The Two Princesses of Bamarre by Gail Carson Levine

Synopsis: Princess Addie is timid and depends on her older sister, Meryl, to take care of her. Princess Meryl is brave, bold, and ready to slay dragons when she is old enough. But when the Gray Death infects Meryl, Addie must muster her courage to go out to find a cure in their scary world that contains dragons, ogres, gryphons, and other fantastical creatures.

Rating: Pretty good, but not as good as Levine’s other books.

Opinion: I wasn’t wowed by this book. The characters were nice, and the action moved along pretty well, but I enjoyed Fairest much, much more. This review is short because I really don’t have much to say about it.

The Princetta by Anne-Laure Bondoux

Synopsis: Malva is the Princetta of Galnicia, a vaguely European country in an imaginary land. She is about to marry to cement an alliance for her country, when she escapes with her maid to live the life she wants to live. She, however, has been tricked into escaping so that her tutor can take over the country, and Malva lands into much more trouble than she bargained for.

Orpheus is the son of a renowned ship’s captain and has always longed to go to sea, but a childhood disease prevents him (or so his father wants him to think). On his father’s death, he discovers that it was not true due to the double life his father lived as a legitimate captain and seafaring pirate. When the Princetta goes missing, Orpheus volunteers to be one of the party. Thus begins an epic story that goes from the ends of the earth and back.

Rating: Good, but a bit long.

Opinion: The book is divided into three parts, and the first part had me glued to the pages. The second part took a turn I didn’t expect and it took me a bit to get back into the story. Towards the end, the book gets kind of fanciful and, frankly, a bit weird. The story line rambles a bit here and there, but I wonder if it’s not due to the translation, or due to cultural differences (it being originally written in French). I do know that the editors did miss at least one mistake: “They exchanged baffled glances and then began searching the fog, which was thinking [sic] here and there.” (page 290) It seemed to me that the plot line got very complex, but without depth. This opinion is kind of rambly simply because I’m not sure how to explain the book, because it is so rambly. Go read it and see if you agree.

The Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson

I have been wanting to read this book for a long time, and not only because the author has such an interesting name. It also has an interesting title. It is true. The premise of the book is that underneath platform 13 at King’s Cross station in London there is a gump. A gump, you say? What the heck is that? Well, a gump is a passage way to Avalon where is there is an Island with a king and queen and all sorts of mythical characters. Well, one day the son of the king and queen is kidnapped by a greedy and awful person named Mrs. Trottle. Since the gump is only open every 9 years for only 9 days, the king and queen have to wait 9 years to get their son back. Most of the action of the book takes places over that 9 day segment when the rescue team that is sent in tries to get the prince back. Despite the passing similarity to the Harry Potter books with the platform 9 3/4 bit, and the fact that they are both fantasy, The Secret of Platform 13 is quite different in the story. It is, of course, very well written (do I ever seem to read anything that isn’t?) and another one I didn’t want to put down.

Princess Academy by Shannon Hale

This one won the Newbery honor award this year, and quite deservedly so. Miri, the main character, is a young girl who lives in a mountain mining community in a kind of fairy tale time and place. One day, an announcement comes from the king that the prince’s bride will come from Miri’s town, and as such all the girls 14 to 17 are taken to an academy designed to make them more presentable (because we can’t have coarse, uneducated peasant girls meeting the prince, now can we?). Miri struggles with conflicting desires to meet and impress the prince and to potentially have an easier life, and to be with her friend, who truly cares about her. There’s more to the store than the romance, but that’s the basic idea. Miri is a strong female role model, and the rest of the characters kind of fade in comparison. It’s very good storytelling, and takes some twists and turns. Very well written, two thumbs up, five stars, yadda yadda. Just go read it (even if it is a kid’s book. Lots of great books are children’s books).