A Posse of Princesses (2024)

Sherwood Smith’s A Posse of Princesses does something that few female focused YA fantasies seem to do these days. She gives us a smart heroine who isn’t a passive cypher waiting for others to use her and act through her. Nor is the character operating in a depressing, dystopian world against unsurmountable odds. In fact although Rhis thinks she’s a rebellious princess, she’s actually well behaved and rather conservative.

However, despite all that, she’s probably one of the stronger feminist characters I’ve read in a long time. Yes, she thinks of boys a lot (what sixteen-year-old doesn't?) but she isn’t defined by them. She doesn't accept people's opinions as fact and seeks to discover the truth on her own. She also refuses to be a part of any one group, thus making herself a leader to others who also don’t fit into the popular crowd.

A Posse of Princesses could very well have been set in a modern high school as much as as fantasy realm with magic and fancy dress. This is a story about finding one’s place in the world while everyone else tries to do the same.

However this book will ever reach the bestseller level that books like Meyer's Twilight and Hocking's Switched have, which to me is a real shame. The protagonists of the latter two books are held up as examples of modern teenage girls and worshipped for their passiveness. The Twilight and Switched characters are too caught up in their own woe-is-me attitude to grow as people until they are forced to (kicking and screaming) while Rhis, when presented with unpleasant aspects of herself and her actions, first rejects the critiques as most people do, but then considers them and decides for herself what is true and what isn’t.

She's consciencious and conscious – that is she cares about other people and she moves through life awake, aware and always open to learning. Unfortunately in our apathy-adoring culture, she’s too nice, too active and has too many social skills. You only need to turn on any reality-TV program to see how little appreciated these traits are. We prefer our role models to be disconnected, lazy near-sociopaths who can't think beyond “what's in it for me?”.

As a teacher I see far too many Bellas and Wendys (both male and female), but it's the Rhis-like girls and boys that I put my faith in for the future. It's just too bad that the rest of the world doesn't see how important a role model like Rhis really is.

If you want to read a good solid story that's entertaining as well and hope-for-the-future giving then go buy Sherwood Smith’s A Posse for Princesses now.

I read this book from my pile of shame, which is just a pile of books given to me at some point years ago and then have followed me from place to place without me ever reading them. This one I got back in 2012! It was cute, but I definitely felt like I would have enjoyed this book more if I were younger.

Princess Rhis never gets to go anywhere or do anything. Her only escape from dull tutoring lessons is hiding up in a tower writing ballads about--well--all the things she never gets to do. But then Prince Lios returns to Vesarja and invites “every eligible young lady” to come try her hand at winning his. And Rhis, at sixteen, is off for the adventure of a lifetime.

Mmm. This book is total self-indulgence for any reader who enjoys strong-willed princesses, heroes with great smiles, and an occasional trip in a magic floating bubble. For the Glinda the Good in all of us! Extremely delectable with hot chocolate on a snowy day.

3.5/5; 4 stars; B+

I can't believe this book has been on Mt TBR for four years already. I am glad I finally read it. I don't read a lot of Young adult books but there are a few authors who do it well, especially when in the fantasy genre. Sherwood Smith does it well.

The thing I liked most about this story was Rhis, the main female character. She was 16 and the way her character was drawn reflected that. Of noble birth, but not really interested in statecraft and all that rigmarole, she does her best to hide out and bury herself in her music and poetry. When pushed into attending a big house party with other young nobles she really has a chance to bloom. The first part of the book was about her meeting up with her Shera, her sister in law's sister, and the beginning of their friendship. Then the story became about all these characters at the house party. Rhis had many opportunities to show her common sense and kindness through her interactions with the others. Since I have teenagers in my home I'd say the author captured the age group well. They tend to show surprising amounts of wisdom and smarts, mixed with silliness and emotional instability!

Ultimately, the ladies shine when they go on an adventure to 'rescue' another of their group in an effort to avert a war. They end up getting caught, getting rescued, getting caught again and saving the day.

I like the strong female characters, the subtle use of magic, and fantasy aspects of the story.

Now, I have to talk about the audio book version of this book. I reviewed the ebook because I started with the audio book and ended up ditching it. The narrator, Emma Galvin, had a voice which sounded like an adolescent girl. While a bit annoying, it was fairly appropriate to the story. However, her lack of vocal variety and poor pacing made me feel like I was being hit by a wall of words. The barrage of words was distracting and unpleasant so I switched to the ebook which I had bought a few years ago and, thankfully, had on hand.

Originally reviewed on The Book Smugglers: http://thebooksmugglers.com/2012/03/b...

Princess Rhis of the small, craggy, but bountifully rich kingdom of Nym lives a charmed but rather boring life.

Though she’s intelligent, Rhis is not the heir to the throne and thus has little interest in learning all the subjects that make a queen (especially not when her stuffy elder sister-by-marriage insists on nitpicking the flaws in Rhis’s attention span and work ethic). Instead, the plain young princess is far more interested in the things that make her happy – music, dancing, and composing ballads (to varying degrees of success). Instead of studying politics or treatises, Rhis spends her time escaping from her daily chores and sneaking away to her private tower, spying the comings and goings of the kingdom with just her music and thoughts to keep her company.

When an invitation arrives from Crown Prince Lios of Vesarja to attend the celebration of his return from adventures abroad, Rhis can barely contain her excitement. All of the eligible young princes and princesses from neighboring kingdoms will be in attendance, and rumor has it that the young Crown Prince will be looking for a future bride. When Rhis arrives at the palace, she expects a whirlwind mix of dancing, music and frivolity – she doesn’t expect the friends she will make, the sides she will choose, the incredible adventure quest she’ll find herself spearheading, or falling in love.

Dudes. DUDES. I loved this delightful throwback to old school YA fantasy, coming of age novel. I’m happy to report that my memories of Crown Duel and Court Duel did not steer me wrong, because A Posse of Princesses is everything I was hoping for and then some. Resourceful heroine with agency? Check. Believable teenage characters? Yep. Fantastically varied (ethnically and culturally!) fantasy world? You got it. A dash of compelling, non-cheesy romance? Oh hell yes. I went into A Posse of Princesses expecting a diverting fantastical romp with a dash of romance, and Sherwood Smith delivered in spades.

First and foremost, I adored the heroine of this adventure, young, sixteen year old princess Rhis of Nym. Rhis is not your typical heroine – she’s neither beautiful (she’s rather plain with her stick skinny frame and mouse brown hair and eyes), nor is she remarkably intelligent (not that she’s lacking brains, but rather lacking direction and drive to apply herself to those subjects that don’t interest her). She is what one might expect of a sixteen year old princess from a sheltered kingdom; a dreamer, naive, a little dramatic and self-absorbed (but really, when you’re sixteen, who isn’t a little dramatic and self-absorbed?!), but her heart is in the right place. Instead of being particularly brave, or a warrior princess, or with a biting, unparalleled wit, Rhis is a heroine with an incredible sense of empathy. She cares for others and puts aside social expectation as she tries to see others in new and open-minded ways – and that is an incredibly cool quality in a YA heroine. Though Rhis might not start off as a heroine or with an aptitude for studying or adventure, she grows so much over the course of the book as her experiences and interactions with others shape her character. This is similarly awesome, and I loved her character arc from sheltered, slightly-superficial princess to a possible queen with adventure and a rescue mission under her belt.

Similarly, the supporting cast of royals in this book are wonderfully drawn. I loved the passionate, fickle nature of Princess Shera, the powerful warrior-minded Princess Taniva of the plains, and the foreign Princess Yuzhyu who tries so hard to master the language and fit in with a court that is largely happy to ignore her. Of course, what would the story be without Prince Lios and his trusty, sly scribe Dandiar? I won’t say much for that way lies spoilers – but I loved, loved the romance (even if it’s a bit predictable, so what! It’s done well. Sans super cheese. YES.). Heck, I even loved the ‘perfect princess’ Iardith – the epitome of beauty in this world with her dark skin and long dark hair, but a cruel streak as broad as her ego. I love that each of these characters, Iardith included, are humanized and we see through Rhis’s eyes why they might act the way they do.

