, not the prince who keeps showing up at inconvenient moments, not the layers of secrets hiding beneath the surface of her new home.
In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, Aladdin, a girl from the streets must work with a prince if she wants to rescue herself and save both their lands as well.
If you enjoy clean romance, adventure, and intrigue, then try the books in the Return to the Four Kingdoms series now! These interconnected fairy tale retellings each feature a different heroine who finds herself friendless in a strange land and who must fight to save her new home and win her happily ever after.
298 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 27, 2021
182 people are currently reading
1381 people want to read
About the author
Melanie Cellier
126 books2,742 followersMelanie Cellier grew up on a staple diet of books, books and more books. And although she got older, she never stopped loving children’s and young adult novels.
She always wanted to write one herself, but it took three careers and three different continents before she actually managed it.
She now feels incredibly fortunate to spend her time writing from her home in Adelaide, Australia where she keeps an eye out for koalas in her backyard. Her staple diet hasn’t changed much, although she’s added choc mint Rooibos tea and Chicken Crimpies to the list.
She writes young adult fantasy including her Spoken Mage series, and her Four Kingdoms and Beyond the Four Kingdoms series which are made up of linked stand-alone stories that retell classic fairy tales.
She now feels incredibly fortunate to spend her time writing from her home in Adelaide, Australia where she keeps an eye out for koalas in her backyard. Her staple diet hasn’t changed much, although she’s added choc mint Rooibos tea and Chicken Crimpies to the list.
She writes young adult fantasy including her Spoken Mage series, and her Four Kingdoms and Beyond the Four Kingdoms series which are made up of linked stand-alone stories that retell classic fairy tales.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 146 reviews
March 21, 2025
Around 4 stars.
I honestly didn’t even remember who Cassie was when I started reading this book. 😅 I truly didn’t remember her at all even by the end of this book. In my defense, there’s a lot of characters and side characters throughout these series.
Mysterious handsome young man in a foreign country who can’t see injustice happen and who is protective? Must be the prince. I don’t make the rules, I just enjoy them. 🤷🏻♀️😁 She was a bit of a ninny about this, I found my eye rolling at her “he’s pretending to be a prince?!” Honey bunny, no, he’s not pretending at all. 🫠 (Thankfully she didn't think that for long.)
It was a bit slow to me for the first half, but once we hit the 50% mark, it started to pick up. I ended up really enjoying that last half and seeing everything come to play. I did see the twist towards the end coming, but it was still good.
It’s so weird to see the other characters from the first series in their 30s with kids now. I like it, don’t get me wrong, but it’s so different than normal but because this is such a connecting series it works. It’s so cute to see the girls from this series look up to the girls in the first and second series. 🥹
No godmother shows up in this one, which might be the first one out of the whole series line?
Welp, I’ve stayed up too late reading this book, but it was fun despite the slow start.
Main Content-
Unlike the prior books in the series line-up, there's mentions of godmothers but no visits from them and their enchanted objects; There is, however, plenty of mentions of a lamp and piles of gold that have enchantments on them and Cassie thinks they must be from godmothers a loooong time ago; The lamp and rings that are connected to the lamp are able to make others swear their loyalty to the owner & do their bidding (we see this on-page including when others disappear and come back out of nowhere; Also gives the person the urge to do something for the owner and *Spoiler*); Cassie feels like a godmother lead her to the group; A few mentions of a curse (Book #3 in the second series); A mention of the High King & the Palace of Light; Cassie calls her curiosity a "besetting sin"; A mention of trusting the magic lamp.
Being held at knife point and threatened, chased, attacked, & held captive; Pain & Passing out (after smelling something); Seeing two deaths (up to a few sentences); Cassie breaks-into a house; Cassie has a couple moments similar to a panic attack when in a tight space.
Mentions of bodies, deaths, & grief (including that Cassie's parents died when she was young in an accident that killed her aunt as well, she doesn't remember any of them); Mentions of possible deaths (from accidents in caves or being trapped in a cave); Mentions of possible wars, armies, treason, & someone having deadly poison to threaten other countries; Mentions of fighting, attacks, being chased, killers, etc. (up to a few sentences); Mentions of cave-ins, pain, injuries, blood/bleeding, & broken bones; Mentions of a break-in, stealing, stolen items, & thieves; Mentions of lies, lying, & deceit; Mentions of manipulation & hatred; Mentions of sibling bitterness & jealousy; A few mentions of a criminal preying on children; A few mentions of running away from home; A few mentions of a donkey almost being whipped; A couple mentions of executions; A couple mentions of a child being pushed around by an adult; A mention of slitting throats; A mention of the carcass of a goat; A mention of drinks.
No major language; A cut-off 'what in the--' is said once; Some curses from villains and their minions (but not written on page); Eye rolling & some sarcasm.
Cassie notices a guy staring at her lips,
1 nose kiss,
2 kisses lasting a sentence,
2 kisses lasting a couple sentences,
Touches, Nearness, Sparks, Hand holding, & Butterflies (up to a few sentences); Attraction, Blushes, Noticing, & Staring (up to a few sentences); Falling in love; A few mentions of kisses & kissing; A few mentions of a mother in childbirth & the father blaming the baby.
See my content reviews of the rest of the series & spin-off series here:
The Four Kingdoms series:
Book #1, Book #2, Book #2.2, Book #2.5, Book #3, Book #3.5, Book #4, and Book #5.
Beyond the Four Kingdoms series:
Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, and Book #6.
Return to the Four Kingdoms series:
Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, and Book #6.
The Four Kingdoms Duology:
Book #1 and Book #2.
I honestly didn’t even remember who Cassie was when I started reading this book. 😅 I truly didn’t remember her at all even by the end of this book. In my defense, there’s a lot of characters and side characters throughout these series.
Mysterious handsome young man in a foreign country who can’t see injustice happen and who is protective? Must be the prince. I don’t make the rules, I just enjoy them. 🤷🏻♀️😁 She was a bit of a ninny about this, I found my eye rolling at her “he’s pretending to be a prince?!” Honey bunny, no, he’s not pretending at all. 🫠 (Thankfully she didn't think that for long.)
It was a bit slow to me for the first half, but once we hit the 50% mark, it started to pick up. I ended up really enjoying that last half and seeing everything come to play. I did see the twist towards the end coming, but it was still good.
It’s so weird to see the other characters from the first series in their 30s with kids now. I like it, don’t get me wrong, but it’s so different than normal but because this is such a connecting series it works. It’s so cute to see the girls from this series look up to the girls in the first and second series. 🥹
No godmother shows up in this one, which might be the first one out of the whole series line?
