Little Red and the Lumpy Bed

Dreaming Princesses #3

by C. Rae D'Arc

When dreams become reality, do we ever wake up?

Fleeing her own kingdom, Garnet turned to the princesses of Ormio for help, starting with Ruby and Peridot. But Ruby was attacked by a surprisingly spry grandmother, and Peridot fell into restless sleep atop a pile of mattresses. As identical twins, they were inseparable with similar tastes in activities and men. This remains true even in their dreams, but some things aren't meant to be shared.

Finding herself deaf and dreaming, Peridot travels across the USA, searching for the stranger named Leo. He might be a stranger, but he's also her fiancé.
Meanwhile, Ruby dreams of blackness on a Texas cotton farm, quickly intrigued by two young farmers. Ruby wants to play matchmaker, but tragedy strikes when dreams and hearts don't align.

With Emer, Marin, and Pearl awake in Somnus, they begin to spread the word of their return while requesting aid against the ogres. Little do they know that monsters worse than ogres have joined the fight. Queen Tanzanite has learned of their awakening and will do anything to stop her sisters from waking more princesses, even if, instead, it means awakening nightmares.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

326 pages, Paperback

Published October 13, 2023

About the author

C Rae D'Arc has been involved in every stage of a book's life. As a writer, editor, retailer, reader, and reviewer, she has worked four part-time jobs at once. Thankfully, one of them actually paid her. She received her Bachelor's in English from Brigham Young University and now lives in the Tri-Cities of Washington with her husband and Aussie dog.
Newest Release: "Visionary Investigations: Dead and Back Again #1.5"
PS. To save you from hiccups, D'Arc only has one syllable.

Reviews

[NaDell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super fun retelling of Little Red Riding Hood mixed with Princess and the Pea!
Dreaming Princesses continues to discover what happens to the 12 princesses during the 100 years of sleep they were cursed with.
As they adapt to challenges, they learn more about themselves and those around them.

[Julie Carpenter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how creative this author is! Pulling in several different fairytales to twist them and give the reader a wonderful adventure following princesses from three different kingdoms work to save each other and stop the evil queen!

I loved the way Little Red Riding Hood and Princess and the Pea were woven together to feature the twin princesses, Ruby and Peridot! The world building was very clever and kept me guessing what was to come. And the going back and forth between the princesses's world and their dream worlds was very well written. I loved this concept so much. Sometimes I felt a little tempted to jump ahead a chapter to see what was going to happen to one princess but I didn't. I kept reading without jumping ahead, which I'm glad I didn't because the author did a great job building the story and giving clues and information that was needed for us to follow along and cheer for these princesses and their leading men!

Great series and book that I would recommend for younger readers to older readers! I read an early copy of the book but loved it so much that I reread it recently. And, I might have read it to get my mind back into this magical world so I could remember everything before reading book #4. ;-) Yes, you read that right! I read book #4 and all I can say is get ready for another wild ride and an amazing adventure! I'm hooked and I'm dying for book #5!!! If you're reading this series, you will want to be watching for #4. Go back and read the others while you wait, or if you haven't read them yet, go read them because I promise it's more than worth it!!!

Content: Clean. Magical elements in regards to fairytale retellings. A couple of sweet and chaste kisses but nothing further.

My own personal copy. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

Happy Reading!!!

[Katrina Dupaix · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was a fun read. I really enjoyed how different this one was from the other two before it. It was about two different sisters, like the second one, but this time they actually ran into each other. The ending made me need the next one so badly. Alas, it probably won't come out till later this year

[Theresa Sidebottom Shively · Rating 5 out of 5]

adventure, love and sibling rivalry

This was a grand adventure with magic, love and a lot of drama. Cant wait to see what the evil queen will do to retaliate

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

C. Rae D’Arc continues her Sleeping Princesses series with the third entry, Little Red and the Lumpy Bed. This series mashes together famous fairytale princesses in a fantasy land known as Somnus. In all the books, fairytale princesses find themselves somewhere on Earth and must make their way back home.
This novel introduces twins Ruby (Little Red Riding Hood) and Dot (Princess and the Pea). As with some twins, they are jealous of each other. Their Earth segment starts at different locations on the west coast of the United States. Dot wakes up deaf while Ruby finds herself blind, although neither are blind nor deaf in Somnus. The majority of this part of the story is the two girls finding each other and learning the customs of this world. Bringing these characters to life as rivaling fifteen-year-old sisters is ingenious. The fate of the two characters also differs quite a bit from the pattern of the prior Sleeping Princesses offerings.
Meanwhile, back in Somnus, our gang of awakened princesses and heroes are trying desperately to find the sleeping versions of Dot and Ruby. They run away from old enemies while encountering a new one while having a grand, high fantasy adventure.
Little Red and the Lumpy Bed continues the Sleeping Princess series with everything the first two had: memorable characters, captivating settings, madcap situations, and a helping of romance. A grand adventure on two worlds, along with a healthy dose of relatable humor, make this fantasy offering one worth reading.

[Angelina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to tell you this series is so different than any other o have read of a retelling of fairytales. Combining different ones together and creating almost a new one, bringing the contemporary world in as the “dream world” and needing the princesses to believe in themselves to find their way out is a nice change of pace too. Also, I enjoyed the twist of one of the princesses not coming back from the “dream world” and finding her own story there. I did like that the 2 main ones in this story, Dot and Ruby, had disabilities of deafness and blindness; that was something new to the series too. Looking forward to book 4!

[Bee Love-Wallace · Rating 1 out of 5]

Once again I found the plot to be quite convoluted. Although I have to admit there is a slight intrigue for my love of fairy tales. Hate to say it but I was very disappointed.