Fables Vol 10: The Good Prince

Fables Vol 10: The Good Prince (2008) Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Andrew Peopy

I’ve been reading Fables since 2005. And since then, I’ve pre-ordered the next in the series to get it the day it was released. Which tells you that this series is pretty fantastic.

For those who haven’t been playing along from the start, after a terrible war, many Fables escaped to our world, and are now hiding out in various locations all over the world, including Fabletown and The Farm in New York.

For those who have been playing along at home, Flycatcher has remembered his past, and is wallowing in misery now that those memories have returned. Meanwhile, Prince Charming is in negotiations with Hansel, who is representing the Adversary, for the return of the heads of the wooden soldiers who attacked Fabletown in an earlier strike. And on The Farm, Snow White and Bigby have their hands full with the cubs.

My goal last night was to go to bed early, because I had to get up early. However, once I started reading The Good Prince I couldn’t put it down and absolutely had to finish it. And at 228 pages it wasn’t a quick read. But it was totally worth it.

So far, 1001 Nights of Snowfall (a stand alone story in the Fables Universe) has far and away been my favorite in the series. But The Good Prince is giving it a run for its money. Excluding a short interlude for the cubs sixth birthday, from start to end this is Flycatcher’s story, and we get to see him change from the fool to the hero in a path that, although unexpected, is simply amazing to follow.

As with previous volumes, I was perpetually surprised by the turns the story took, and The GOod Prince is no exception to that rule. There were several times when I commented out loud while reading, which is always the sign of a good story.

As usual, it’s hard to discuss Fables without giving everything away, so let’s just say that if you were already following Fables, you’ve probably already read The Good Prince. And if you aren’t already reading, then really, you need to run out right now and start at the beginning, because you’re missing out on a really good thing.
Rating: 9/10

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