From a plotting perspective, there is a degree of familiarity to the story – secret identities, courtly intrigue, romantic misunderstanding, and a daring rescue mission all factor prominently in the book. While some of the bigger twists lean towards the predictable, the writing is done so well and the characters so engaging that it hardly matters. From a worldbuilding point of view, I loved the setting and its varied cultures, from the mountainous (and resource rich) Nym, to the wild High Plains, to the warish kingdom of Damatras, to the distant shores of Ndai (look, there’s a map too!). There are many different realms here, each with their own variations and entanglements, and as A Posse of Princesses is just one standalone novel in a universe with other books and characters, I’ll be sure to revisit it soon.

Finally, can I just say how much I *loved* that Sherwood Smith takes a more cautious look at LOVE FOREVER at sixteen years old? Instead of ending with a teenage marriage and happily ever after immediately, there is a period of wait and angst, with both Rhis and her prince exploring what they want for themselves, apart from each other, before making any lifelong decisions. This is, in a word, awesome.

If you couldn’t tell, I loved this book. A whole lot. I’ll need to find and dust off my copy of Coronets and Steel very soon (and also search out the vast, sprawling waste of my TBR for a copy of Inda. I know it’s in there. Somewhere.). Absolutely recommended. Please, for the love of all that is good, do NOT judge this book by its cover.

This was as lovely as I remembered (the ebook has one or two spelling mistakes, but that's it) - I think it's a believable portrayal of a naive princess who hasn't found an outlet for her interests at home but has lots of potential and now finds herself at a house party which opens up the whole world to her.

The growth from silent and love-struck observer to mediator and confidante is believable, even though she is 16. And so the drama she gets into and her angst at having to forego seeing her love for five years is totally believable.

I wish there had been 200 more pages dealing with her growing up in the meantime and her experiences in detail (this is where I'm really thankful that Sherwood Smith wrote Vidanric's education in A Stranger to Command, it makes Crown Duel so much more multi-layered for me), but I was satisfied with what I got.

Just a lovely adventure and romance and coming-of-age.

I wrote the first draft of this story a zillion years ago, when I realized that in history, princesses were mainly prizes in men's political games. They had no say in where they were sent. Their job was to stand around and be attractive, and once married off, produce a son for the next generation of men's political games. Enough of that, I said to myself. Princesses are people, too, and might even decide to take action on their own. Then there was my image of a perfectly ordinary teenage princess, and the story took off from there.

I wrote out a long review and then my computer went wonky and I lost it....so here is the short version:
Great book with many flaws but overcomes those flaws with fantastic, realistic characterizations and situations. The sort of book I would read to my future kids for the ending alone.

One of my favorite things to do when I was young was go to the library. I loved the crinkle of the plastic covers over the books and the smell of the pages when I opened a book and prepared to dive into its adventures for the first time. I even loved the overly used part of the pages, the fingerprints and stains because those told stories to me in addition to the words that were printed on the page.

One of my favorite types of stories to read were stories of princesses and adventures. What little girl didn't go through a princess phase?

A Posse of Princesses would have been a perfect addition to those books I frantically checked out. Even though I'd never read this story as a girl, as I opened my library copy of this book I was transported back to a time when "happily ever after" was something I believed in with all my heart and where princesses really could be strong, kind, wise and fun.

Now, before I talk about the awesome Rhis from the kingdom of Nym, let me just say that ... the cover for this book is horrible. Seriously, just look past it and listen to me when I say that this is a princess story you want your daughters reading.

Every kind of princess is represented here. They all gather together for a "Cinderella" type of weekend in which they are to woo the most eligible prince, the Crown Prince of Vesarja. While the plot is a big predictable, the antics of Rhis and her friends had me laughing out loud and remembering just how much I loved these types of stories as a young girl.

