Imagine the perfect hero: handsome, tall, courageous, loves his father. Meet Prince Dietrich, the exact opposite. Prince Dietrich’s greatest wish is for his father—the king—to die. Then, he can become the ruler of Monrich. But King Ulaf has other plans for his rebellious son. Tired of Dietrich's constant failures, the king gives the prince one last chance at redemption: marry Duchess Amadea of Sacony or face banishment to the Black Desert. Left without a choice, Dietrich embarks on his wedding journey. It's meant to be a peaceful trip... The Amazing Adventures of Dashing Prince Dietrich is a hilarious, lightning-fast novel set in a world discovering the magic of gunpowder. Imagine Romeo and Juliet. Imagine Machiavelli. Imagine the Count of Monte Cristo. Now forget all those. You want to hate Dietrich, but you also want to see what he'll do next.
Prince Dietrich II (better known as Dick) of the fantasy land of Monrich has just turned 18, and his father, King Ulaf, is determined to marry him off as soon as possible. Ulaf is grumpy, dictatorial, and determined to make something out of him; his feelings for his only son are not in the least affectionate. Prince Dick doesn’t feel much filial love either. In fact, he constantly fantasizes about patricide, but he fears repudiation and a trip to the Black Desert, so he stifles his hatred in surly acquiescence while trying to wriggle out of getting married. This is the only real source of tension in the book, and it gets old fast. Ljubuncic’s odious novel takes the idea of the fantasy quest to a new low: Prince Dick is crude, self-involved, greedy, lazy, and completely dishonorable. He has no redeeming qualities and never gains any through his ridiculous attempts to dodge his royal duties.
