Bandits and Ball Gowns (Fairy Tales of the Magicorum #5) by Christina Bauer ~ #NetGalley #bookreview

 

Title: Bandits and Ball Gowns

Series: Fairy Tales of the Magicorum #5 

Author: Christina Bauer  

Publisher: Monster House Books  

Publication date: November 10, 2020

Source: Publisher via NetGalley 

Purchase: Amazon | B&N | BAM | Kobo | IndieBound

Synopsis

One Prince Finds True Love ... And Risks It All

Elle Cynder has fallen hard for Alec, the 'prince' of Le Charme Jewelers. Time for some happily in their ever after, right?

Not so much.

While the new couple shares joyful moments--and sizzling kisses--serious trouble is brewing. Elle's evil stepmother, Marchesa, schemes with none other than Alec's twisted father, Legend. Their plan? Destroy Elle and Alec, along with everything the young lovers hold dear, including Bry, Knox, and Wilhelm.

Another Royal Freezes His Heart ... But For How Long?

As a prince of the dark fae, Jacoby focuses on one goal: avoid assassination. Marrying Elle would certainly aid in that cause, considering how she's both a Cinderella life template and a powerful fae warden. Even better, Jacoby doesn't truly love Elle. In court life, deep romantic attachments only mean certain death.

Then Jacoby notices Elle's youngest stepsister, Agatha.

For the first time in his life, Jacoby's cold heart warms with true affection. The elven prince struggles to ignore his feelings, but it might be a losing battle. And what would the prince's newfound emotions mean for Elle and Alec? Could Jacoby really stand by and watch another's true love be destroyed?

Buckle up for a wild ride as Cinderella's time-honored story gets some all-new twists.

Fairy Tales of the Magicorum Series

A series of modern fairy tales with sass, action and romance

1. Wolves and Roses

2. Moonlight and Midtown

3. Shifters and Glyphs

4. Slippers and Thieves

5. Bandits and Ball Gowns

6. Fire and Cinder

7. Fairies and Frosting

8. Towers and Tithes 

My Rating: 4 / 5 stars 

Bandits and Ball Gowns led me to realize I will read anything and everything by Christina Bauer. This series is so fun with the retelling of different fairy tales, and BaBG is no exception. 

Elle and Alec are back again, and this time the story expands to include the points-of-view of Elle's sister, Agatha, and Jacoby, the elf who kept popping up in Elle's life in the last book. I liked how they were added to the action. 

Up until this point, Agatha was mostly in the background, so it was good to see her character develop. She wasn't someone I thought would become more involved, so it was a good surprise. Jacoby sometimes annoyed me in the previous book, but he ended up growing on me. There's more to these two characters than you might think.

My favorite Agatha quote: 

"How empty you must feel...to need to fill yourself up on my pain."

My favorite Jacoby quote: 

"Mother always said that she'd rather drink poison than fall in love. Both cause your death, yet only poison allows you to set the time and place."

BaBG has added illustrations of some of the characters and settings, and I loved their addition except for Alec. I think I just pictured him differently, but the other characters, including a couple of new ones, were done beautifully. And the scenes! They were stunning.  

I did initially rate this book three out of five stars, but as I wrote this review, I realized how much I love this book and changed it to four stars. It isn't quite a five-star read for me because I think some parts were a little rushed, especially towards the end.  

I highly recommend reading book #4, Slippers and Thieves, before diving into BaBG. Books #4, #5, and #6 are kind of like their own trilogy and go together. This series makes me so happy, and I get into these books so quickly and deeply.    

While you're here, check out my reviews for two previous books in this series: click here for my thoughts on Wolves and Roses (#1) and click here to read about Slippers and Thieves (#4). 

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