I loved the ending of this book the most. In a world of young adult books that give instant gratification to the heroine, Rhis is treated differently. Sherwood Smith approached the ending with a unique, but perfect solution and I applaud her for providing a great example of patience and maturity to girls today.

Grab this book and start reading folks. See if you are inspired to remember some of your favorite books and reading memories as well.

Rating: 2.5 Stars

I believe I got about 100 pages into this book before giving up on it. This wasn't because the writing was bad or the characters were annoying, it was simply because the novel felt far too juvenile for me. Sherwood Smith's Crown Duel Series have been receiving some remarkable ratings and seems to have been marketed towards teens and adults, which is why I thought I'd give one of her other novels a chance while I could. However, A Posse of Princesses is a more middle-grade story. It was cute and interesting and I'm sure it would have gotten much better if I had continued with it, but I'm more in the mood for something more sophisticated and serious, hence the reason I'm not finishing this book. That being said, I'm sure this is a wonderful novel and I would definitely recommend it to younger readers or even older readers who are looking for a quick, light, and interesting read.

This is the e-book edition, which has been smoothed from the book edition, and also a new scene added near the end.

A Posse of Princesses was a charming read reminiscent of a fairy tale, set in a fantasy medieval land filled with princesses, princes, kingdoms, and magic. Princess Rhis is the heroine in this delightful tale. She begins the story living below her full potential as she’d rather spend time within her secret tower writing ballads than studying or seeking adventure. But when she receives an invitation to travel to a far off kingdom to meet Crown Prince Lios who’s just returned and is seeking a wife, she sets off an adventure where her experiences will forever change her.

I adored the first half of the story. I loved watching Rhis explore the beautiful garden palace, have all matter of enchanting royal experiences, and interact with the princesses from the surrounding kingdoms, all of whom were engaging characters. The romance was definitely the highlight of the story. Upon meeting Prince Lios young Rhis quickly believes herself in love, but soon finds herself distracted by the common scribe, Dandiar. I adored him and loved watching his relationship unfold with Rhis. Although I quickly figured out the story’s direction with this element of the plot, it didn’t hinder my enjoyment. In addition to the cute romance, I loved watching Rhis blossom as she exhibits tremendous kindness to those around her and makes new friends. The way all of her interactions and experiences shaped her character was lovely to witness.

While fun, I didn’t quite enjoy the second half—when Rhis and her fellow princesses embark on a spontaneous rescue mission—nearly as much as the first. I have a difficult time engaging with travel or action-filled plots, and this book’s was no exception. I also grew frustrated with Rhis’s reaction over a certain discovery she makes about midway through the story; it not only went on too long, but it didn’t seem to fit her otherwise kind, understanding character that she’d exhibited up until that point. However, these small issues are entirely a matter of personal preference, and despite them, overall I thoroughly enjoyed this lovely coming-of-age fairy tale and will undoubtedly reread it.

2.5 stars.

I would keep it at 2 stars but I've given 2 stars to books that I've enjoyed less so 2.5 stars it is. It could have been an 'I liked it' book had it not been for a few issues which I can't overlook with this.

This is a story about a privileged yet not unkind princess known as Rhis. Our protagonist comes from a good family (better than most do when coming from any royal lineage) and is in no way in line for the throne; thus she has spent a great many years having her head up in the clouds of romance. Very much a teenager for the most fronts and less a princess. This does work out in her favour though as the story moves along.

I won't go too much into the story as the summary of the book above already actually covers a very brief overview of half of the book. That being said, I find the summary very misleading. The journey to save the kidnapped princess only happens towards the later half of the book, whereas the first half dealt more with the court party Rhis and the other princesses were invited to.

Rhis was a fairly interesting character for me to encounter. I actually disliked her childishness and her lack of awareness (or want) of the world as she traveled to meet Prince Lios at the beginning of the book. However, the instant she gets to court, her generosity shines through and her naivety is more charming than annoying. It is in fact her naivete of the ways of court which keeps her manner far more appealing for the general reader as she is both friendly to servants and court people. That always wings in my book as I always love princesses who have a big heart. What is good about her character is that she indeed does grow in character and out of her childishness. Her friendship with the side characters that accompany her is quite cute. Though I must say I wished I could have read more about Taniva and Yuzhyu, the two foreign princesses who were much more interesting to me than Shera. Its perhaps only because I'm not entirely fond of the kind of character Shera turns out to be later on.

