Everyone knows the tale of the princess saved from the dragon by the brave and handsome prince who slays the beast. But what if the prince is actually the one who put her in such a predicament in the first place and she must slay the dragon herself, or die trying? This twist on the classic fantasy story endeavours to enlighten you.

A few nights ago, I watched Netflix’s recent film “Damsel”, starring Millie Bobby Brown, Robin Wright, Ray Winstone, Angela Bassett, Nick Robinson, Brooke Carter, and of course the incredible Shohreh Aghdashloo who voices the dragon.

With the film and my thoughts of it fresh in my mind, I decided to read this. I love retellings and I love dragons so I knew I would enjoy it. As a young adult book, therefore aimed at teenagers, it was a great little read, rather quick, expanding on existing scenes and building depth through new scenes. I feel that, much like the film, if I had been younger I would have loved it even more. It was reasonably similar so I could tell exactly what point we were at in relation to the film, and of course had quotes straight from the film that was nice to see.

This book answered a lot of the questions I had from watching the film but unfortunately it also created questions. I understood the changes that were made, but I preferred the film's ending to the book’s. ( )

2024 movie #52. 2024. Really enjoyed this fantasy tale. Impressed with Millie Bobby Brown. She stars in this physically demanding role, carries most of the screen time herself, is the executive producer of the film and she's just 20 years old. ( )

Leuk verhaal over een jong meisje, Elodie, dat wordt uitgehuwelijkt aan Prins Henry, die de heerser is over Aurea, een vruchtbaar en welvarend eiland. Elodie is verrukt over haar huwelijk. Henry is een knappe, charmante en galante prins. Maar haar vreugde verandert al gauw in wanhoop als blijkt dat zij, nu zij prinses is, wordt geofferd aan de draak die het eiland ook bewoont. De traditie wil namelijk dat er elk jaar 3 prinsessen aan de draak worden gegeven. Maar Elodie is niet dom en zij weet aan de draak te ontkomen en moet een uitweg vinden uit het labyrinth van grotten en gangen dat door de draak bewoond wordt. Dankzij door eerdere prinsessen nagelaten aanwijzing in de wanden van de grotten weet ze uiteindelijk te ontkomen. Een beetje doorsnee verhaal, maar het einde heeft dan weer een mooie wending, waardoor het net een beetje anders afloopt dan ik had verwacht. ( )

Most movies are adaptations of books. Damsel by Evelyn Skye is the rare occurrence where they wrote the screenplay for the movie and then got the idea to write a book based on the movie. Because I don’t pay as close attention as I should, I didn’t know this when I started reading it, but that in no way impeded my enjoyment of the story. If the book is even remotely close to the movie, the movie is going to be very entertaining.

Because it is a movie adaptation instead of the other way around, Damsel is not a complicated story. At its core, it is a simple young adult action story. The damsel in distress saves herself and the kingdom while discovering the big bad dragon is not as bad as misunderstood. It is a basic story formula that always works when done well.

What I particularly enjoy about Damsel is that it tackles the trolley problem, albeit with dragons and princesses instead of trolley cars and pedestrians. It is a difficult conundrum that most adults struggle to answer. I like that it is part of the story, but I am not certain Ms. Skye truly answers the question. Instead, she finds a clever workaround to obtain the required happily-ever-after ending. Rarely does real life have such options, but then again, it is a story that involves dragons. We left real life a long time ago.

If Ms. Skye’s version of Damsel is true to the movie, I look forward to watching the movie. Elodie is fierce, unrelenting, and loyal, and I know Millie Bobby Brown excels at those roles. I’m excited to see how they depict the dragon and its warren of caves. Even with its twist on the trolley problem, Damsel is pure entertainment that should work well on the screen. ( )

When it’s too good to be true, it usually is!

Elodie is to marry the prince of Aurea. In return her country Inophe will be gifted enough wealth to help the drought stricken kingdom to survive. Of course she says yes. It helps that the prince is handsome and kind.
Wined and dined, made welcome, she truly has been welcomed by her new countrymen.
But after the wedding a different fate awaits.
A fantasy telling of Theseus and the Minotaur, with no ball of string but generations of “brides” leaving messages and signs for those who would come after, and the minotaur being replaced by a dragon. Elodie is in for the fight of her life—literally.
Captivating in some parts and decidedly clunky in others this felt more like a YA novel that resolved itself too quickly after the caves exploits, and the many twists.
There’s some commentary on justice and the actions of the actions of the Aureans, what would you do sort of thing, but all in all, I found the ending fell short of the action in the middle of the book.

A Random House - Ballantine ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher. ( )