To Find Love Is A Curse ...

I recently finished reading The Swan's Daughter by Roshani Chokshi. This is OwlCrate's January 2026 YA book.

**POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT**

  Rating: 3.75/5 stars

"Prince Arris knows that marriage means murder. Thanks to a poorly worded wish to a sea witch, all one needs to rule the Isle of Malys is the heart and hand of the kingdom’s heir. Historically, this has been construed quite literally.

Thus, Arris expects that the day after his marriage and murder, he will wake up as a sentient tree alongside the rest of his predecessors. His only chance at a long life is finding true and lasting love. When Arris's parents announce a tournament of brides to compete for his hand and heart, a slew of eligible, lovely, and (possibly murderous) bachelorettes make their way to Rathe Castle. Amidst glittering balls in Ozorald caves, strolls through menageries of daydream trees and pearl crocodiles, tea time on glass boats, and kisses that leave his head spinning, Arris cannot tell who is here out of love for him…or lust for power.

Until he meets Demelza.

As a veritas swan, Demelza’s song wrings out the truth. Forced into hiding, Demelza strikes a deal. Arris will provide her with safekeeping in exchange for her truth-telling song to sort through his potential brides.

While Arris is used to dodging death threats and Demelza is accustomed to fighting for her voice to be heard, to survive the tournament of brides requires a different kind of bravery. And perhaps the bravest thing one can do is not merely protect one’s life, but find the courage to chase a life worth living."

For the first few chapters, this book had me hooked. I really enjoyed the introduction to the setting and to Demelza, the heroine of the tale, who’s the last-born daughter of a swan mother and a sorcerer father. The author’s dreamy writing style and the magical, storybook atmosphere made me excited to finally get to the main plot: Demelza meeting the prince and aiding him in his search for a wife.

But from that point on, there was a large stretch of the book where I found myself less engaged. While I was thoroughly entertained by the humor and the fantastical world-building, I was honestly bored by Prince Arris and Demelza’s blossoming romance. I definitely think it was the weakest aspect of the story for me, because I never really felt invested in their connection. Arris is a mild-mannered, gentle sort of love interest, which I found refreshing, but their falling in love came across as weirdly sudden, and their subsequent pining didn’t feel earned.

Don’t get me wrong, I still had fun with this. I’ve always enjoyed fairy tales, and I like books with characters and worlds rooted in that tradition. But I just wasn’t fully taken with the story’s central romance between Demelza and Prince Arris, which never felt as enchanting as the rest of the world around them.

I would still recommend this to anyone who wants a dreamy escapist read with some cute moments (because there are cute moments!) and a lighthearted tone, even if the romance didn’t quite sweep me away as I hoped.

Check out The Swan's Daughter, and discover what happens when finding love is a curse.

Happy reading :)