Like the rest of Zahler's work that I've read, "Princess of the Wild Swans" proves to be just as sweet and simple as her previous fairy tale retellings, "The Thirteenth Princess" and "A True Princess". "Princess of the Wild Swans" is a retelling of the fairy tale "The Wild Swans". Princess Meriel is our lead protangonist. She must find a way to save her five brothers who have been enchanted into the form of swans by their wicked stepmother, Lady Orianna.
Much like her other works I've read, Zahler is consistent with her sacchrine simiplicity. One one hand, I find this quality to be a relief from the trend of dark, edgy fiction that is saturating children's literature these days. So having gentle, classic fairy tales available to young readers (and myself) is a breath of fresh air. But at the same time, I feel Zahler doesn't put much depth or complexity into her characters beyond very surface stereotypes.
Additionally, in this particular story, that added characters of Davina and Ennis at the end felt very tacked on. Also, after the climax of the story, the ending drags a bit.
Overall, I think this story is a very sweet read and reccomended to young readers who enjoy fairy tales and princess stories. It is not terribly sophicated or impressive, but it is certainly a nice little daydream to escape to.