Asleep by Elizabeth Darcy

This is one of the most interesting fairy-tale retellings that I've read so far this year! It not only successfully retells the story of Sleeping Beauty, it also successfully casts a lady as the hero. No more Prince Charming (ok, there was a charming prince, but he was the one sleeping!)

You see, on the eve of Prince Dev and Princess Jess's wedding, strangers break into the castle and abduct Dev away. And being a warrior princess (her mom is a warrior queen, which is way cool), Jess isn't going to let anyone get in her way to rescue Dev. And as Dev sleeps, he dreams of his past with Jess, which was a pretty effective way of giving us the backstory behind their relationship while moving the plot forwards.

What I liked most about this book was the relationship between Dev and Jess. They didn't fall in love at first site - they were best friends first. And even in the present, you can see how strong their friendship is.

Another plus is the extremely supportive cast. I'm so glad to see two normal families behind the main characters. Sure there is political intrigue within the Five Realms but Dev and Jess have two awesome families!

The author mentions some mature scenes, and there is one. Thankfully, it's not very explicit and it's at the end of a chapter, so I just skipped it. For those of you scared by the warning, don't worry, it's not as bad as it sounds (and this is coming from me, with my oh-so-high levels of prudishness)

If you're in the market for an original retelling of Sleeping Beauty, you should check this book out!

Disclaimer: I got a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley