Prince of Frogs
Curse of the Dark Kingdom Book One
A cursed prince.
A reluctant assassin.
One full moon before one of them dies.
Prince Alaistar, the notoriously cold-blooded General, was left trapped on the western coast by the enchantment that befell the entire royal family. With a silver mask fused to his face, green-tinged skin, and a relentless magical pull toward the sea, most people see a monster.
Evonna of Laerthar sees an opportunity.
Desperate to rescue her missing brother, she agrees to a deadly bargain.
Kill the cursed prince before the next full moon. Or forfeit her own life instead.
But getting close to Alaistar reveals a man far different than the ruthless villain feared across the Five Kingdoms.
Beneath the mask is a lonely, touch-starved prince carrying the weight of his family’s sins.
And the more time Evonna spends with him, the more impossible her task becomes.
Because if she fails, the bargain will kill her.
And if she succeeds, she will destroy the only person who has ever truly seen her.
Perfect for readers who love:
✨ Fairy tale retellings
✨ Enemies-to-lovers romance
✨ Cursed princes and slow-burn tension
✨ Clean fantasy romance
✨ Protective heroes and magical kingdoms
✨ Mysterious magical cats
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Prince of Frogs — FAQ
Book One: Curse of the Dark Kingdom
About the Book
What is Prince of Frogs about?
Prince of Frogs is a YA fantasy romance retelling of “The Frog Prince.” Prince Alaistar of Darkhar, once a ruthless general, is living under a curse that has fused a silver mask to his face, turned his skin green, and given him gills and webbed hands. He’s trapped within two miles of the Lighthouse Fortress, governing the only safe harbor on the continent. Into his fortress arrives Evonna, a metalworker searching for her imprisoned brother, who has been trapped in a blood bargain that requires her to kill Alaistar before the next full moon, or die herself. What follows is a slow-burn romance, a political conspiracy, and a curse-breaking that demands both characters do the hardest thing they’ve ever done: be vulnerable.
Is this a retelling of “The Frog Prince”?
Yes. But with a slightly darker and more original interpretation of the curse. Rather than a literal frog transformation, Alaistar’s curse manifests as a silver mask fused over his face, green-tinged skin, gills along his neck, and webbed fingers and toes. He’s also magically anchored to the coast, unable to leave the fortress grounds. The story takes the emotional core of the fairytale —the cursed “monster” who is seen and loved for who he really is — and builds a full political fantasy world around it.
What fairytale is this retelling?
The primary fairytale is “The Frog Prince,” with strong “Beauty and the Beast” undertones. The enemies-to-lovers dynamic, the cursed hero who frightens everyone except the heroine, and the theme of love-as-transformation are all present. Readers who love either fairytale will find a lot to love here.
What are the main themes of the book?
The book explores the difference between following the letter of the law versus the spirit of it as well as the need to balance duty with compassion. It asks what we owe the world when we’ve been complicit in something cruel, how much it costs to let yourself be truly seen, and whether vulnerability is weakness or the most courageous thing a person can do. Underneath the romance, it’s a book about what it means to stop obeying and start thinking for yourself.
Characters
Who is Prince Alaistar?
Alaistar, the cursed second son of the late King Aegron the Cruel, is an undefeated general who was raised to be a weapon. He has spent years enforcing his father’s legacy from behind an expressionless silver mask. He’s tall, broad-shouldered, controlled to the point of being armored, and capable of dry, deadpan humor he almost never lets anyone see. His arc is about learning that the rigid adherence to duty his father built into him isn’t strength. It’s a cage. He’s a classic “monster to everyone but her” hero.
Who is Evonna?
Evonna, a petite, auburn-haired metalworker from the island kingdom of Laerthar. is practical, stubborn, sharp-tongued, and brave to the point of recklessness. She grew up a “street rat,” which means she’s resourceful and doesn’t trust easily. She arrives at the Lighthouse Fortress convinced Alaistar is the heartless tyrant everyone says he is, and intending to trade his life for her brother’s. Her arc is about learning to let herself be seen and loved, even when that feels more dangerous than fighting.
Who is Cat?
Cat is a small black-and-white feline with startlingly violet eyes who haunts the Lighthouse Fortress throughout the story. She eavesdrops on conversations, exposes people who are hiding, smirks, and seems to know things she shouldn’t. Her true nature isn’t revealed in Book One. She is a recurring character across the series.
Is there a villain?
Yes. The books antagonist is Unwir, the manipulative henchman who coerced Evonna into the blood bargain and is working on behalf of a larger, unseen mastermind who is destabilizing Darkhar. He’s not the final villain of the series but only a part a larger political conspiracy at play that will unfold across all five books.
Romance & Content
What’s the romance level? Is there any spice?
Prince of Frogs is no spice / clean romance. There is no on-page sex, no fade-to-black intimacy, and no explicit content. The romance is built entirely through charged encounters, slow-burn longing, emotional vulnerability, and a first kiss. It’s YA-appropriate and suitable for teen readers, but emotionally resonant enough to satisfy adult readers who prefer clean fantasy romance.