Welp, I’ve stayed up too late reading this book, but it was fun despite the slow start.
Main Content-
Unlike the prior books in the series line-up, there's mentions of godmothers but no visits from them and their enchanted objects; There is, however, plenty of mentions of a lamp and piles of gold that have enchantments on them and Cassie thinks they must be from godmothers a loooong time ago; The lamp and rings that are connected to the lamp are able to make others swear their loyalty to the owner & do their bidding (we see this on-page including when others disappear and come back out of nowhere; Also gives the person the urge to do something for the owner and *Spoiler*); Cassie feels like a godmother lead her to the group; A few mentions of a curse (Book #3 in the second series); A mention of the High King & the Palace of Light; Cassie calls her curiosity a "besetting sin"; A mention of trusting the magic lamp.
Being held at knife point and threatened, chased, attacked, & held captive; Pain & Passing out (after smelling something); Seeing two deaths (up to a few sentences); Cassie breaks-into a house; Cassie has a couple moments similar to a panic attack when in a tight space.
Mentions of bodies, deaths, & grief (including that Cassie's parents died when she was young in an accident that killed her aunt as well, she doesn't remember any of them); Mentions of possible deaths (from accidents in caves or being trapped in a cave); Mentions of possible wars, armies, treason, & someone having deadly poison to threaten other countries; Mentions of fighting, attacks, being chased, killers, etc. (up to a few sentences); Mentions of cave-ins, pain, injuries, blood/bleeding, & broken bones; Mentions of a break-in, stealing, stolen items, & thieves; Mentions of lies, lying, & deceit; Mentions of manipulation & hatred; Mentions of sibling bitterness & jealousy; A few mentions of a criminal preying on children; A few mentions of running away from home; A few mentions of a donkey almost being whipped; A couple mentions of executions; A couple mentions of a child being pushed around by an adult; A mention of slitting throats; A mention of the carcass of a goat; A mention of drinks.
No major language; A cut-off 'what in the--' is said once; Some curses from villains and their minions (but not written on page); Eye rolling & some sarcasm.
Cassie notices a guy staring at her lips,
1 nose kiss,
2 kisses lasting a sentence,
2 kisses lasting a couple sentences,
Touches, Nearness, Sparks, Hand holding, & Butterflies (up to a few sentences); Attraction, Blushes, Noticing, & Staring (up to a few sentences); Falling in love; A few mentions of kisses & kissing; A few mentions of a mother in childbirth & the father blaming the baby.
See my content reviews of the rest of the series & spin-off series here:
The Four Kingdoms series:
Book #1, Book #2, Book #2.2, Book #2.5, Book #3, Book #3.5, Book #4, and Book #5.
Beyond the Four Kingdoms series:
Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, and Book #6.
Return to the Four Kingdoms series:
Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, Book #4, Book #5, and Book #6.
The Four Kingdoms Duology:
Book #1 and Book #2.
May 15, 2025
I really liked Cassie and her arc, the kids were wonderful, and Zaid was so wonderful! and I definitely did not guess the final twist!
December 15, 2022
I adore all of this author's books, and her books are always an auto-buy. But this book ended up even more of a delight! This might just be one of my favorites among the various fairy tale retellings!
This imaginative retelling of Aladdin has enough similarities to be recognizable, but doesn't tie itself too tightly to the details of the original tale.
Cassie is such a great female character. She is strong, but her strength comes from her perseverance and her cleverness rather than any skill with arms or physical strength. I loved that she is short and small! As someone who is short and small myself, I COMPLETELY understand the whole getting mistaken for years younger than you are ALL THE TIME!
Zaid is so swoonworthy and the whole gang of orphans was great! I loved all the unfolding clues of the conspiracy, and even I didn't guess the final reveal until it happened.
The storyworld expands yet again in this book, and I loved getting a new kingdom to explore. I'm SO excited for The Golden Princess and I can't wait to read more in this new corner of the world of the Four Kingdoms!
This imaginative retelling of Aladdin has enough similarities to be recognizable, but doesn't tie itself too tightly to the details of the original tale.
Cassie is such a great female character. She is strong, but her strength comes from her perseverance and her cleverness rather than any skill with arms or physical strength. I loved that she is short and small! As someone who is short and small myself, I COMPLETELY understand the whole getting mistaken for years younger than you are ALL THE TIME!
Zaid is so swoonworthy and the whole gang of orphans was great! I loved all the unfolding clues of the conspiracy, and even I didn't guess the final reveal until it happened.
The storyworld expands yet again in this book, and I loved getting a new kingdom to explore. I'm SO excited for The Golden Princess and I can't wait to read more in this new corner of the world of the Four Kingdoms!
February 3, 2022
This is Young Adult/Retelling. I loved the cover. Beautiful. This felt like it was more for preteen. I've read one other book by this author and I felt the same about that one as I did for this one. If I had to choose one over the other, I liked this one slightly more than the other one.
This author writes creative retellings. I like that. The main issue I have is the lack of tension between good and evil. All the characters are just so perfect, always trying to do their best and always with the best intentions. They needed some flaws to give realistic life to them. So 3 stars.
This author writes creative retellings. I like that. The main issue I have is the lack of tension between good and evil. All the characters are just so perfect, always trying to do their best and always with the best intentions. They needed some flaws to give realistic life to them. So 3 stars.
August 28, 2021
Ah what
😂 I love all of Melanie Cellier's retellings but I have some mixed feelings about some of this... Overall though, really enjoyed this installment and can't wait for the next one!
Aaaaand now I'm struck with the urge to reread The Princess Game and A Crown of Snow and Ice...
😂 I love all of Melanie Cellier's retellings but I have some mixed feelings about some of this... Overall though, really enjoyed this installment and can't wait for the next one!
Aaaaand now I'm struck with the urge to reread The Princess Game and A Crown of Snow and Ice...
June 30, 2023
For a woman wanting to be a spy, Cassie sure is impulsive and unthinking.
June 10, 2022
Yet another enthralling story by Melanie Cellier!!!
Right from her debut novel, the author never fails to surprise and captivate me with her writing.
I absolutely loved Cassie's story and would very highly recommend it to all adventure, fairy tale lovers.
Right from her debut novel, the author never fails to surprise and captivate me with her writing.
I absolutely loved Cassie's story and would very highly recommend it to all adventure, fairy tale lovers.
