- Status: Completed
- Platform: Tapas
- Chapters: 159
- Genre: Historical Romance Manhwa
- Creators: COIN, SWE, hanryui
- Release year: 2023
- tropes: yearning and extremely jealous ML, bodyswap, hidden identity, competent FL
After losing consciousness while fleeing the war raging in Roymund Kingdom, Princess Zeline wakes up in the body of a messenger falcon! She’s now the bird in charge of delivering information for Commander Valhyle and his army, who are searching for the remaining royal descendants. She may be tiny and feathered, but Zeline is determined to use her missions to find out what happened to her family. Can this little birdie gain the skeptical commander’s trust and give her kingdom new wings?
‘The Falcon Princess’ is good and nobody talks about it
‘The Falcon Princess’ recently finished, so I picked it back up again – and boy, did it catch me all over again. I don’t know why this one doesn’t have more fans. Yes, it’s predictable at times, yes the romance is very slow, and yes, there are some strange moments between the ML and the FL while she’s a falcon. But it’s still a very good historical romance with fun body-swap elements. What stands out most for me is that the characters’ struggles feel believable. I love that Zelline, after living as a recluse, struggles so much with being seen and with allowing herself to want anything for herself. That’s exactly why it feels believable that their love takes a while to bloom. And as for the ML: he was basically a war machine without feelings, and Zelline was the only one who could pull him out of that. It’s very sweet. Yes, he gets jealous of an actual falcon acting as the second ML, but I find that absolutely hilarious. He’s an open guy, so don’t judge him too harshly.
‘The Falcon Princess’: Is the Ending Satisfying?
I don’t think this is a huge spoiler, but if you really don’t want to know, keep scrolling. ‘The Falcon Princess’ ends on the honeymoon phase of Zelline and Valhyle. All the loose ends – at least all the ones I can think of – get resolved, and we even get a small glimpse of the future to see how the other characters end up. I absolutely loved it, and my heart felt full afterward. The last arc did feel predictable and frustrating, but when you binge it, it’s just a little hiccup before the happy ending. Unfortunately, once they get intimate during the honeymoon phase, Valhyle drops the classic “I couldn’t control myself” line, which is always a bad writing choice – but other than that, it was good. Be warned, though:
Show Spoiler
The messenger bird dies at the end. It’s written well and made me feel all the feels; I bawled my eyes out. Its soul visits Zelline one more time and is honored, but it’s still sad.
Premise and Problems
The premise is unique: almost the entire royal family is killed in a war, and Zelline wakes up in the body of a messenger bird. This lets her get close to Commander Valhyle, since she flies missions for him. It’s also the source of the story’s “problems,” which I don’t find all that dramatic. Valhyle grows very close to his bird, and because she’s sometimes drawn in her human form to emphasize their closeness, you occasionally have to remind yourself, but she’s still a bird. For me, it’s not a dealbreaker at all – the author even leans into it, as Valhyle’s close aides start worrying about him for falling in love with a bird.
Romance
The romance in ‘The Falcon Princess’ is very slow. Their first kiss happens around chapter 90, but it’s in a haze. After that, they’re just shy around each other, and things don’t really progress – and then they get separated again. But believe me when I say their reunions are deeply satisfying. Whenever they’ve spent time apart, you can really feel the longing, which I absolutely love. They truly feel like they’re good for each other and belong together.
And even though it takes them a long time, I think their reasons are understandable (unlike in so many other manhwa). After all, Valhyle was originally engaged to Zelline’s sister.
Characters and Writing
Another small flaw is the characters. Some feel very black and white. I do love the whole cast, though, especially in the war camp – the maids, the knights, everyone. The antagonists, however, feel predictable and are only bad for the sake of being bad. Without spoiling too much, there’s exactly one villain who’s morally grey and gets a small redemption. Everyone else is simply beyond saving.
Otherwise, I really love the writing. There are passages that lean into “tell, don’t show,” unfortunately, with little narration boxes — but it’s not constant, and most of the time it fits. The story sometimes moves quickly (between battles, for example) yet still takes the time to let you feel what you need to feel.
Protagonists
The protagonists are Zelline and Valhyle. There’s no second male lead (well, unless you count our best man Ruo, the male messenger bird).
I love Zelline as an FL. She’s deeply insecure, but despite that, she loves her kingdom and her people more than anything. Her speeches aren’t groundbreaking, but I’m not ashamed to admit they gave me goosebumps sometimes – and that works because of how Zelline is written. Her trauma doesn’t just get shaken off, and I love that she still doubts herself even on the eve of her coronation. Her bird form is adorable, and it’s very funny to watch her struggle with it.
Valhyle is our ML. He’s an incredibly strong knight who only ever knew the battlefield, and he didn’t feel truly alive until he met Zelline. He isn’t the most complex ML out there, but I like him regardless. He’s stubborn, yet he trusts Zelline, pushes her, gives her confidence, and is fiercely loyal – while also being incredibly jealous, even of a pet bird.
Read if you…
- are in the mood for a historical fantasy romance without regression or isekai elements
- like a story where the FL comes out of her shell and wins over everyone around her with her warmth and competence – by the end, she has an army of loyal followers
- love a manhwa without a second ML
- want a story about war that isn’t brutal; ‘The Falcon Princess’ is a mild fantasy that still touches on heavy topics without ever being too much
Skip if you…
- aren’t in the mood for a slow burn; the tension is there very early, but it takes a long time before they actually communicate
- don’t like when the line gets blurry in body-swap manhwa; sure, she’s drawn in human form over the bird, so it’s less awkward as a reader when they blush over her touching his lips with her beak — but still
- don’t like villains who are bad without a believable reason
- hate when grown adults can’t figure out “what this feeling” is
