I found it very difficult to get into this book. The language used was confusing and almost too descriptive.

The idea was good in theory, I was excited to read this, but it fell flat.

I did not end up finishing this book.

When I saw the synopsis of Charming, I thought that was a really interesting way to retell a story. Unfortunately that is about as far as this story came for me. Interesting.

Our three main characters meet at a wedding to discover that a certain prince charming has stole from all of them. And not just them, but many more princesses, leaving behind a trail of broken hearts and betrayed betrust. They decide to get revenge.

This book is written in a sort of omniscient point of view which allowed the author to take us along from above. Which can work great for certain types of stories. However not when it comes down to a story that is about emotion. Which this story is. These three women (and many more) were hurt by this man and you need their emotions to fill this story up. I think the author wanted to write this along the lines of the older fairytales but didn't succeed.

Which meant a lot of this story fell flat. But most of all the characters. They had interesting stories, I thought that Snow White especially had a really interesting retold story. But there wasn't actually a lot done with that in the present. She mostly came off as a grump and no brains which is not at all what her retold story told her about us. Belle was either still infatuated with Charming and when that spell was broken was just angry. There was no personality there. Rapunzel was just the one with all the solutions and plans while in her retelling story she clearly had a great story and personality.

Adding onto that I felt that the story took a long time building everything up. Which can be great. But the ending was very quick and didn't feel like a real resolution. Charming still got away to do whatever he wanted. He could just continue with other schemes. There was no redemption. Not that this is nessecarily needed but there was also no real reflection on his part or any of the women after catching him.

The author spend a lot of time building up this world but when it came to the charactes in present time or the execution of the plot, it all fell flat.

Going to dnf for now. I'm not vibing with the writing style and the way the arc is formatted is also making it hard to read. I think there is potential and I like the idea of Prince Charming being a conman but so far all the characters seems very one note.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

Twisting classic fairytale stories and plot lines into something more feminist and humorous, Charming asks one question that becomes the crux of this book: What if Prince Charming was the bad guy? A great idea in concept, but in execution, I don't think this book succeeded.

This book has a lot of characters, but it mainly focuses on five: Charming and his manservant, Roland, and three princesses that he deceived: Marie Blanche, Doctor Rapunzel, and Bella. Let's start with the princesses: the three are pretty bland although they had interesting backstories with fun twists on stories one may be familiar with. But their backstories really serve as the character development here, and by that I mean that they don't really grow beyond what their backstories present to us. Charming is frankly even worse, as he pretty much is just a sinister trickster with nothing revealed about his character until the last 30 pages. And sorry, but what is revealed didn't really change my view on him in any way. Roland is by far the most interesting of the five, and unlike Charming actually has a twist revealed towards the end that had me surprised. But he is not enough to save this book.

This all isn't to say I didn't have fun reading. The beginning and end of the book were standouts, and I definitely have the most fun reading those parts. But the middle is a real slog. Unfortunately, I think the book was trying to build up to something that in the end didn't pay off, and it happens quite often. I feel like there were many elements were the author was trying to set up for later plot points, but aside from a few, mainly the aforementioned Roland twist, nothing else really payed off.

I think all in all, this book just wasn't for me. If the characters were more interesting or the plot points payed off, maybe, but as it is, I feel lukewarm about it.

First and foremost this is an enjoyable and fun read, the prose is as you would imagine a fairytale ‘soap’ would be.
This was a light hearted story, new way to tell a fairytale. Doesn’t take itself serious I no it’s ideas or language.
I think this is for a younger age then YA. In fact, I may get my 12 year old to try it.
I feel this is the beginning a series and so I’ll look out for the next instalment

Prince Charming is on the run. Again. He narrowly escaped with the treasures he stole from the broken heart he left behind on his journey. Many stops made, many proposals, many broken hearts. How long can he go before the past catches up with him and his small crew?

The narration was written in a fun style similar to the narration in The Princess Bride. I mainly kept thinking Charming was a mix of the charm and humor of Disney's Flynn Rider from Tangled and the greed of Hans from Frozen. To quote Queen Elsa, "you can't marry a man you just met".

Some advice the three princesses in this book would have done well to follow. These scorned women take up the first half of the book individually recounting their tale of betrayal. This made it hard to follow what the point of the book was other than to set up that Prince Charming is an awful scoundrel. It made it clear in each story which princess the character is based off of but it seemed to hammer the point of Charming's foul character more than necessary. There were several points where the dialogue was so dry and the plot barely moving that I was tempted to throw in the towel and mark it as a DNF. Only in the final chapters did the plot finally come together and gain speed, but it did not have the Happy Ever After as often tied to a fairy tale involving a Prince Charming.

