The beautiful Princess Tourmaline is trapped in a tower. Knight after knight tries to rescue her, and each boasts that he is the bravest—but each gets lost, entangled in the forest, confused by a swarm of butterflies, or otherwise hindered or distracted.
Finally, one knight rides towards the tower, but “They said nothing at all.” They are, however, able to avoid distraction and arrive safely.
The princess “was thrilled to see them”—“especially when she took off her helmet.”
There’s a fun twist to the traditional fairy tale here, although we’ve already seen same-sex pairings in fairy tale books such as King & King, Prince & Knight, Maiden & Princess, and The Bravest Knight Who Ever Lived, making this one somewhat less surprising. Readers may be disappointed, too, in the lack of agency the princess here exhibits; the other books do a better job of empowering both members of their romantic couples.
And while the use of “they” to mask the successful knight’s actual gender is understandable on one level, some readers may be confused or disappointed that the knight isn’t actually a nonbinary person who uses “they” pronouns.
Fatinha Ramos’s illustrations, however, are stunning, and may be reason enough to add this book to your shelves.