August 21, 2023
I've read a lot of fairytale retellings and I would consider myself quite well-versed on the topic.
But this is the first time I've come across an Aladdin retelling (if you know of others please point me in their direction!).
And lemme tell you, it did not disappoint!
I mentioned in a previous review that these were getting a little formulaic, but Cellier still manages to come up with a unique story and outline for each one.
This one is by far the most unique and I was totally absorbed by the conflict and I think the romantic development was a little more natural in this one.
Zaidie for the win!!!
But this is the first time I've come across an Aladdin retelling (if you know of others please point me in their direction!).
And lemme tell you, it did not disappoint!
I mentioned in a previous review that these were getting a little formulaic, but Cellier still manages to come up with a unique story and outline for each one.
This one is by far the most unique and I was totally absorbed by the conflict and I think the romantic development was a little more natural in this one.
Zaidie for the win!!!
October 2, 2021
3 things I liked about this book:
1. Cassie. I love intelligent heroines more than ones who solve their problems with violence.
2. The new kingdom! In my Mystery Princess review, I mentioned I was confused because the original book description mentioned a prince and I didn't know who that could be. Well, now I do. :)
3. The last two-thirds of the book were very action packed and kept me reading.
3 things I disliked about this book:
1. The first part was a bit slow and dragged on for a little bit longer than I would have liked.
2. As someone else mentioned, there were quite a few typos than usual for these books.
3. "In a world populated by people" (yes this is an actual line)
Overall, I enjoyed this book and can't wait for the next one (coming out next year! Ugh why do I have to wait so long?).
1. Cassie. I love intelligent heroines more than ones who solve their problems with violence.
2. The new kingdom! In my Mystery Princess review, I mentioned I was confused because the original book description mentioned a prince and I didn't know who that could be. Well, now I do. :)
3. The last two-thirds of the book were very action packed and kept me reading.
3 things I disliked about this book:
1. The first part was a bit slow and dragged on for a little bit longer than I would have liked.
2. As someone else mentioned, there were quite a few typos than usual for these books.
3. "In a world populated by people" (yes this is an actual line)
Overall, I enjoyed this book and can't wait for the next one (coming out next year! Ugh why do I have to wait so long?).
March 24, 2024
Ok, the cover itself is a 6/5⭐️
This story was just so amazing. Some of the beginning and a moment at the end was a bit wonky, but the story was beautiful. I love the way Zaid cares for Cassie, and they both had lessons to learn in subtle ways. Cassie was spunky, but she grew on me a lot. When I read familiar parts, I started singing some of the songs from the 2019 Aladdin. So good!! And we got a whole new world!?!!! Everything about this book was just *chefs kiss*
And once again, THAT COVER!!
Content: minor violence, minor magic (similar to Disney), a few not detailed kisses, a specific medicine used to make people sleep or can be deadly
This story was just so amazing. Some of the beginning and a moment at the end was a bit wonky, but the story was beautiful. I love the way Zaid cares for Cassie, and they both had lessons to learn in subtle ways. Cassie was spunky, but she grew on me a lot. When I read familiar parts, I started singing some of the songs from the 2019 Aladdin. So good!! And we got a whole new world!?!!! Everything about this book was just *chefs kiss*
And once again, THAT COVER!!
Content: minor violence, minor magic (similar to Disney), a few not detailed kisses, a specific medicine used to make people sleep or can be deadly
Read
September 23, 2021I'm torn on this one. I loved the way she retold Aladdin (it can be tricky and I've read some not so great ones), but the romance in this one was not up to the usual standard I've come to expect from this series.
January 27, 2023
4.5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!! Great Aladdin retelling. So unique! I love all the similarities, but differences at the same time!! The way the lamp was used was amazing!!
March 27, 2022
Ahh this book was so good!!! I adore fantasy books set in the desert and Aladdin retellings, so obviously I loved this one! 🤩 And I can say with absolute honesty that this is the most unique Aladdin retelling I’ve ever read. The way Melanie incorporated the elements of the original fairytale while making it completely unique and different (I mean having slaves to the lamp instead of a genie, how original is that??) was so wonderful to read!!
I looved the cast of characters and the twists with them! They were all so fun, and I love how they acted together. Cassie was so fun and Zaid so sweet! 😍
I love the atmosphere, vibes, clothing, and culture of a desert book, and this one did not disappoint on that!! It was all so tastefully written, especially the part with the *ahem* trees and fruit. If you’ve read it you know what I mean. 😂😍
Melanie Cellier is my favorite retelling author by far and I can’t wait for more in this series!! 😆
I looved the cast of characters and the twists with them! They were all so fun, and I love how they acted together. Cassie was so fun and Zaid so sweet! 😍
I love the atmosphere, vibes, clothing, and culture of a desert book, and this one did not disappoint on that!! It was all so tastefully written, especially the part with the *ahem* trees and fruit. If you’ve read it you know what I mean. 😂😍
Melanie Cellier is my favorite retelling author by far and I can’t wait for more in this series!! 😆
January 4, 2022
This is book #3 in the series and I am hoping there will be a book 4 as we need to know what happens to the last missing girl. I really liked Cassie’s character and the way she mapped and filed things in her mind. I also liked her kindness and her humor. There were some ‘that was convenient” situation but how she handled the moments was intriguing. There was some suspense situations and some tender moments. I did not have the end figured out until about the same time the characters did and it was hard to put the book down as there were a number of different challenges going on. Definitely worth reading.
October 3, 2023
This one took me longer to read. I had a hard time getting into the story. Cassie isn’t a favorite, but I enjoyed it more once it started becoming an Aladdin story.
November 11, 2024
My favorite of this series! Definitely my favorite Alladin retelling.
October 29, 2022
Great Aladin retelling. It hit all the important beats from the original and the disney movie while providing its own plot.
August 18, 2024
*4.5
Content Rating: 5/5
Theme Rating: 5/5
Age Rating: 11+ Some romance, but perfectly appropriate!
I enjoyed this book more than I remembered enjoying it the first time I read it! It was so fun and full of so. many. secrets. So many! I liked the Aladdin parallels- I'm not super familiar with even the Disney version but I still caught some- and Zaid was such a great love interest!
Character wise, I loved Cassie, though I did get frustrated with her not just telling these people she trusts because it would make her life easier Like, girl! I liked Kayla and Selina too, and I thought the dynamic between the qaleri was really interesting, even given the circumstances. The messy tendencies of some of them had me cracking up. Zaid was my favorite, though. The way he constantly checked on the qaleri and Cassie was so cool...