Thanks to NetGalley for this Advanced Ready Copy ebook. As of the date of this review, this book is set to be released on 07/18/2023.

Star rating: 3.5 stars

Charming has quite the interesting premise which made me very interested in reading it. I love a good fairytail story. It was quite a fast and funny read, pretty well-written, but I will admit it did miss the mark here and there for me.
There was no easy way to know when things were taking place, yes the flashbacks were pretty clear with the princesses meeting Charming but it wasn't clear how long the princesses prepared their heists, how much time passed etc. It could've been a heist that took a week, or a heist that took a year, who knows.
I did quite like how the book had a semi-open ending, closing off the story but leaving room for eventual sequels in the same universe.
Overall I did quite enjoy it, definitely recommend it if you want a quick, fun read.

I recieved an e-arc from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

You know reading this was like reading something crossed between Shrek and Cinderella Is Dead and I am not mad about it in the slightest.

I really enjoyed how this author writes her characters and moves the plot. It has a great energy and a real sense of humour that shines in this book in my opinion and made me in moments laugh to myself. The part where the princess wakes up and they're doing a 'Prince Check' and everything to me was so amusing and I never even thought of how time and society would pass between her going to sleep and her awakening. Brilliant.

I'm always gonna read books that are based in fairy tales, and I'm glad this was one I was able to request for on Netgalley. The characters are fleshed out and given in my opinion more life that what the cloud of pink the Disney Princesses are ever given and have great backstory given to them here. I just really had good vibes with this book and really enjoyed how the stories were woven into a more modern context that really works so well.

The story really does get going about a third way in to this book, granted however I didn't mind, I thought it was worth the wait as we get started on the story and it was really good. If you like fairy tales and you like well written characters given autonomy and fresh twists, Charming is certainly perfect for you.

Remember the prince from Into the Woods and how "charming" he was *shudder*? The Prince Charming this book delivers both that tied up with John Tucker Must Die in a fun lighthearted fairytale.

I really enjoyed the middle part of this book the best. It was funny and an easy read. The retellings of both Rapunzel and Show White were excellent. Modernized but none of the artificial revamped nature of Disney. Sleeping Beauty, Bella, I was mixed about, her character annoyed me to no end and everything Rapunzel told her was spot on, but likely the point was to be annoyed with her.

Though I do think her ability to think the good in point becomes a downfall towards the end, where the plot gets a bit too fuzzy for my liking and the action peters out. In the final explanation, it left me feeling like "that was it?". Mainly because I really did enjoy the first 2/3 of the book so much. Too many questions were left unanswered for me to feel satisfied.

Also think it is important to get TW for child abuse for one of the characters..

Thank you to NetGallery and Rebellion for the ARC.

I love retellings! Making the hero a villain? Amazing idea! I thought it was quite slow paced but I enjoyed the characters

Wasn’t a fan. 1.5 stars rounded up.

This is a fairytale retelling 3-in-1. It’s about Prince Charming, but he’s a villain. The idea was GREAT. But this book just wasn’t.

To me, it kinda jumped all over the place. It felt rushed and the ending felt like it wasn’t done. It may be setting itself up for a sequel. I don’t know. ANYWAYS, I wasn’t a fan of Prince Charming. Which was sad because I love a good villain moment. The princesses were dumb. Also, not a fan of that. I didn’t even care for the side characters. His side kick was atrocious.

Charming jumps from kingdom to kingdom saving princesses that are in distress and then stealing from them. And that’s it.

Please remember, even though a book wasn’t for me doesn’t mean it won’t be for you! If YA fairytale retellings are up your alley, go for it! But for me, it was a no go.

4.5/5
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

A fun, adventurous story, that while was a little difficult to get into at first, proved to be an arc I was very glad to have read. I loved the retellings of the different fairytale character’s stories; they were interesting and distinct enough to be fresh retellings, but also stuck to the original stories enough that it was easy to tell which fairytale character they were. All of the main characters were well fleshed out. And the bad guy had a backstory/motivation for his actions that made sense while not being used as an ‘excuse’ for his behaviour or ‘he was good all along’ like many recent stories do!

Prince Charming has been conning all of the princesses as he travels from kingdom to kingdom. However the princesses get together and realize that all of their failed weddings and robberies were the same person the hatch up a plan to get even and get their belongings back.

