Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower

A witch locks a princess in a tower. The princess waits for a prince to come to her rescue. You think you know where this story is going, but you're wrong.

A princess grows tired of waiting to be rescued. She sets out to rescue herself. You think you know where this story is going, but you're wrong.

To say more about the story would give away too much, but I can say I've rarely been so pleased to have my expectations of a story proven so wrong.

Received via NetGalley.

I spent an absolutely enjoyable afternoon with "Princess Florinda and the Forty-Flight Tower." Trope-busting, heart-engaging, insightful, clever, witty, and told with a wonderful Voice (a blend of Terry Pratchett and her own unique one).

Read this if you ever read FIVE GO ADVENTURING AGAIN and thought, "Hmm, you know what this story could really use? Kidnapping, fairy arsonists, and a spot of leatherworking."

(Obviously this is a very common thought among young readers of Enid Blyton's distinguished body of work.)

Funny fantasy novella.

The murderers had been there the whole time Floralinda had
been there. They made quite a racket at first, but Floralinda
had not heard it above the roaring of the dragon and the
crunching of the bones; and although you have been warned
to not feel sorry for anything inside the tower, perhaps you
can spare a thought to what it would have been like, to be
stuck in an airless room with your only company some people
who have nothing in common with you other than a career
choice. In modern parlance we call this a convention,

“What is ‘f---’?” she said eventually.
Cobweb, although reluctant, explained that it was what you said
chiefly when you were angry. She was disappointed in herself
that she knew this, but when a

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bottom-of-the-garden fairy has
spent enough time around overly knowing children, this was
the result. You may rest assured that no child who ever
uttered f--- was taken to Fairyland; however, you may also be
sure that no child who uttered f--- needed to, anyway.

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Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower by Tamsyn Muir is an adult fairytale retelling a version of Rapunzel, but with a twist. Ms. Muir is an award winning author, known for her Locked Tomb trilogy.

Floralinda, a princess, has been jailed by a witch in a 40 story tower and is awaiting a prince to come and rescue her. The witch, however, done things right this time and put a monster on every level which the princes will have to fight through; none makes it through the first floor and eventually they stop coming.

With the reluctant help of an abusive, and not so passive, but aggressive fairy Floralinda needs to let go of her princess ways and manage to show more somehow survive.

I have really enjoyed the author’s Locked Tomb trilogy (the first two books, the third one hasn’t come out yet), I like her writing style, humor, and storytelling abilities. Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower by Tamsyn Muir continues the tradition of fairytales, how they have changed for decades to teach society about dangers, ethics, as well as relationships and more.

In this novel Ms. Muir wrote a tale which takes a familiar story, mixes it with Game of Death (the Bruce Lee – Kareem Abdul Jabbar classic), and a touch of Mortal Kombat for good measure. It is certainly very creative, and lots of fun.

While simplistic on the surface, I thought the story was very innovative with a very clever take on an old tale. Each chapter tells of a different monster (almost every chapter, it’s a novella after all) in the tower. What happens to that monster, if something happens, I’ll leave up to you to find out.

I was surprised about the growth of the protagonist, Princess Floralinda, during this short book. She discovers things she can do, moral fortitude she did not know she has, and facing an unknown future which might be counted in days and weeks.

Ms. Muir’s writing style is just as engrossing and funny as it is in the Lost Tomb series, but not as insane which makes sense since the protagonist is not… well… crazy either. I enjoyed the darkness and humor embedded in simple sentences, told with skill to create a compelling narrative.

I was really impressed to read this type of story from the author, which kept up her writing style outside of the series which she became known for. The story is interesting, charming, and entertaining for kids of all ages, if you’re looking for something the whole family can enjoy. show less

Is this a...subversion of the subversion of the princess in need of rescue trope? Somewhat. It has that semi-satirical side eye to trope that feels hugely similar to the childhood favorite 'Dealing with Dragons' et. al. But is enough darker that it is in fact fresh, even if very reminiscent.
The downside is the ending falls pretty flat in my opinion. Now, it fails in that it's too abrupt and underdeveloped, and it's a short book anyway, so it's more of an 'oh well' failure than anything you have to suffer through.
It's light, and a bit fun without being saccharine. If it was longer, it would be worse, but it's amusing for what it is.

An amusing take on the princess in the tower story, in which plenty of princes come and try - and fail. Princess Floralinda has a no change of clothing, a rather limited diet and very little to entertain her, nor is the tower suitable for winter. But while she survives opening the door to the 39th floor, she looks die of the wounds when she gets a strange companion - and it becomes quite a different story.