The obvious romance partner, Prince Lios, is hard to put into words without going into the realm of spoilers. His character had some nice moments even if he comes off as fairly predictable if you've read these sort of stories to death by this time. His interaction with Rhis is cute.

Unfortunately for me, what was building to a potentially fodder for the romantic in me; the instant the kidnapping happens the story begins to fall a little flat. This isn't so much due to the nature of the kidnapping itself, rather how it stunted all the characters. Politically the world had been shaping up rather interestingly despite the semi predictable cast and I thought this was a further exploration into the theme of 'opening her eyes to the nature of the world' for Rhis. While it was some of that, there wasn't enough (for me at least).

While a lot of the side characters are mentioned doing things which would have been an interesting expansion, sadly those characters also happen to be the ones whom we are introduced with having a severe language barrier with Rhis. I guess this provided an excuse for the lack of interaction and expansion but I really kept feeling left wanting. As with most kidnap-rescue missions, this one obviously does not go as planned and a turn of events leaves most of the main cast struggling to escape.

As they attempt to run, Rhis has an encounter of the magical kind. Early in the book her magical (unexplored) magical capacity was mentioned but it was never truly explored until that very moment and I couldn't help feeling that it felt a little bit like a plot device. More so to give her a reason to buck up in her studies towards the end of the book and give her the final shove she needed to become the princess she could be. The lore of magic in the world could be more clearly stated as well. I kept feeling like I would need to dig up some other book to know the details.

All this would not have been an issue for me had the relationship between Rhis and Lios panned out further after the events of the kidnapping. It had reached a stalemate point after all and though I do adore Lios' Queen mother (she is quite a character), what she placed upon the two young lovers in hopes to test their love over a span of years was what really left me wanting. What used to be charming conversation was reduced to words exchanged on paper and unfortunately most of their words were rather uninteresting. Not unrealistic, uninteresting. This could have been remedied had they expanded the epilogue or expanded upon it like how she did with Crown Duel, but writing little excerpts of the 'time lost in between'.

We don't get that unfortunately and that was a bit of a mood killer for me. The ending is happy in a sort of fairytale yet with hints of attempted realism, just that a little bit of the initial build up charm of the book was lost on me. I also really wanted to know how some characters got together because learning of their courtship would have been extremely interesting.

Despite my issues, this book has its charms. I also can't help feeling like I am judging this book based on my reaction to Smith's other book 'Crown Duel'. This book is decent for a light read but I'd recommend 'Crown Duel' over this one if people asked me to pick. The premises aren't entirely dissimilar and I found the latter far more intriguing and more satisfying.

Okay, so I admit this wasn’t much of a challenge for me to read, since this is the kind of stuff I lap up with a spoon. I mean c’mon, prince and princesses, castles…magic diamonds. Now, wait! Don’t run, this isn’t a cheesy version of Princess Diaries 2 (although, if you must know I liked that fluff film.) This is an adventurous take on some prince and princess clichés.

Up until now I had only read Sherwood Smith’s Crown & Court Duel, but that was enough to cement her into my list of favorite authors. What I love about her, is that although I’m indulged with all my favorite elements in fiction, I’m still confronted with practical girls, who although wish for romance, know the duties they must face to protect things in life that are bigger than themselves.

Enter Rhis, princess of the small kingdom of Nym known for its mountains and gems. It’s such a small kingdom they don’t hold court or do that many social activities. She loves to spend her time in her tower playing her tiranthe and writing ballads. She feels no pressure to apply herself in her studies as she is not the heir, and will not grow up to be a royal mage like her sister. Before applying herself she wants to undergo an adventure and a bit of romance. Well lucky for her Queen Briath from a neighboring kingdom has invited all the eligible princesses to her son Lios coming of age party. So Rhis gets a chance to practice courtly behavior as well as be an ambassador for her own kingdom.

