Her Pretty Knight Review (Mariah Rae Birch)

Updated on October 9, 2026

Verdict: A cute, quick forbidden romantasy between a lady knight and the witch posing as the princess she is sworn to guard, with plenty of yearning and a guaranteed happy ending, held back by a short length that leaves the plot, the world and the final stretch of the romance feeling rushed.

Best for: Readers who want a light sapphic fantasy with a tall, protective knight, a fake princess, forbidden longing and moderate heat, and who prefer romance to worldbuilding.

Heat level: ★★★☆☆ (3/5 — romance.io: open door)

Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.6/5 — a 3.98 Goodreads average across 1,921 ratings, discounted because fourteen of the 30 most-read reviews sit at three stars or lower, mostly over pace and depth)

Tropes: Bodyguard, forbidden love, fake princess, secret identity, witch heroine, arranged marriage, slow burn, class difference, dual POV, connected standalone.

Her Pretty Knight is the first book in Mariah Rae Birch’s Sapphic Lady Knights series of connected standalones, a sapphic romantasy published in October 2024, in which Sir Galeon, a knight who lost everything ten years earlier, is ordered to guard the prince’s bride-to-be, and the bride, Della, is not Princess Cordelia at all but a witch with a gift for death magic in a kingdom where magic is illegal.

It is a popular indie romantasy that splits its readers. Goodreads shows a 3.98 average across 1,921 ratings, with 71% of them at four or five stars, and Amazon carries 4.5 stars from 769 ratings. Readers agree that the couple is sweet; they disagree on whether a short book can carry a fantasy plot. Both are worth knowing before you start.

What Is Her Pretty Knight About?

This is royal bodyguard romance in a medieval fantasy setting. Galeon is duty itself, a knight whose loyalty is the only thing she has left; Della is hiding two secrets that could each get her killed, and the last thing she needs is a devoted guard watching her every move. The arranged marriage to the prince gives the romance its forbidden edge, and the court intrigue gives it stakes.

The book alternates between both women’s points of view in the third person and runs to about 247 pages. romance.io’s readers tag it as a slow burn with court intrigue, a secret relationship and class difference, and list third-party abuse, death and grief, and misogyny among its content warnings. The author promises grief, violence, explicit language and a guaranteed happy ending.

What Makes This Sapphic Romantasy Work

Galeon: A tall, protective lady knight is the book’s main draw, and readers who came for the knight-and-princess dynamic mostly got what they wanted.
The yearning: One three-star reader loved the slow-burn feel and the longing on both sides.
Cuteness: Ten of the 30 most-read reviews call the book or the couple cute, sweet or cosy, including several of the critical ones.
Quick to read: Readers describe it as a fast, easy read, and Amazon’s review summary calls it a good summer-afternoon book.
Emotional pull: Amazon’s review summary highlights the forbidden love story and its emotional ups and downs.

Book Synopsis

Ten years ago, Sir Galeon lost everything. Since then she has given her life to serving her kingdom as a knight, and when the prince entrusts her with guarding his bride-to-be, she accepts the duty without question. She does not expect the princess to capture her heart.

Della has more than one deadly secret. She is not Princess Cordelia, only pretending to be, and she is a witch in a kingdom where magic is as dangerous as it is illegal. Her ability to manipulate death is the reason she is at court, and her only way out. The last thing she wants is an overly loyal knight shadowing her every step.

As the wedding approaches and the danger around the court grows, the knight and the false princess find themselves drawn together in a way neither can afford. The question the book sets up is whether Galeon’s loyalty and Della’s secrets can survive each other.

My Review

The couple is the best thing here, and even unhappy readers concede it. A tall, devoted knight and a prickly, secretive witch are a satisfying pairing, and the forbidden setup gives their longing real weight. Readers who come for the yearning get plenty.

The second strength is tone. This is a warm, cute romantasy rather than a grim one, and it reads quickly. For readers who want romance first and fantasy second, that is a feature.

Where it struggles is consistent enough to call it a pattern: the book moves too fast for its genre. Nine of the 30 most-read reviews mention pace, rushing or insta-attraction. One three-star reader loved the slow burn but found the moment they finally got together rushed and unsatisfying; another says the love story was comfortable but fast for a 250-page book. The one-star reviews go further, describing a thin plot, bland writing and a world too underdeveloped to connect with. Smaller complaints are about character: a two-star reader did not like Della at all, and another found the prince a caricature who exists only to make Galeon look better.

The expectation to reset is the genre balance. The romantasy label suggests a fantasy plot and world with romance inside it; this is a romance with a fantasy setting. If you want a sweet forbidden love story in a medieval court, relax. If you want political intrigue and a developed magic system, calibrate.

