— 4 stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

📖 𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 400 pages
👤 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: Cait Jacobs
🏢 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫: Harper Voyager UK
📅 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞: 23 October 2025

What you can expect:
— Young Adult Crossover Fantasy Romance
— Third Person X Dual POV
— Legally Blonde X Medieval Military Academy
— Princess X Warrior Captain
— Ex's Best Friend
— Found Family
— Forced Proximity
— Slow Burn Romance
— Grumpy X Sunshine
— Queernormative World
— Celtic-Folklore Inspired

𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: animal death (wild mythical beast), blood & gore, death, death of a parent (off-page, mentioned in flashbacks), internalised ableism (related to chronic pain/physical disability), kidnapping, sexual content (on page, not-specific/vague), violence and war themes.

𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲:
The Princess Knight (RIP Medievally Blonde you will be missed) is a New Adult Historical Fantasy Romance by debut author Cait Jacobs. This is a beautiful tale written with strong themes surrounding the significance of hope and perseverance during humanity’s worst, and the power that can be found within discovering your voice in a world determined to silence you. The light-hearted and sometimes whimsical tone acted in perfect contrast to the sometimes severe, dark events that offered the right amount of struggle in support of our main characters' growth. I found this to be a strong debut from author Cait Jacobs with its nod towards the iconic ‘Legally Blonde’ movie with a medieval twist whilst standing apart in strength on its own. The whimsical setting and strong world-building offered a vast outlook into the political affairs of the world which become very significant in the storytelling as the story continues to develop over time. I adore that this is a queer-normative world that introduced a variety of LQBTQIA+ rep with ease which opened up the (metaphorical) door to limitless possibilities for all characters involved. The disability representation added so much life and realness to an otherwise fictional cast of characters. I had the best time getting to know both characters on an emotionally intimate and the struggles that they face throughout their day-to-day lives. I felt that this was handled with the utmost care and respect whilst refusing to undermine the often severity and significance to living with a disability which has in-turn made me respect the author all that much more. I loved the focus placed upon both characters as they endure the realities of their disabilities head-on and refuse to let it prevent them from achieving the livelihood that they long to acquire. I cannot speak for the disabled community myself as a non-disabled individual, however it is my hope that readers within the community can connect with the characters in their own way to feel seen and recognised as every reader deserves to feel. The endearing diverse cast of characters had left me ensnared into their grip with their endless charm and undisputed found family dynamic, and overall I found The Princess Knight to be a wonderful story clearly written with a lot of heart and intent which I felt immersed into with ease.

𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭:
I was immediately sold on this book the second that I heard it being referenced as 'when Legally Blonde meets Medieval Fantasy' and it truly did not disappoint, nor did I find it fail to deliver in that regard. I loved the concept of a sheltered Princess with no defence training suddenly finding herself on the doorstep of an elite military academy in the hopes of re-securing an engagement to the prince who broke her heart. I enjoyed the way the author took the basics of 'Legally Blonde' and spun it into its own unique tale to help it stand apart on its own. I'm a huge fan of an academic setting so I really enjoyed getting to follow Clía on her training to become a recognised warrior amongst a group of people who were betting upon her failure from the moment she arrived. The plot itself felt fairly simplistic in that it was an ease to follow which means I can gladly recommend this book with ease to new and seasoned Fantasy readers alike. The mystery and intrigue surrounding certain characters was a lot of fun to explore as the plot takes the reader on a journey all throughout the expansive world that has been introduced. The plot was definitely the strength of The Princess Knight for me as I can sense that there was a lot of thought and time put into its development. There were plenty of twists and turns that kept me engaged from beginning to end, and overall I found this book to feel really easy to read within one sitting whilst never lacking in enjoyment.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬:
Clía was such a wonderfully complex heroine to follow on her path of self-discovery and both inner and physical strength. I love that she retained her femininity and ‘whimsical’ pursuits alongside claiming her own power and authoritative voice in an environment that were quick to dismiss and undermine her. The journey that we follow her on is by no means an easy one, however her stubborn nature and refusal to give in to the negative opinions of her peers made Clía an instantly likeable character to cheer for in the hopes for her success. Her willingness to see the best in people often suggested a naivety to her character that I still can’t help but love because ultimately… Clía is just that. A young woman who suddenly finds herself with an opportunity to be a little bit selfish and take the time to truly learn about herself. She has a lot of learning and growing to do in combat and as a person itself, and I have nothing but respect for Clía in her ability to take it all in her stride with a hopeful outlook and keenness to learn. She’s a force of nature when she puts her mind to something and I loved being able to witness Clía find her people amidst the chaos that was unfurling. I loved getting to see her love for her people and devotion to the kingdom that she has sworn to protect to the best of her ability. The way she continues to fight on their behalf to be heard and kept into consideration during the budding war was completely admirable, and I really believe that Clía will grow into a beloved Queen that will rule with fairness and compassion. She grew a lot throughout The Princess Knight and it was amazing to see the confident woman that emerged victorious by the end.

