Heartless Hette: A German Fairy Tale Retelling (Hearth and Bard Tales)

Description

SPFBO8 Semi-Finalist

When Princess Hette refuses a sorcerer’s marriage proposal, he retaliates by stealing her heart and replacing it with clockwork. Now she feels only what he commands—a manufactured desire that mocks everything love should be.

To resist his manipulation, Hette does the unthinkable: she shuts down completely. No joy. No sorrow. No vulnerability. If she feels nothing, he controls nothing.

But a heart can’t be reclaimed by someone who refuses to feel.

The only person who knows where the sorcerer hides her heart is Konrad, the court fool. He’s cursed too, bound by a fate that’s claimed every eldest child in his bloodline. When he offers to guide her, Hette faces an impossible problem: Konrad makes her want to feel again. His humor cracks her armor. His pain mirrors her own.

Together, they journey through an enchanted forest where every trial demands what they can’t afford to give: memories, identity, hope. The deeper they travel, the more Hette realizes the truth—winning back her heart means risking it.

And when the final choice arrives—her heart or Konrad’s life—Hette must decide: Can you choose to feel when feeling might destroy you?

A richly layered fairy tale retelling inspired by The Princess Who Never Laughed.”

Hearth and Bard Tales
Forgotten fairy tales retold with soul
Historical fantasy where magic is real, love is hard-won, and hope always finds a way.