Overall, this was such a great book! I really enjoyed it, thought it was so fun, and loved all the new aspects introduced!!!
Content Rating: 5/5
Theme Rating: 5/5
Age Rating: 11+ Some romance, but perfectly appropriate!
I enjoyed this book more than I remembered enjoying it the first time I read it! It was so fun and full of so. many. secrets. So many! I liked the Aladdin parallels- I'm not super familiar with even the Disney version but I still caught some- and Zaid was such a great love interest!
Character wise, I loved Cassie, though I did get frustrated with her not just telling these people she trusts because it would make her life easier Like, girl! I liked Kayla and Selina too, and I thought the dynamic between the qaleri was really interesting, even given the circumstances. The messy tendencies of some of them had me cracking up. Zaid was my favorite, though. The way he constantly checked on the qaleri and Cassie was so cool...
Overall, this was such a great book! I really enjoyed it, thought it was so fun, and loved all the new aspects introduced!!!
August 27, 2021
Another excellent fairy tale retelling!
I'll keep the review short because I feel rather repetitive, but I loved the book! I'll admit I wasn't a fan of the romance, not because it was toxic or awful but just cause it was....standard? Ignoring that, I liked almost every other aspect of the book! Characters were colorful, pacing was well done as usual, and the retelling part was done so well. I also loved the expansion of the world building. Always did want to know what was across the desert... :) Oh, and I do feel this needs pointing out since I complained about it before, but the balance between exposition and action was really well done.
Asides from that, not much to complain about. This was a well done read, like most of Cellier's works. However, I did love the sultana a lot. Even if she only got 2 short scenes...xD
Content: there is a little violence but nothing gruesome, a suicide of sorts, and no language or iffy content besides an innocent kiss
I'll keep the review short because I feel rather repetitive, but I loved the book! I'll admit I wasn't a fan of the romance, not because it was toxic or awful but just cause it was....standard? Ignoring that, I liked almost every other aspect of the book! Characters were colorful, pacing was well done as usual, and the retelling part was done so well. I also loved the expansion of the world building. Always did want to know what was across the desert... :) Oh, and I do feel this needs pointing out since I complained about it before, but the balance between exposition and action was really well done.
Asides from that, not much to complain about. This was a well done read, like most of Cellier's works. However, I did love the sultana a lot. Even if she only got 2 short scenes...xD
Content: there is a little violence but nothing gruesome, a suicide of sorts, and no language or iffy content besides an innocent kiss
Want to read
August 30, 2021Nominated for a 2021 Swoony Award, to vote click here: https://tinyurl.com/y593ce67
September 5, 2021
Melanie Cellier is the author who introduced me to the wide world of indie authors with her first fairy tale retelling, The Princess Companion. Since then, she has written roughly a dozen more adaptations of classic fairy tales set in the same world of fairy godmothers and true love. The most recent of these is The Desert Princess. After reading so many books from the world of the Four Kingdoms already, it's a little difficult to experience a new book from these series that feels fresh and exciting. The prospect of a gender-bent "Aladdin" retelling is nothing new, but I was eager to see Melanie's unique take on it. However, this adaptation did not add any new developments to her many other fairy tale retellings set in this world. If you have never read another Melanie Cellier book before, this is a good introduction to her storytelling style.
It has become a predictable trope for all of Melanie Cellier's fairy tale books to begin with a caravan raid that sends the main character somewhere far from her home and forces her to unmask the ne'er-do-well behind the devilish deeds, especially in the newest Return to the Four Kingdoms series. Oftentimes, the princess or princess-to-be has little interest in uncovering a royal conspiracy and gets hurled into the middle of it by sheer misfortune. That is not the case for The Desert Princess. Cassie is determined from the very beginning to become an intelligencer for Aurora, the codename for the spymaster princess from an earlier book, The Princess Game. A noble maiden who dreams of becoming a spy is an interesting prospect on its own, but in this setting, which is overloaded with princesses of espionage, it's a little too on the nose to have a protagonist who is desperate to cover a conspiracy and then immediately fall into one.
I was hoping that Cassie would spend half the book looking for some sort of problem to solve, only to realize that trouble doesn't find you just because you're looking for it, but that was not the case. Instead, she learns that the bandits she encountered pose a threat to her kingdom, hides in the back of their wagon, and travels to a faraway land that she never knew existed. She meets a group of orphans there who turn out to be the genies in this version of "Aladdin," but in truth, they are ordinary children who are cursed by a magical ring. As much as I like that Melanie incorporated both the ring and the lamp from the fairy tale into this version, the mysterious and majestic nature of the genie character is all by eliminated in this adaptation. The orphans are cared for by a young man named Zaid who Cassie falls for immediately, and then there is an unnecessary time jump of a little over a year before the story finally gets around to truly retelling "Aladdin."
The book takes a while to pick up, and I honestly didn't find the first half very interesting since it felt like every other Four Kingdoms book without any of the aspects that made them unique. When Cassie discovers the Cave of Wonders (though it wasn't called that here) in the second half of the book, the story finally starts to get interesting. The backstory behind the enchanted ring and lamp could easily be a prequel novel and adds a healthy amount of worldbuilding to this new desert kingdom. Once she discovers the lamp, Cassie undergoes a magical princess transformation to take down the wicked vizier, and there are a few more twists that I won't spoil in this review. I'm not sure why it was necessary for Cassie to be in this foreign kingdom for over a year before she found what she was looking for. The book would have been better if it started closer to the second half of the story.
Overall, The Desert Princess is quite possibly the most generic Four Kingdoms book of the three series set in this world. It wastes no time foreshadowing the protagonist's ability to uncover conspiracies and driving her into one headfirst. It's a decent enough book as a standalone but has nothing new to offer this series as a whole. I don't think that's entirely Melanie Cellier's fault, though, as she has already written so many other fairy tale retellings in this world that she was bound to run out of ideas eventually. This book serves as a good introduction to her Four Kingdoms series if you don't want to start all the way at the beginning with The Princess Companion, but if you are looking for an inspired "Aladdin" retelling that adds depth and intrigue to the lore of the djinn, you would best look elsewhere.
