Blog Tour: The Prince And The Dressmaker

Blog Tour: The Prince And The Dressmaker

I received this galley in consideration for an honest review.

Blog Tour: The Prince And The DressmakerThe Prince And The Dressmaker by Jen Wang
Published by First Second on February 13, 2018
Genres: Graphic Novel
Goodreads
four-stars

Paris, at the dawn of the modern age:

Prince Sebastian is looking for a bride―or rather, his parents are looking for one for him. Sebastian is too busy hiding his secret life from everyone. At night he puts on daring dresses and takes Paris by storm as the fabulous Lady Crystallia―the hottest fashion icon in the world capital of fashion!

Sebastian’s secret weapon (and best friend) is the brilliant dressmaker Frances―one of only two people who know the truth: sometimes this boy wears dresses. But Frances dreams of greatness, and being someone’s secret weapon means being a secret. Forever. How long can Frances defer her dreams to protect a friend? Jen Wang weaves an exuberantly romantic tale of identity, young love, art, and family. A fairy tale for any age, The Prince and the Dressmaker will steal your heart.

The Prince and the Dressmaker was such a lovely and uplifting story!  The dressmaker, Frances, takes a mysterious assignment to escape the drudgery of her seamstress job and is shown a world what she never knew existed.  Sebastian hides who he really is to everyone, that is until Frances starts working for him.  Her acceptance and artistry seem to open up a part of Sebastian that becomes Lady Crystallia. Sebastian isn’t the only one trusting someone with hopes and dreams.  As their friendship deepens, Frances tells Sebastian about her dreams of becoming a designer.  For a while, they support each other since Frances is able to design in any way she wants and Sebastian feels free in a way he doesn’t at home.  Eventually, though, the secret and the pressure his parents put on him to marry and to “be the Prince” starts to weigh on who he is, which starts to weigh on his friendship with Frances.  The way that the story balances Sebastian’s pain about hiding Lady Crystallia and the boundaries that Frances has to set made for an emotional story. The Prince and the Dressmaker had everything I love in a story. It explored what it means to be yourself, fall in love, and stay true to what you really want in life. It also showed how much it means to have the unwavering support of the people you love.  The art most definitely gave the story that much more impact.  The pages came alive with the colorful and vibrant way that the story was told through Jen Wang’s illustrations.  I loved the Prince and the Dressmaker and I recommend it for both the beautiful art and the wonderful story.

As a part of the tour, I have to pick my favorite panel, which is so, so difficult!  I picked this one because I love the color, the movement, and I love the scene depicting the first time that Sebastian wore one of the dresses that Frances designed for Lady Crystallia.

 

 

 

four-stars

About Jen Wang

Jen Wang a cartoonist, writer, and illustrator based in Los Angeles. I’m also a co-founder and organizer for Los Angeles based comics festival Comic Arts LA.

Kate


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