Income all the princesses who have hopes of snagging the prince and a series of parties, picnics, dances and all sorts of fun. Rhis finds herself making friends with such interesting characters. There is Taniva of the High Plains whose idea of fun is fighting with her neighboring enemy Jarvas of Damatras.Then there is Shera from Gensam who can’t help but flirt with every boy she sees. Yuzhyu of the Isle of Ndai who is sort of left out of everything despite being the princes cousin, and the mysterious and charming Dandiar the princes personal scribe. The characters are really fleshed out, and the ones we end up hating we find out the reason they became that way.

But when Iardith the most beautiful princess (albeit also the most ill-mannered princess), who the girls can’t help but dislike ends up being abducted the girls set out to bring her back. This is definitely a girl power sort of book, because although the girls all want the prince they discover more important things like friendship and self worth. That no one can really be overlooked, because everyone has value. And that falling in love isn't just about looks, but heart and mind. I know the cover is sort of cheesy, but don't let that get in the way. Sherwood Smith makes awesome characters who are practical when necessary but always fun.

9/10ths of this book were vastly fun. Sherwood Smith has always done good female teenagers, as far as I'm concerned, and speaking as someone who was more of the "let's go have an adventure and do stuff" type girl than the "oh god I'm in love" type girl so common in adolescent fiction (I'm looking at you, B---- S---). First runner-up in the Miss I-Couldn't-Relate Pageant: the girl burdened with terrible trauma who copes with it poorly (more common in contemporary fiction than fantasy). I had a good home life and wasn't overly burdened with secrets as a teen.
Anyway, 9/10ths of this book, while largely rehashing territory already explored in "Court Duel" and the "Wren" books and burdening the reader with some awkward fake foreign accents (why was Taniva apparently Russian?), was good fun. I actually DIDN'T see the first-act plot twist coming (or was it the second act?), although I spotted others a mile off. I got pretty far into the book prepared to give it 4 stars for all-around fun. Then...the denouement. What the hell.
"Good job, you saved the day and I totally want you to marry my son. But you can't do it now, you have to wait to find out whether you really love each other, so I'm not letting you see each other. I will instead allow you to exchange letters ONCE A YEAR." And they do it? Ignoring the horrific choice of changing the font to indicate who was writing what, the letter excerpts added nothing to the story, except showing Shera as much shallower than she had been for the rest of the book (I was disappointed). A letter every five years is not enough to maintain any kind of relationship. Either go full-on fairy-tale and have them marry right away or go realistic and let them have a regular correspondence as they do all their growing up. Don't show the letters (ugh...Papyrus font, and the Arial looked like a frickin' email), just sum up briefly and have them get to see each other at the end. They can still do that "wasn't sure you'd still be up for this whole marriage thing" business, and they'll still have been separated for five years, but at least now there's some element of believability about it.

I don't know why, but I'm a sucker for books, like The Riddle-Master of Hed, where the royals turn out to be normal everyday joes who know how to do their own cooking and grew up playing in the creek with the kids who grew up to be their advisers. A Posse of Princesses is in the same vein, and I think that's why I liked it. The teenaged princes and princesses of various vaguely-medieval-with-magic kingdoms meet to form alliances (and marriages) and get to know each other, at which point they act like teenagers and the book starts to seem like The Princess Diaries would if everyone at Albert Einstein High School, and not just Mia, were royal. This is actually fun and charming. And the adventure that takes up the second third of the book - when the princesses have to work together to combat a threat to the kingdom - is done well.

The opening of the book was a bit clumsy. It wasn't so much an info-dump as a calling into play of every low fantasy trope in the book. The magic sometimes felt not enough like a natural part of the world, and more as if it and its rules for use just existed to get the characters into or out of certain situations that were necessary for the plot. And without giving anything away, the pacing of the ending threw me out of the story entirely just when I should have been most hooked on it. But I liked the book, and I'll be looking for more Sherwood Smith titles.