It has become a predictable trope for all of Melanie Cellier's fairy tale books to begin with a caravan raid that sends the main character somewhere far from her home and forces her to unmask the ne'er-do-well behind the devilish deeds, especially in the newest Return to the Four Kingdoms series. Oftentimes, the princess or princess-to-be has little interest in uncovering a royal conspiracy and gets hurled into the middle of it by sheer misfortune. That is not the case for The Desert Princess. Cassie is determined from the very beginning to become an intelligencer for Aurora, the codename for the spymaster princess from an earlier book, The Princess Game. A noble maiden who dreams of becoming a spy is an interesting prospect on its own, but in this setting, which is overloaded with princesses of espionage, it's a little too on the nose to have a protagonist who is desperate to cover a conspiracy and then immediately fall into one.
I was hoping that Cassie would spend half the book looking for some sort of problem to solve, only to realize that trouble doesn't find you just because you're looking for it, but that was not the case. Instead, she learns that the bandits she encountered pose a threat to her kingdom, hides in the back of their wagon, and travels to a faraway land that she never knew existed. She meets a group of orphans there who turn out to be the genies in this version of "Aladdin," but in truth, they are ordinary children who are cursed by a magical ring. As much as I like that Melanie incorporated both the ring and the lamp from the fairy tale into this version, the mysterious and majestic nature of the genie character is all by eliminated in this adaptation. The orphans are cared for by a young man named Zaid who Cassie falls for immediately, and then there is an unnecessary time jump of a little over a year before the story finally gets around to truly retelling "Aladdin."
The book takes a while to pick up, and I honestly didn't find the first half very interesting since it felt like every other Four Kingdoms book without any of the aspects that made them unique. When Cassie discovers the Cave of Wonders (though it wasn't called that here) in the second half of the book, the story finally starts to get interesting. The backstory behind the enchanted ring and lamp could easily be a prequel novel and adds a healthy amount of worldbuilding to this new desert kingdom. Once she discovers the lamp, Cassie undergoes a magical princess transformation to take down the wicked vizier, and there are a few more twists that I won't spoil in this review. I'm not sure why it was necessary for Cassie to be in this foreign kingdom for over a year before she found what she was looking for. The book would have been better if it started closer to the second half of the story.
Overall, The Desert Princess is quite possibly the most generic Four Kingdoms book of the three series set in this world. It wastes no time foreshadowing the protagonist's ability to uncover conspiracies and driving her into one headfirst. It's a decent enough book as a standalone but has nothing new to offer this series as a whole. I don't think that's entirely Melanie Cellier's fault, though, as she has already written so many other fairy tale retellings in this world that she was bound to run out of ideas eventually. This book serves as a good introduction to her Four Kingdoms series if you don't want to start all the way at the beginning with The Princess Companion, but if you are looking for an inspired "Aladdin" retelling that adds depth and intrigue to the lore of the djinn, you would best look elsewhere.
May 6, 2023
I'll admit that I'm not even finishing this one. I got about halfway through the book before I stopped, and in that time not a single moment even vaguely resembled the Aladdin story. It was so boring, and a retelling of Aladdin should never be that.
There are a lot of issues I had with this book. Like I said, it was boring. Characters talk about treasure caves and a lamp, and I know from the next book that there is magic in those treasure caves. But the first half of the book is just Cassandra going around in the city or some tunnels under a mountain. And it's so vaguely described that I felt no sense of place. Not to mention the names of the characters are all over the place. Zaid and Malik sounded appropriate enough, but then there was Elias and Kayla. So not even the characters could give a proper sense of place.
I also found it a little odd how the author padded things out for so long by withholding the prince's identity until halfway through the book-- and acted like it was a big surprise. It was almost an insult to the audience. We're here for an Aladdin retelling and we know there's going to be a member of royalty in disguise/running around with the urchins. And how the narrative kept saying he was magnetic, had this natural leadership skill, and there was just "some undefinable quality" that made him stand out. It made it super obvious that he was really the prince, and I just had to wait for Cassandra to catch up.
I like to end the review on positives. I did like Cassandra as the main character. Her ability to remember things and construct a map in her head was pretty impressive. I wanted to see those skills in the Cave of Wonders, but it seems all that stuff is going to be in the second half. I would've also liked to see her do more spy work. All that she seemed to do was follow people around and listen in on conversations. That is part of it, but it's also about lying and getting into disguises to find information. Cassandra just spends too much time doing nothing.
It's unfortunate this was so dull. An Aladdin re-telling with a female lead could've been a lot of fun with adventure, excitement, exploration, magic, all that good stuff. But if you're going to keep all that to the second half of the book, it makes the first half feel slow and boring.
There are a lot of issues I had with this book. Like I said, it was boring. Characters talk about treasure caves and a lamp, and I know from the next book that there is magic in those treasure caves. But the first half of the book is just Cassandra going around in the city or some tunnels under a mountain. And it's so vaguely described that I felt no sense of place. Not to mention the names of the characters are all over the place. Zaid and Malik sounded appropriate enough, but then there was Elias and Kayla. So not even the characters could give a proper sense of place.
I also found it a little odd how the author padded things out for so long by withholding the prince's identity until halfway through the book-- and acted like it was a big surprise. It was almost an insult to the audience. We're here for an Aladdin retelling and we know there's going to be a member of royalty in disguise/running around with the urchins. And how the narrative kept saying he was magnetic, had this natural leadership skill, and there was just "some undefinable quality" that made him stand out. It made it super obvious that he was really the prince, and I just had to wait for Cassandra to catch up.
I like to end the review on positives. I did like Cassandra as the main character. Her ability to remember things and construct a map in her head was pretty impressive. I wanted to see those skills in the Cave of Wonders, but it seems all that stuff is going to be in the second half. I would've also liked to see her do more spy work. All that she seemed to do was follow people around and listen in on conversations. That is part of it, but it's also about lying and getting into disguises to find information. Cassandra just spends too much time doing nothing.
It's unfortunate this was so dull. An Aladdin re-telling with a female lead could've been a lot of fun with adventure, excitement, exploration, magic, all that good stuff. But if you're going to keep all that to the second half of the book, it makes the first half feel slow and boring.
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July 3, 2023I love this series, but honesty compels me to say that this one was a hot mess. The story meandered and didn't really get going until about halfway through, and by then too much ground had been lost to really stick the landing. Also there was one point made near the end that had me thinking, "You cannot possibly be serious." So no rating out of respect for the series and looking forward to the next one getting back on track.
RMCWR:
I am very curious to see how this author tackles Aladdin (especially from a female perspective). My main frame of reference is the Disney version.
"Intelligencer" is not a word I am familiar with. (I hope that's the right word and not just the narrator's British accent.)