As far as fairytale retellings go while his was fun and quirky and I love me a story about a villainous Prince Charming getting his do, this book felt like it was missing something. I didn’t feel connected with any of the princesses and it more so seemed like words on a paper . In the end when there were reveals and twists, I didn’t find myself shocked or excited. I wish there had been more development amongst the princesses because they came off more whiny and scorned than anything.

his book was exactly what I wanted it to be – really good fun! Sometimes you just need a book that doesn’t take itself too seriously and is willing to play. This twist on the traditional Prince Charming fairy tales does just that.

Over the course of the book we learn the individual stories of three ‘princesses’ – Marie Blanche de Neige (Snow White), Dr. Emelia Rapunzel (Rapunzel – obviously) and Bella Lucia dei’Sogni (Sleeping Beauty). I loved the adapted stories that each of them had – all clearly routed in the original but all amended in new and clever ways. I think Marie was my favourite of the three of them both in terms of character and her story.

Prince Charming himself was an utter delight of a character as was his ‘man servant’ Roland who served as his perfect grumpy foil. Charming was an incredibly well crafted character, likable even though you knew he couldn’t me trusted. To his credit he did ‘save the day’ many times – it was just his actions afterwards that were problematic. Rather than a ‘happily ever after’ instead he would bide his time, learn how to access the treasury and make off in the night with as many valuables as he could carry.

After getting away with this for quite some time a chance meeting of our three ladies at a wedding reveals his scheme and the ladies decide to band together to track him down…

A fun romp of a story this is one to read when you need a break from those epic fantasy stories.

Fairy tales re-imagined had me signing up instantly. Perhaps I should have looked into this title a bit more as it really wasn't my jam.

I some what enjoyed the fun take on Prince Charming, somewhat reminiscent of a more frustrating Flynn Ryder.
It definitely read like YA so if that's your thing, then you'll probably enjoy this more.

I received this book for free from netgalley for an honest review.

Kept me on the edge of my seat and entertain me all weekend. Thank you!

What if your Prince really wasn’t all that Charming after all? Enter this fun twisted mashup fairytale novel.

The story is witty and quick to read with lots of familiar fairytale faces. I did find the pacing near the end a little inconsistent and the ending a bit abrupt (although I think this is intended to make way for a series, so I understand).

I would recommend Charming to anyone who enjoys a fairytale with a twist and a dash of revenge.

Thank you NetGalley and Rebellion Publishing for an advanced electronic copy in return for an honest review.

I requested Charming from Netgalley when it popped up in my 'things you might like' window, because I thought it sounded like exactly my kind of thing - a fairy tale retold with a twist and a bit of banter about it. It did not disappoint.

When Prince Charming rescues the Princess, you never stop to consider what happens afterwards... What if, instead of marrying the princess as all good fairy tales would have you believe, he disappears into the sunset with his side-kick Roland and a large part of your father's treasury? Leaving behind shame and anger. What if he does this over and over again? Well obviously you have a lot of very disgruntled ex damsels in distress around.

"What I mostly do is rescue damsels in distress" ... "Damsel, am I? I wasn't distressed. Mostly just bored."

When Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Rapunzel meet up at a banquet they form a covenant to track down the elusive Prince Charming and gain revenge, and hopefully retrieve some of that missing loot.

I loved the cleverness of Charming. It made me giggle all the way through. The characters are wry and witty and the descriptions are laugh out loud funny in places.

...a small castle so spiky with slim, flag-topped towers that it looks like a hedgehog has run through some bunting.

There were a whole host of extra characters too - dragons, other rescued princesses, dwarves and foxes, imps and demons. It felt like a very complete fairy tale world, a little like Shrek in places where all the different fairy tales and myths slot together.

It was very enjoyable and a great light-hearted read. It is also a first novel, which means that hopefully there will be more to come.

We all know the fairytales... But what if Happily Ever After was a lie? And the Prince actually a scammer who stole what he could and ran off to fool everybody in the next tale?

This is a brilliantly whimsical reimagining of some classics, and a must read for fairytale fans. There were a few bits of plot that didn't really go anywhere or add anything, so it was a bit longer than it needed to be. But otherwise a really enjoyable read!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Thank you NetGalley and rebellion publishing for a ARC in return for an honest review.

This fun novel is a twisted fairytale with a cast of well known players. We meet many a damsel in distress who are of course rescued by the oh so wonderful Prince Charming. This charmer however instead of walking down the aisle, runs off with the kingdoms gold and treasures. This story continues to repeat itself until three jilted princesses decide enough is enough and set out to bring the not so Prince Charming to justice.

This book was an easy read with a fun twist of characters and stories. It did get a tad slow but the telling of the 4th and 5th princesses story (we had well and truly got the point by the third). It also seems to leave open an end which could develop into a series set in the same world which I think could be quite fun.