Princess and heir to the throne of Thorvaldor, Nalia's led a privileged life at court. But everything changes when it's revealed, just after her sixteenth birthday, that she is a false princess, a stand-in for the real Nalia, who has been hidden away for her protection. Cast out with little more than the clothes on her back, the girl now called Sinda must leave behind the city of Vivaskari, her best friend, Keirnan, and the only life she's ever known.
Sinda is sent to live with her only surviving relative, an aunt who is a dyer in a distant village. She is a cold, scornful woman with little patience for her newfound niece, and Sinda proves inept at even the simplest tasks. But when Sinda discovers that magic runs through her veins - long-suppressed, dangerous magic that she must learn to control - she realizes that she can never learn to be a simple village girl.
Returning to Vivaskari for answers, Sinda finds her purpose as a wizard scribe, rediscovers the boy who saw her all along, and uncovers a secret that could change the course of Thorvaldor's history, forever.
A dazzling first novel, The False Princess is an engrossing fantasy full of mystery, action, and romance. (goodreads)
Imagine finding out that your entire sixteen years of existence is a lie. That your "family" is not truly yours. Better yet, you were just a decoy because it was prophesied that someone would kill the princess before her sixteenth birthday. What a slap in the face that would be to me! I couldn't imagine spending my entire life being pampered, loving these people who were my supposed parents, preparing to rule a kingdom and then being thrown out on my backend with little to my name, my REAL name. This is what Nalia, truly Sinda Azaway, has to deal with.
Once she is escorted from the palace, she is sent to live with her distant aunt in a tiny town. Sinda may know a lot about being a princess and courtly matters but, when it comes to her Aunt's job of dyeing, she is truly hopeless. Anger roils inside of her, but she soon comes to realize that it is not only anger. There is magic flowing through her veins and it's fighting to get out. Sinda just takes one blow after another. First, she's not really a princess. Second, she kind of sucks at being a commoner. Third, she's a wizard with little hope of ever controlling her magic.
Sinda returns to the city of Vivaskari and becomes scribe to the wizard Philantha who in turn, teaches her how to use her magic. Philantha is a nutty hoot who no one really pays any attention to. Once back in the city, Sinda rekindles her "friendship" with her best friend, Keirnan. Friends is all they can be, right? Sinda is now a nobody and Keirnan, a boy with a title and money, could never be with her. Plus, who wants to fall in love with the handsome, funny, truly devoted best friend? Sinda also happens to uncover a terrifying secret that could change the fate of Thorvaldor and the TRUE princess forever! With the help of Keirnan, Sinda attempts to stop a coup and save the princess.
The beginning was a bit slow-going for me. Once Sinda returned to Vivaskari, things started to pick up speed. Sinda was thrown many surprises throughout the story. It was difficult at time to predict what was going to happen. The characters weren't as three-dimensional as I would have liked. They felt like quick sketches to me, rough lines with no coloring. They didn't exactly pop for me. I did like Keirnan the most though, with Philantha taking second. I would have liked to have seen more of her. She was fun and cooky. There was a steady amount of action towards the end and a gradual build in the romance. Overall, The False Princess was a fun debut novel and a quick read.
Release Date: January 25, 2011
Publisher: Egmont USA
Pages: 336 (hardcover)
Source: Bought
Others in Series: n/a
Rating: 3/5
Find Eilis O'Neal:
Buy The False Princess:
No comments:
Post a Comment