It is also worth knowing that the evidence is clean. None of the 30 most-read reviews mention an advance copy, and the visible reviews are more critical than the overall average, with fourteen at three stars or lower.

My honest note: A four-star couple in a three-star fantasy. If you want a quick, cute knight-and-princess romance with a happy ending, it delivers; if you want depth, look for a longer book.

Element	In Her Pretty Knight
Central relationship	Sir Galeon & Della — a devoted lady knight and the witch impersonating the princess she guards
Core tropes	Bodyguard, forbidden love, fake princess, secret identity, arranged marriage, slow burn, dual POV
Setting	A medieval fantasy court where magic is illegal
Heat level	3/5 — romance.io: open door
Series	Sapphic Lady Knights book 1 — a connected standalone with a guaranteed HEA
Content notes	Grief and death, violence, third-party abuse, misogyny, explicit language

How Spicy Is Her Pretty Knight?

A 3 out of 5. romance.io places it in its “open door” band, from 28 reader ratings. Heat is rarely the subject of the Goodreads reviews: only two of the 30 most-read mention it, and the discussion centres on yearning rather than scenes.

The element worth knowing in advance is that the longing does most of the work. Readers who enjoy pining and protectiveness will find it satisfying; readers who want frequent explicit scenes should look elsewhere. For comparisons, The Princess’s Bodyguard is another royal bodyguard romance, and our adult sapphic romantasy list collects longer fantasy options.

Who Should Read This Book?

You’ll likely love it if: you love a protective lady knight, you want forbidden yearning with a happy ending, you prefer cute to grim, and you want a fantasy romance you can finish in a day.

You may want to skip it if: you want deep worldbuilding or political intrigue, you dislike rushed endings to slow burns, you want high heat, or you need a fully developed supporting cast.

In short: a sweet, yearning knight-and-princess romance, at the cost of fantasy depth.

What Readers Are Actually Saying (October 2026)

Her Pretty Knight is an indie romantasy that has kept finding readers since October 2024. It has built to 1,921 Goodreads ratings and 307 written reviews as of October 2026, and Amazon carries 769 ratings. I could not check Reddit or TikTok for this one. romance.io lists an audiobook format, but I found no edition on Libro.fm.

Why readers love it (according to the discourse): The couple, above everything, and especially Galeon. The second theme is the yearning of a forbidden romance. The third is the cute, quick, comforting read. Amazon’s review summary praises the forbidden love story, the emotional depth and how hard it is to put down.

What readers argue about and complain about: First, pace: the most repeated criticism, from readers at every star level. Second, depth: the plot and world feel thin to the lowest-rated reviewers. Third, characters: Della and the prince do not work for everyone. The disagreement is mostly about whether a short book can do romantasy justice.

The series question everyone should ask first: Her Pretty Knight is book one of Sapphic Lady Knights, a series of connected standalones, and it ends with a happy ending for this couple. You can stop here or carry on.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Her Pretty Knight a standalone?

Yes. It is the first in a series of connected standalones, and its couple gets a complete story with a happy ending.

How spicy is Her Pretty Knight?

A 3 out of 5. romance.io places it in its “open door” band, though yearning matters more than heat.

Does Her Pretty Knight have a happy ending?

Yes. The author guarantees an HEA.

Is Her Pretty Knight a bodyguard romance?

Yes. Sir Galeon is assigned to guard the prince’s bride, who is secretly a witch impersonating the princess.

Is Her Pretty Knight a slow burn?

It is billed and tagged as one, though several readers find the final stretch of the romance rushed.

If You Loved Her Pretty Knight, Read These Next

For another royal bodyguard romance, try The Princess’s Bodyguard. For a witch romance in a contemporary setting, go to The Honey Witch. For more like this, browse our adult sapphic romantasy list, our royal sapphic romance list and the rest of our book reviews.

The Bottom Line

Her Pretty Knight sets out to tell a forbidden love story between a lady knight and a false princess, and the romance at its centre is sweet, yearning and happily resolved. The book’s length works against it: the plot and world are thin, and the romance’s final stretch feels rushed to many readers. If you want a cute, quick sapphic romantasy with a protective knight, it is worth reading. Check Her Pretty Knight on Amazon →

The Eikna Overall Ranking

On the Eikna scale, Her Pretty Knight ranks as a likeable indie romantasy — sweet, yearning and easy to love for its knight, held back by a short length that rushes its plot and world, and best approached as a romance with a fantasy backdrop.