Ethel Simms is forty-six, a tired but snarky CNA, and utterly done with the ordinary. So when a restless night's dream spirals out of control and she wakes in a dark cave on another world, she's less "chosen hero" and more "how did this happen to me?" But happen it does. The kingdom's twelve-year-old prince has run away, still grieving his mother, and no knight has been able to track him down. Somehow, against all odds-and her better judgment-Ethel has been called to find him.

She's not exactly your typical hero. Slightly overweight, sarcastic, and armed with a bow she handles like a pro, Ethel can ride, fight, and talk her way out of trouble-or at least into it with style. On her side is Doug, at first a curious follower and former assassin, who soon proves to be the kind of companion every reluctant hero secretly hopes for: deadly, clever, and just witty enough to match her banter. Together, they navigate treacherous forests, shadowed castles, and the schemes of a power-hungry royal uncle who would rather see the prince dead than safe.

The quest is anything but simple. Hired assassins, barroom predators, and the lingering fear that Ethel might lose her ability to dream-the very bridge home-test her at every turn. But with spirit animals guiding her, a sharp tongue, and courage she didn't know she had, Ethel turns the "chosen one" trope on its head. Middle-aged, slightly jaded, and brilliantly human, she proves that heroism doesn't have an age limit-and that saving a kingdom can come with snark, arrows, and more than a little heart.