All anybody ever wants is the freedom of choice.

This is pretty much a quintessential comfort book: a sweet story about a sweet person finally getting seen, appreciated and loved for his kindness. There's a definite fairy tale vibe—something a bit Cinderella-like, even though Amador is a royal prince and the one to act the part of a Fairy Godmother to everyone around him. The villain is appropriately villainous and swiftly dealt with. The romance is based on instant mutual attraction and still manage to feel like a slow burn because of all the doubts and pining. All the problems get resolved quite easily with a bit of mischief and kindness, and everybody is happy in the end.

The story kind of begins to fall apart if you look at it too closely; despite all of Amador's claims that his oh so very plain, it is evident that he is clever, selfless, and capable of making friends everywhere he goes. It's hard to believe it literally took him twenty tries to be repaid in kind. Even if the world outside of the Harridor Palace is all bleak and cynical (which it doesn't wholly seem to be?), it stands to reason that someone in all those numerous kingdoms he visited should have at least decided he could be a valuable asset, with all of his knowledge and connections and people everywhere grateful for his help. Like, sure, there could be a logical explanation for this, but the story doesn't bother to provide one.

Still, this little book brought plenty of smiles to my face. I appreciated the diverse cast, the good-natured mischief, the absolutely queernorm word, and the way trans rep was subtly sneaked in. It was a nice way to spend a summer evening.