The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal

EgmontUSA (January 25, 2011) 336 pages

My Rating: 3/5 stars

My Thoughts:

The False Princess starts out with Nalia, who has been trained her whole life(16 years) to be the future queen, being told that she is actually not the princess. Her real name is Sinda, and she's just been standing in for the real princess Nalia, in order to keep her(Nalia) alive. Sinda is immediately kicked out of the castle, and only given a small bag of gold for her time. She then has to learn to live the life of a peasant. She eventually learns that she has magic in her body begging to be released. The story adds from there.

This one was a little slow for me as far as keeping my interest. There is plenty to like, though. I'd say this story would probably appeal mostly to the younger YA audience. It's a sweet adventure story with a touch of romance. Even though I really think this one is aimed at a younger audience there was one part of the story that I think could be offensive and maybe even hurtful to young girls. At one point, a group of guys are making fun of a girl for her small bosom, saying that it's hardly a mouthful. I know. Some of you are rolling your eyes that I would even mention that. ;) I wouldn't want my little girl reading that at a young age, though. It's hard enough these days feeling comfortable in your own skin without added pressure. Of course, that might not bother many girls. I wanted to mention it, just in case it swayed your opinion. Except for that one tiny part(and it is very brief), I DO think it's a great tween-ish book.

I would have liked to have seen a bit more closure with some of the characters, too. They came and went, which just left me wondering.

Overall, I liked it, but I didn't love it.

Content:

There's a "god" in the book, just so you know. It definitely doesn't describe my God!

*The copy I have is an ARC that I traded for, so that comment I mentioned may not have made it to the final copy.