Author Lex Croucher follows up their acclaimed Arthurian-inspired YA novel Gwen and Art Are Not in Love with a witty, anachronistic rom-com adventure inspired by another classic story: the legend of Robin Hood.
Not for the Faint of Heart begins after Robin Hood's story ends. The Merry Men have transformed from a "fun, ballsy, anarchist autonomous collective to an organized militia" that battles the sheriff for control of Nottinghamshire. Mariel, the 18-year-old granddaughter of Robin Hood and "the youngest captain the Merry Men had ever seen," is desperate to impress her father, the Merry Men's current leader. The teen, to prove her ruthlessness, uses her squad of bandits to kidnap a healer rumored to be helping the sheriff. But the plan goes awry, and Mariel's team instead abducts 17-year-old Clem, the healer's bubbly, idealistic apprentice.
When the bandits reunite with the Merry Men, there is an ambush and Mariel's father is captured by the sheriff. Mariel and her team set off to rescue him, with Clem along for the ride. On the road flaxen-haired Clem bonds with her captors--blond, "friendly giant" Baxter; "fair-skinned," surly Morgan; dark-skinned Josie, Mariel's "efficient right-hand woman"; and clever Japanese healer Kit--but clashes with dark, shaggy-haired and pale-skinned Mariel. Clem, who has idolized the Merry Men since childhood, is disappointed to find that the thieves are no longer queer "heroes in nice tights" but have "become something murkier, uglier." Meanwhile Mariel is shaken by Clem's critiques of the cause to which she has devoted her life.
This novel is a breezy, comedic romp through the world of Robin Hood told from the perspectives of two teenage girls who have entertainingly contradictory personalities. Fans of grumpy/sunshine romances will be charmed by "stern" Mariel and "relentlessly fucking cheerful" Clem's improbable-yet-convincing enemies-to-lovers romance. Croucher balances snappy banter with interludes of tenderness and vulnerability, such as when Mariel and Clem must share a bed and, after a night of bickering, wake up cuddling.
The adorable sapphic romance unfolds during a swashbuckling quest filled with thrilling fights and chaotic heists. Mariel, Clem, and their found family of LGBTQ+ outlaws joyously embody the slogan "be gay, do crime." Readers will delight in this story of two young queer women coming into their own as they wreak havoc on the rich. --Alanna Felton, freelance reviewer
Shelf Talker: The granddaughter of Robin Hood and a healer's apprentice fall for each other while battling the aristocracy in this effervescent YA historical romantic comedy.