Memory palace? Are we in Sherlock?
....maybe don't sniff from a bottle you've just discovered?
Memorizing turns as you go but opposite and in reverse order sounds like the most chaotic system EVER for giving directions.
I have literally no idea how these names are spelled (Zayid?). Also naiera (?)--the knockout gas and hariat (?) sticks for fighting.
"People were, at heart, much the same everywhere, although the trappings looked different."
It's unfortunate that the narrator's pronunciation of Zayn sounded exactly like Zayid, unintentionally revealing the prince's identity a shade sooner than intended (not that it was a remotely difficult plot point to guess, but still).
Interesting that her first thought (quickly rejected but still) is that Zayid is impersonating the real prince.
This one wasn't really clicking for me at first but it definitely picks up around the fifty percent mark.
I really wish I had this in printed form. There are several details I'd like to go back and recheck (the original legend of the rings and the lamp, details of what Cassie set out to do, what exactly she overheard, her first impression of Malik, how to spell ALL these names, the description of the carved marble trees with gemstone fruits).
A perception filter. So it's not Sherlock, it's Doctor Who.
....it's twins? Really?
"In a world populated by people, there would always be a role for heart and understanding what was going on around me."
Hold. The. Phone. Cassie seriously believes the EVIL twin would have made a BETTER royal advisor? Because he wouldn't have been manipulated?? Because the other twin's weakness did as much harm as willful sabotage?? Did you forget who actually DID sabotage things and planned the deaths of untold numbers of people? No. Absolutely not
RMCWR:
I am very curious to see how this author tackles Aladdin (especially from a female perspective). My main frame of reference is the Disney version.
"Intelligencer" is not a word I am familiar with. (I hope that's the right word and not just the narrator's British accent.)
Memory palace? Are we in Sherlock?
....maybe don't sniff from a bottle you've just discovered?
Memorizing turns as you go but opposite and in reverse order sounds like the most chaotic system EVER for giving directions.
I have literally no idea how these names are spelled (Zayid?). Also naiera (?)--the knockout gas and hariat (?) sticks for fighting.
"People were, at heart, much the same everywhere, although the trappings looked different."
It's unfortunate that the narrator's pronunciation of Zayn sounded exactly like Zayid, unintentionally revealing the prince's identity a shade sooner than intended (not that it was a remotely difficult plot point to guess, but still).
Interesting that her first thought (quickly rejected but still) is that Zayid is impersonating the real prince.
This one wasn't really clicking for me at first but it definitely picks up around the fifty percent mark.
I really wish I had this in printed form. There are several details I'd like to go back and recheck (the original legend of the rings and the lamp, details of what Cassie set out to do, what exactly she overheard, her first impression of Malik, how to spell ALL these names, the description of the carved marble trees with gemstone fruits).
A perception filter. So it's not Sherlock, it's Doctor Who.
....it's twins? Really?
"In a world populated by people, there would always be a role for heart and understanding what was going on around me."
Hold. The. Phone. Cassie seriously believes the EVIL twin would have made a BETTER royal advisor? Because he wouldn't have been manipulated?? Because the other twin's weakness did as much harm as willful sabotage?? Did you forget who actually DID sabotage things and planned the deaths of untold numbers of people? No. Absolutely not
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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February 27, 2025
🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔
I was excited to read the Aladdin retelling! I’m a big fan of Aladdin! This was a heart pounding start! I love how connected Book 2 and this one are to Book 1! Cassie grew on me as the story went on. She became a lovely character and I throughly enjoyed her! She was very determined and stubborn! Zaid was different, but not in a bad way. But he quickly grew on me! He was funny, kind and always willing to help! He was so good and I loved him! And that plot twist…I did not see that coming! Cassie and Zaid fit so well together and I loved seeing their love story unfold! Certain parts made me laugh! They were just perfect! Zaid’s parents were great too! I loved the feels of this book! It’s different than the usual Aladdin story, but it was cozy and yet action packed and exciting! The part with the lamp and the rings reminded me of Lord of the Rings which was great and I loved it! I loved all of the descriptions in this book and being set it the desert! It was just perfect!! Wow, this book had so many plot twists!! It was epic!! It was the best Aladdin retelling I have ever read and I throughly LOVED it!! Another fabulous book and one of my favorites by Melanie Cellier! 5 stars!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I can’t wait to read about Zaria in the next one!!
Quotes that I liked:
🪔 He grinned up at me. Just like I'm glad you're here to lead us out of these tunnels. We make a good team."
🪔 "I never knew my parents, and my uncle was loving enough even if he didn't know what to do with a child who wanted to spend her time exploring secret passageways and listening in on his meetings." Zaid chuckled. "I would love a child like that one day. As long as they let me explore with them."
🪔 "Some types of company are welcome, at any rate." I turned to him with a raised eyebrow, and he smiled quickly. “You fall on the welcome side. Obviously." “Obviously." I said dryly.
🪔 "I will help you, Cassie. I will always help you. You only have to ask."
🪔 "Love?" Zaid raised an eyebrow, one side of his mouth tugging upward. "So you admit you love me?"
🪔 "All I've ever wanted was a place to belong and for someone to see me for who I truly am. And that person is you. My home is with you, Zaid, and I will happily live wherever we can be together."
🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔
I was excited to read the Aladdin retelling! I’m a big fan of Aladdin! This was a heart pounding start! I love how connected Book 2 and this one are to Book 1! Cassie grew on me as the story went on. She became a lovely character and I throughly enjoyed her! She was very determined and stubborn! Zaid was different, but not in a bad way. But he quickly grew on me! He was funny, kind and always willing to help! He was so good and I loved him! And that plot twist…I did not see that coming! Cassie and Zaid fit so well together and I loved seeing their love story unfold! Certain parts made me laugh! They were just perfect! Zaid’s parents were great too! I loved the feels of this book! It’s different than the usual Aladdin story, but it was cozy and yet action packed and exciting! The part with the lamp and the rings reminded me of Lord of the Rings which was great and I loved it! I loved all of the descriptions in this book and being set it the desert! It was just perfect!! Wow, this book had so many plot twists!! It was epic!! It was the best Aladdin retelling I have ever read and I throughly LOVED it!! Another fabulous book and one of my favorites by Melanie Cellier! 5 stars!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I can’t wait to read about Zaria in the next one!!
Quotes that I liked:
🪔 He grinned up at me. Just like I'm glad you're here to lead us out of these tunnels. We make a good team."
