The Princess & the Peacock by CS Johnson

‘The first time I fell in love with Princess Mele was when I saw her smile, and I fell in love with her the second time the moment I heard her sing.

Two memories burn within Kaipo’s heart — the death of his mother, which left him alone to die, and the arrival of Princess Mele, which gave him a new reason to live. Together with his adopted brother, Kaipo seeks out Jaya, the Fae Queen who lives on the Forbidden Mountain, in order to gain the beauty he requires to win Mele’s heart. But Jaya has other plans for the scarred outcast who climbs up her mountain …

The Princess and the Peacock is the first in Birds of Fae, a fantasy fairy tale novella series from C. S. Johnson.’

Johnson’s The Princess & the Peacock is an endearing read about the power of true beauty. First, I love this cover! So gorgeous! This was a blend of inverted ‘Princess and the Frog’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast’ fairy tales, with a Hawai’ian flare. I enjoyed the writing style. It was from Kaipo’s pov, and reading about his adventures as a peacock. I adore peacocks, well, peafowl in general, which is what drew me to read this story.

This was just a novella, but Kaipo did some serious growing. He started out as a rather shallow person, wanting physical beauty because he thought that was the only way Princess Mele might notice him. He climbs the Forbidden Mountain to reach the Fae Queen Jaya. It’s said if you reach the top, she’ll grant a wish. Kaipo and his adopted brother succeed. Rahj declines a wish. When Kaipo, impatient, pushes Jaya, she turns him into a peacock. His beauty does indeed entice Mele, who takes him and Rahj, as his Caretaker, in.

Mele is my favourite character. I was firmly convinced that she would be as shallow as Kaipo, and be focused only on physical gifts. She was just the opposite! Mele has a gentle heart, and she’s long since realised that beauty is more than what’s on the outside. She does charity works, despite familial disapproval. She’s wearied by all of her suitors who are like Kaipo starts out, thinking only the surface matters.

I didn’t understand the stigma towards physical disfigurement. Kaipo bears scars from an attempt to save his mum from a fire. This makes him outcast. There are mentions of others who had ailments, like blindness, who are also outcast. This seems strange since I got the feel this was a warrior culture. I would think scars would be valued as a sign of what has been survived.

***Many thanks to the author for providing an ecopy in exchange for a fair and honest review. Reviewed for Reads & Reels Blog Tours