What romance tropes does this book use?
Enemies-to-lovers (specifically the assassin-and-target variation), slow burn, touch-starved hero, “the only one who sees the real him,” love-as-transformation, and forced proximity. The romance is compressed into a single full-moon deadline, which gives it taut emotional tension even though the emotional beats are slow and earned.
Is the curse-breaking tied to the romance, or does she just “love him enough”?
The curse-breaking is tied to character work, not romantic love. Alaistar’s curse breaks when he does the internal work by choosing vulnerability and self-sacrifice for the first time in his life. Evonna’s love matters, but it isn’t sufficient on its own. This is intentional: each of the five cursed siblings in the series has their own internal flaw to overcome, so each curse-breaking will look different and feel earned in a different way.
Series
Is Prince of Frogs part of a series?
Yes. It is Book One of Curse of the Dark Kingdom, a five-book interconnected YA fantasy romance series. Each book follows one of five royal siblings who were all cursed simultaneously when their father, the tyrant King Aegron was assassinated. Each curse matches a different classic fairytale. The books are designed to be read in order, though each delivers a complete, satisfying standalone romance. A series-long court mystery (who is the hidden mastermind behind the curse and the conspiracy in Darkhar?) runs through all five books.
What order should I read the series?
Start with Prince of Frogs (Book One). The series is interconnected, with characters and events from earlier books appearing in later ones, and the overarching royal intrigue builds across all five. The epilogue of each book sets up the next.
How many books are in the series, and are they all available?
The series is five books total, one per cursed sibling. The series is complete. Check the author’s website or your retailer for current retailer availability.
Which fairytales are retold in the series?
Book One (Prince of Frogs) retells “The Frog Prince.” Other books in the series retell “Sleeping Beauty,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Firebird,” and “The Swan Princess,” each matched to a specific sibling’s curse and character arc.
Do I need to read the series in order?
Each book tells a complete romance and can technically be read on its own, but the political mystery and the fates of the royal siblings are better experienced in order. Reading out of order will involve spoilers for earlier books.
Audience & Comparisons
Who is this book for?
Prince of Frogs is shelved and marketed as Young Adult fantasy, with strong crossover appeal to adults. It’s ideal for: readers who love clean or closed-door fantasy romance; fairytale retelling enthusiasts; fans of interconnected series where each book is its own romance; and readers looking for a cursed-hero story with real emotional and moral weight. It’s especially well-suited for readers who have migrated to the YA shelf specifically to avoid increasingly explicit content on the adult fantasy romance shelf.
What’s the age range?
The book is written and shelved as YA and appropriate for readers 13 and up. Content is squarely within YA parameters: closed-door, no-spice romance, mild violence, and age-appropriate themes.
What books is this similar to?
Prince of Frogs is most similar to A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer (cursed prince, dual POV, closed-door YA romance), Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim (cursed royal siblings, heroine racing against magic for a sibling, fairytale retelling), K.M. Shea’s Timeless Fairy Tales series (clean YA-crossover indie fairytale retellings, warm and emotionally generous), and Melanie Cellier’s Beyond the Tales series (interconnected indie YA fantasy romance series, each book retelling a different fairytale). Readers who love early Sarah J. Maas (Throne of Glass) or Marissa Meyer’s fairytale retellings (Gilded, Heartless) frequently enjoy this series.
How does this compare to other “Frog Prince” retellings?
“The Frog Prince” is one of the least-retold major fairytales — there are dozens of Cinderella and Beauty-and-the-Beast retellings for every Frog Prince. Prince of Frogs is one of the few full-length YA fantasy romance retellings of this specific fairytale, and takes a significantly more original approach to the curse’s visual manifestation (a fused mask, gills, and webbing rather than any literal amphibian transformation).
Reading Experience
What’s the writing style like?
The book uses close third-person dual POV, alternating between Alaistar and Evonna. Alaistar’s chapters are cooler and more controlled; Evonna’s are warmer and more reactive. The prose is rhythmic and unobtrusive, with punchy short sentences used for emotional emphasis. Tone is warm and emotionally grounded — serious without being grimdark, with touches of dry humor from Alaistar and the magical cat.
Is this fast-paced or slow-paced?
The romance is slow-burn by design. The reader watches two guarded people crack open over a compressed timeline. But the plot moves quickly: the blood-bargain deadline (one full moon) structures the book like a ticking-clock thriller, so there’s real urgency underneath the emotional beats. Most readers describe it as “hard to put down” despite the slow-burn romance.
Is the ending satisfying? Does the romance resolve in Book One?
Yes. The romance between Alaistar and Evonna resolves completely in Book One and they get their happy ending. The curse breaks. The blood bargain is satisfied. They end the book together. The epilogue opens the door to the series-long mystery and royal intrigue and introduces the next book’s setup, but the central story of Book One has a complete, emotionally satisfying conclusion.