🪔 "I never knew my parents, and my uncle was loving enough even if he didn't know what to do with a child who wanted to spend her time exploring secret passageways and listening in on his meetings." Zaid chuckled. "I would love a child like that one day. As long as they let me explore with them."
🪔 "Some types of company are welcome, at any rate." I turned to him with a raised eyebrow, and he smiled quickly. “You fall on the welcome side. Obviously." “Obviously." I said dryly.
🪔 "I will help you, Cassie. I will always help you. You only have to ask."
🪔 "Love?" Zaid raised an eyebrow, one side of his mouth tugging upward. "So you admit you love me?"
🪔 "All I've ever wanted was a place to belong and for someone to see me for who I truly am. And that person is you. My home is with you, Zaid, and I will happily live wherever we can be together."
🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔🪔
April 15, 2022
Super Twist on Aladdin haha
Okay, so tbh this started off a little slow for me once the initial attack finished. Not a lot going on after she was carried off to the desert and spent her time (months) just exploring caves and everyone keeping secrets from each other.
She forgot why Celine sent her away to begin with (luckily for her, her detour still saved her people)! But things picked up and I do admit her and Zaid were cute together. I knew the kids were up to something, but again the reveals came out in a way I wasnt entirely expecting, which was fun.
Similarities to Aladdin:
1. There was a lamp and treasure
2. "Do you trust me?"
3. A Grand Vizier involved
4. Sultan
5. Prince was being pushed to wed
6. She did briefly pretend to be a princess
Differences:
1. The girl is "Aladdin", since there is still a prince lol
2. The lamp has no genie (it works differently)
3. No "diamond in the rough" - she was chosen for her knowledge
4. The prince had more freedom to explore his city
5. No pets lol
6. Everything else lol - she was more an aspiring spy than a "street rat" haha
I was a bit disappointed in her attitude towards Celeste after all the hero worshiping she originally had for her and how she seemed to downgrade her old home just because she married Zaid, calling her desert kingdom "the right side". They should have been equal to her, but alas, that's how she feels. At least everyone is still friends 😊
Just have one huge question left.....what happened to Princess Daisy?!
Okay, so tbh this started off a little slow for me once the initial attack finished. Not a lot going on after she was carried off to the desert and spent her time (months) just exploring caves and everyone keeping secrets from each other.
She forgot why Celine sent her away to begin with (luckily for her, her detour still saved her people)! But things picked up and I do admit her and Zaid were cute together. I knew the kids were up to something, but again the reveals came out in a way I wasnt entirely expecting, which was fun.
Similarities to Aladdin:
1. There was a lamp and treasure
2. "Do you trust me?"
3. A Grand Vizier involved
4. Sultan
5. Prince was being pushed to wed
6. She did briefly pretend to be a princess
Differences:
1. The girl is "Aladdin", since there is still a prince lol
2. The lamp has no genie (it works differently)
3. No "diamond in the rough" - she was chosen for her knowledge
4. The prince had more freedom to explore his city
5. No pets lol
6. Everything else lol - she was more an aspiring spy than a "street rat" haha
I was a bit disappointed in her attitude towards Celeste after all the hero worshiping she originally had for her and how she seemed to downgrade her old home just because she married Zaid, calling her desert kingdom "the right side". They should have been equal to her, but alas, that's how she feels. At least everyone is still friends 😊
Just have one huge question left.....what happened to Princess Daisy?!
September 6, 2022
This book is a young adult fantasy novel with a romance. Though the third in the series, you can understand this story without reading the previous ones.
The main characters were interesting and nice people. Cassie wanted to be a spy and trained herself to blend in and how to remember things. She lost her confidence in her decisions as a series of bad choices lead to her situation getting worse. Unfortunately, Cassie's desire to prove her skill as a spy didn't seem good enough to explain some of her impulsive decisions. I felt like the author forced these decisions against all common sense so that, for example, Cassie ended up in the desert kingdom.
And Cassie was sometimes so dense ('my friend is pretending to be the prince with someone who knows the prince!' instead of realizing the truth). Not good in a spy. While Cassie and the hero had a friendship, they initially lacked trust and then couldn't seem to work together effectively. Cassie mostly just acted on her own. Their one clever plan (which was a good one) was so easily and instantly thwarted that the hero came across as ineffective and short-sighted.
The world-building was light, mainly a medieval feel but with curses and godmother magic items. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this fantasy to fans of fairytales and heroic fantasy, but it's not my favorite by this author.
The main characters were interesting and nice people. Cassie wanted to be a spy and trained herself to blend in and how to remember things. She lost her confidence in her decisions as a series of bad choices lead to her situation getting worse. Unfortunately, Cassie's desire to prove her skill as a spy didn't seem good enough to explain some of her impulsive decisions. I felt like the author forced these decisions against all common sense so that, for example, Cassie ended up in the desert kingdom.
And Cassie was sometimes so dense ('my friend is pretending to be the prince with someone who knows the prince!' instead of realizing the truth). Not good in a spy. While Cassie and the hero had a friendship, they initially lacked trust and then couldn't seem to work together effectively. Cassie mostly just acted on her own. Their one clever plan (which was a good one) was so easily and instantly thwarted that the hero came across as ineffective and short-sighted.
The world-building was light, mainly a medieval feel but with curses and godmother magic items. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this fantasy to fans of fairytales and heroic fantasy, but it's not my favorite by this author.
July 1, 2025
The Desert Princess has a solid story, but Cassie's outsider status heavily undermines the plot making it feel like things just happen. Nothing is properly set up because Cassie knows nothing and no one is telling her anything. Every reveal I was able to predict was predicted because of my knowledge of tropes, not because this story pulled off a solid setup and payoff.
For this story to really shine, it would need to be reworked so that the reader had more information. As-is, many of the twists and reveals come out of nowhere. It's similar to Cellier's Swan Lake retelling: A Captive of Wing and Feather: a Retelling of Swan Lake. If you loved that one, then you'll probably love this one too. If you weren't a fan, then you can skip this one.
I've said before that these books read more middle grade than YA and this one really showed that with the politics around spymasters. I was amused every time the topic came up, but it didn't ruin the book for me since I know that this world is far from hyper realistic.
For this story to really shine, it would need to be reworked so that the reader had more information. As-is, many of the twists and reveals come out of nowhere. It's similar to Cellier's Swan Lake retelling: A Captive of Wing and Feather: a Retelling of Swan Lake. If you loved that one, then you'll probably love this one too. If you weren't a fan, then you can skip this one.
