First, the art was so amazing! From the cover (which is what initially caught my eye) to the art inside. I really enjoyed the small details and the work that was put into it. Now, I enjoyed the story very much and I liked that flashbacks were included of some characters so we readers could see more of their history. I like the characters and the building of Nina, Azure and Muhulums relationships. I appreciated how Nina was sympathetic of Muhulum. I also like that she's fiesty and a bit curious; she has a good and strong personality.

I'm excited to see what happens next in volume two of this manga series. Will Nina really be married or will something stop the arranged marriage? Or will she be in danger?

Thank you Netgalley and Kodansha for sending me this arc.

I thought this was a cute story in the same vein as "Prince Freya" (a commoner being swept up into a 'Royal' life because they look similar to a noble who had died), but with less violence.

Nina, a girl disguised as a boy, has always lived among the common-folk. After her parents were out of the picture she lived her life with two brothers, stealing to try and make sure everyone didn't go hungry. But after a fall out, Nina is kidnapped and is thrown into a replacement life of a princess who was killed mid-transport.

Nina, now Alisha, is un-trained in noble ways, uneducated, and unprepared for any part of her new life and must cram years of learning into only a few months before she's sent off and married to a prince of a different country.

So the story goes that a young girl Nina with gorgeous blue eyes was at first poor and living with two brothers. One of those brothers Colin got sick so the other brother decides to sell her off to a Prince and he is making Nina is become a royal herself.. Whilst I admired the gorgeous artwork in this manga, the story near the end of volume 1 was somewhat lacking to make the story more interesting , it’s just basically about a good looking prince in love with a young girl he kidnapped..... Personally not my cup of tea but again, art is good and story was good at first.

Thanks Netgalley and publisher for giving me the first volume!

The first thing I have to comment on is the artwork! It's beautiful, and I feel like it added a magical element to this fantasy title. I had no idea what I was getting into with this volume, but I enjoyed it! I liked the characters, especially our protagonist. I'm intrigued to see the direction this story goes in!

This is a manga I hadn't heard of before and I enjoyed this first volume. The main characters are great together and this world is believable. There are glimpses of past happenings which shaped a couple people that I think might be explored more in the future too. I'm definitely curious how things will work out between the two main characters given what's to happen with the heroin in such a short time. I'll be on the look out for more of this.

So cute! I saw this cover and immediately was intrigued, then after reading the description, I knew it was something I would love to read! The story begins with Nina and two other young teens stealing to survive in this fantasy world that reminded me so much of Aladdin. Orphaned, they've had to make due by what Nina calls "borrowing" from the wealthy, which is really stealing, so that they can survive. But tragedy strikes and causes Nina to learn a hard life lesson. After Nina is betrayed, she's "sold" to the royal family. After getting an explanation, Nina agrees to do a favor for Prince Azure by standing in as a double for the princess who has died in an accident. She's then thrust into the world royalty and left starry eyed. Under the care of Prince Azure, she quickly must learn how to act the part.

This is a cute first volume where we are introduced to the key players and world. The art perfectly fits this type of fantasy (maybe with a little romantic sub-plot). I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the more fluffy fantasy stories with political intrigue.

It's your typical poor girl that goes from rags to riches by force. Even though I feel like this story has been done a million times, Rikachi has managed to make it feel fresh and new. Nina, ever so feisty, accepts her role as fake princess, if only to please Azure. The dynamics of the royal family and with the neighboring kingdom show a lot of promise in the future volumes. This was short and sweet with just enough cuteness mixed with mild action to keep me wanting more. I will definitely seek out volume 2 when it comes out!

I am going to need more of this series immediately. It is definitely my cup of tea. I can't wait to see the characters grow and the story progress.

Definitely recommended.

Nina our main character, is a poor kid who is stealing things in order to survive. But she is not like any normal kid, she has blue eyes which is rare among the population. She is living along with two brothers until one day, one of them sold her to a slaver. She thinks that she is going to be sold because of her blue eyes until it is revealed that he is not actually a slaver, but Azure Seth Fortna, the second prince of Fortna. Nina is going to become Princess Alisha’s double, who recently passed away in strange circumstances, and she has 3 months to learn etiquette since she is about to get married to the prince of another country. But of course, everything is not going to go smoothly, and Nina is not ready to give up her old life just yet.

I requested this manga even though I didn’t previously hear about it because I found the cover pretty. I didn’t have too many expectations going into its. Unfortunately, it didn’t really work for me. I didn’t like any of the characters, Muhulum especially annoyed me so bad. I found the story okay, but nothing really gripped me, and I’m not curious about what will happen in the next volumes. Nothing was memorable, to the point where I don’t even have anything to say about the manga since it didn’t leave any impression on me.

Nina is a street urchin trying to survive with her friends, but everything changes when she's taken away by mysterious cloaked strangers. Her blonde hair and rare blue eyes make her a reasonable match for the country's dead princess, so Nina has to take her place in the palace and in an upcoming arranged marriage! The only people who know her real identity are the princess's older brother (or is he?) and his servants; her only real friend is the princess's sweet but spoiled little brother. Can she keep up the deception?

This adorable manga is technically set in a fantasy world, but the situation is well-drawn enough for the reader to feel they're reading historical fiction. (The mangaka has in the past done some historical series, so it's no surprise.) Nina is sympathetic and not stereotypical, and one wonders where the story's going to go next! Not only does Nina need to protect her secret, she has all kinds of court intrigue to deal with.

A girl who is swapped in as a double for the princess and finds adjusting to her new life to be quiet an adventure. Nina has always had a rough life and lives by stealing to survive but is sold into slavery by her brother. Her captor is Prince Azure, the second crown prince and he tells her that she is to take on the role of the recently deceased princess-priestess. Soon her life is full of political intrigue, court etiquette, and a prince who might be falling for her.., except she now knows that she is being sent off to marry another person... where oh where will volume 2 go?!

*Thanks Netgalley and Kodansha for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*