Ronan won me over from his very first interaction and it only continued to go uphill from there as we continued to witness his personality growth and strength as a commendable leader. His struggles with chronic pain was really eye-opening to me as a reader and I really appreciated that this is something that is reiterated time and time again. This is a huge attribute to his character and it truly broke my heart to see him continuously undermine his own struggles and pain out of fear of being discredited in his profession. Ronan has worked hard for much of his life to gain notoriety as an acclaimed soldier which is earned and proven by his skill on the battlefield. His single-minded focus and ability to see the bigger picture when faced with an enemy made him a valued asset during times of strife, and I just loved getting to see Ronan be recognised for his value and strengths in-spite of his personal struggle. Outside of his profession there’s no denying Ronan’s loyalty and priority towards family. His circle is small yet no less impactful, and I really enjoyed getting to enjoy the moments with ‘softer Ronan’ when he was able to just be present as a young man alongside his friends. His selfless nature and willingness to put others above his own needs was commendable, even if I did sometimes wish I could reach through the page and shake him to reiterate that he is also deserving to feel like a priority. Ronan is just such a sweet soul who deserves his happily ever after and I really enjoyed getting to see his character progression from beginning to end.

𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭:
I do admit that the only I aspect I was feeling a little let down by was the overall relationship progression that was explored between Clía and Ronan by the end of the book. Both characters got off to such a strong start and I loved getting to witness the beginnings of an unlikely partnership which blossomed into a reliable friendship before romantic intentions began to take root. My main problem is how swiftly the romance aspect seemed to take place as it did to the point that it felt very abrupt, and do I personally wish that it had been more steadily introduced for a more believable connection. For me this can also be applied to the romance developed between the impactful side characters which also sadly felt lacking in exploration and therefore an abrupt development. There was definitely some small amounts of pining and yearning which is a big win for me, however things escalated very quickly from there as the plot also began to pick up in pace which made it sadly feel a little less authentic due to its lack of progression. I suppose you can also credit this to their age and the swiftness of being young and experiencing your first love, so my mention of this is not included to be a bad note as I can see this being a positive attribute to many other readers. This is simply a personal preference to me as a reader, however I did still enjoy the build-up that we were granted to this point. I still adored Clía and Ronan together as friends and then as a couple, and I actually enjoyed that this book was giving more ‘upper YA’ vibes as opposed to Adult. I don’t even really have a solid explanation for that one other than it just seemed to fit the story and its intent? Any intimate scenes included are written to be very vague and more 'closed door' which suited the story just fine as it was an emotional and intimate touch that didn't take away from the tale itself. Their entire dynamic felt very wholesome and inherently good which made it impossible to not root for their happiness independently and as a couple.

𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:
This was such a wonderful debut by the author in all of its strengths and I hope to be able to read more works from them in the future. I can’t seem to find if The Princess Knight is intended as a standalone or more? I’m really hoping for more as the ending itself felt lacking in finality to be the end of a standalone. There is still dangers lurking at every corner with the threats not fully neutralised, and I feel like Clía and Ronan still have their work cut out for them in tackling all of the weaknesses within Clía's kingdom against her parents wishes. This is something I would love to see come to life with at least one more book, so if there’s no definite plans for a sequel please take this as my formal request for one.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰. 𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐰𝐧.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review!!

A Legally Blonde inspired, action packed, romantic, medieval fantasy novel is a thing I did not know my life was missing but apparently it was because I DEVOURED this story!!!!!

This hit all the notes of Legally Blonde in a unique way, that fans of the film will have fun picking out certain plot points and scenes that are alike in theme and execution!

Please do yourself a favour and check this book out, I promise you won’t regret it!

(I will be putting out a more in depth review closer to the release date!)