I've said before that these books read more middle grade than YA and this one really showed that with the politics around spymasters. I was amused every time the topic came up, but it didn't ruin the book for me since I know that this world is far from hyper realistic.
May 12, 2022
Cassie the spy
Reader’s Notes:
– this is book 3 of a series, but can be read as a stand-alone
– this is told from Cassie’s point of view
Review:
I loved this gender bent retelling of Aladdin! It’s so different from what I was expecting of Melanie’s next book (hello new land that we didn’t know exists in this world! 👀) but it was awesome! This book has joined the ranks of my favorite Melanie Cellier retelling books (along with The Princess Game, The Princess Search, A Dream Of Ebony and White, A Crown Of Snow and White -which is where we first meet Cassie!-, and The Secret Princess). I loved the mysterious Zaid and how he cared for the orphans in Qalerim. I loved Cassie’s want to be a spy and her dedication to honing those skills. I also really liked how Melanie made the Aladdin story her own! With the different cave of wonders, swapping the genders of the princess and the street rat, adding in a new layer of characters, and other magical objects besides the lamp really made this a whole new world (see what I did there? 😉) to explore ❤️.
Cassie doesn’t want to live her life as a quiet and demure girl in her uncle’s home. She wants to be a spy like the great spymaster Aurora. So when she is given the chance to meet her, Cassie is quick to accept the invitation. But things go wrong soon after Cassie’s travel group sets foot in the Four Kingdoms. Then, Cassie discovers another, much deeper threat to the Four Kingdoms during her escape from unknown enemies.
Knowing that this information would be a great asset to Aurora and could showcase Cassie’s skills, she is quick to follow the lead she found. But it leads her to much more secrets and danger than she expects. And Cassie isn’t sure how she’s going to get back to her party’s destination when she does finish her mission…
Reader’s Notes:
– this is book 3 of a series, but can be read as a stand-alone
– this is told from Cassie’s point of view
Review:
I loved this gender bent retelling of Aladdin! It’s so different from what I was expecting of Melanie’s next book (hello new land that we didn’t know exists in this world! 👀) but it was awesome! This book has joined the ranks of my favorite Melanie Cellier retelling books (along with The Princess Game, The Princess Search, A Dream Of Ebony and White, A Crown Of Snow and White -which is where we first meet Cassie!-, and The Secret Princess). I loved the mysterious Zaid and how he cared for the orphans in Qalerim. I loved Cassie’s want to be a spy and her dedication to honing those skills. I also really liked how Melanie made the Aladdin story her own! With the different cave of wonders, swapping the genders of the princess and the street rat, adding in a new layer of characters, and other magical objects besides the lamp really made this a whole new world (see what I did there? 😉) to explore ❤️.
Cassie doesn’t want to live her life as a quiet and demure girl in her uncle’s home. She wants to be a spy like the great spymaster Aurora. So when she is given the chance to meet her, Cassie is quick to accept the invitation. But things go wrong soon after Cassie’s travel group sets foot in the Four Kingdoms. Then, Cassie discovers another, much deeper threat to the Four Kingdoms during her escape from unknown enemies.
Knowing that this information would be a great asset to Aurora and could showcase Cassie’s skills, she is quick to follow the lead she found. But it leads her to much more secrets and danger than she expects. And Cassie isn’t sure how she’s going to get back to her party’s destination when she does finish her mission…
September 6, 2021
This was a fantastic addition to the world of the four Kingdoms. Where do I start?
-The world: The world building is beautifully done, everything makes sense, and I loved the creativity behind the two different cities. It really felt like a world where Aladdin could take place, without being an exact copy of every other Aladdin story.
-The plot. The first part of the story is setting up the world and the characters, and every single thing that happens in the first part pays off later. Great plot. Plus the romance was enjoyable and never felt forced or rushed at all.
-the characters: All the characters were well done. Cassie is a fun protagonist; I liked how she was practical and smart but also caring. Zaid was awesome; he felt like a fully developed character in his own right. And all the side characters have roles that impact the plot; nobody was there just as a filler.
Fun story I couldn’t put down. Expect the beautiful world of Aladdin and plot-twist filled pages! 5/5 stars. I love this series, and this one did not disappoint at all. Can’t wait for the Golden Princess!
-The world: The world building is beautifully done, everything makes sense, and I loved the creativity behind the two different cities. It really felt like a world where Aladdin could take place, without being an exact copy of every other Aladdin story.
-The plot. The first part of the story is setting up the world and the characters, and every single thing that happens in the first part pays off later. Great plot. Plus the romance was enjoyable and never felt forced or rushed at all.
-the characters: All the characters were well done. Cassie is a fun protagonist; I liked how she was practical and smart but also caring. Zaid was awesome; he felt like a fully developed character in his own right. And all the side characters have roles that impact the plot; nobody was there just as a filler.
Fun story I couldn’t put down. Expect the beautiful world of Aladdin and plot-twist filled pages! 5/5 stars. I love this series, and this one did not disappoint at all. Can’t wait for the Golden Princess!
September 14, 2021
Each tale in this series has been unique so far. In this book we finally get to know what happened to Cassie after the group was attacked in the woods. We also discover a new kingdom across the desert, which I suppose is likely in this world.
The first half of the book is basically setting up the mystery of what is going on in this new kingdom, and the second half is much more fast paced with the villain finally revealing their true self.
I am not familiar with the original Aladdin fairytale, but as a story this is a great addition to the series. I also feel that Cassie grew up quite well in this tale.
So why 4 stars instead of 5,,? I felt like this book had more grammatical errors and misspelled words than they usually do. Also, while the story was good it just wasn’t my favorite…I do wonder how the next book will be since it is likely going to be another desert setting. And once again we are introduced to more princess like characters who I wonder what their futures will be like, but we are running low on fairytales.
The first half of the book is basically setting up the mystery of what is going on in this new kingdom, and the second half is much more fast paced with the villain finally revealing their true self.
I am not familiar with the original Aladdin fairytale, but as a story this is a great addition to the series. I also feel that Cassie grew up quite well in this tale.
So why 4 stars instead of 5,,? I felt like this book had more grammatical errors and misspelled words than they usually do. Also, while the story was good it just wasn’t my favorite…I do wonder how the next book will be since it is likely going to be another desert setting. And once again we are introduced to more princess like characters who I wonder what their futures will be like, but we are running low on fairytales.
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