In an issue unrelated to the story or to Sherwood Smith, who I'm sure had nothing to do with it, I have to point out yet another instance of Cover Caucasianness. In other words, the story states plainly that all of the princesses but one have *brown* skin, and the one who is white with blond hair is a foreigner. You wouldn't know this by the cover, in which all the girls are white-anglo. A raspberry to YA Angst, the publisher, for that!

This book didn't flow well. The first half had a sedate pace (which would be fine if it felt consistent) and was well thought out with good dialogue and okay mystery and court intrigue. The second half of the book rushed by and felt completely disconnected. Too many random and pointless events! And the inciting incident mentioned in the blurb (kidnapping) happened halfway through the book.
Random is not okay. Rhis should have remembered her sister's magic ring earlier (or made it a one-time and delayed ring). Randomly she sees a magic diamond and randomly decides to steal it and not tell anyone. Randomly Pricess Yuzhou (sp?) can do magic.
Pointless is not okay. Let's rescue Iardith! Oh, she doesn't want to be rescued and gets the others captured instead.
No, older sister, I cannot let you rescue me, because I'd be leaving my friends behind. Later, oh, my friends have been rescued and I am the only one left.
Take a shortcut, race to the border! Oh, no, the guards left after us and managed to get here before us.
And a queen is so against her son getting married to someone he doesn't love that she makes him endure a 5 year courtship where he and his beloved can write once a year and never see each other. That's right. ONE letter a year. Five years. Does she not want heirs? No one likes someone they haven't seen (or talked to) in five years! If this courtship failed, would the queen force him to do it again? Five more years?

The first half of the book was great (a bit slow), had a neat mystery my sister and I totally guessed. The book didn't end very well, though. Poorly resolved and too many random coincidences.

Honestly, I feel that the blurb was deceiving. I was expecting a story about the adventures of a posse of princesses. You know, chasing after one of their own. Using their own power and resources. Girl power!! Yeah, the whole abduction thing? It really wasn't that important. In fact, I think the book would have been better if it was left out completely.

Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed the book. I just think the whole "abduction" scenario was thrown in to make this book into an action/adventure story. It didn't really seem to serve a purpose. I thought MAYBE the magic diamond Rhis discovered might play into another book-- but that was apparently taken away and disposed of, so I guess I was wrong. The story should either have been about the abduction and the resulting adventures, or that should have not been in the book and other developments could have been written about in more detail. Like all of Rhis' adventures that we learn about in snippets from the letters.

As for the ending... For a moment, I thought it was going to be "different" and not have the two end up together. They were going to grow up and find other people. And it was going to be like, woah. That was weird. But kind of realistic. Hmm. Instead, we get these random little snippets, no real character development, and then FIVE YEARS LATER they dance and BAM. The end. Really?

I just felt that the book lacked focus. It seemed like the author wanted to tell two different stories, and she put them in the same book. I don't think it worked well.

Ahhhh.... so satisfying! Finally a YA fantasy where the romance is actually believable and charming. I really hate all the "one glance and they knew" type of YA romances that are so endemic (Twilight is not the first nor the last, but it's a perfect example of what annoys me so much). Or if they are going to get infatuated at first glance, at least follow it up with convincing evidence that the two people would actually get along. But nooooo that would require character development and *gasp* character growth. And there's just no room for that if you are trying to fit all of the long descriptions of his perfect hair and her luminescent eyes.

Back to the actual book: I also enjoyed the fact that many of the secondary characters also had very satisfactory romances as well. Great characters and a fun adventure, plus a really enjoyable note on how various personalities matured.

I liked the glimpse of how the characters grew up over the five years. I rather wish the ending hadn't been squished into just a few pages, simply because I was enjoying the book so much. But stylistically I have no problems with it. It emphasized that learning about themselves and learning to think for themselves was the important part, not the "do they or don't they?". It's an attitude that I wish more YA books would promote.

This was a reread for me - after reading Thea's review at The Book Smugglers, I was tempted into buying the revised e-version (with an extra chapter) and had no regrets.

This felt a bit like a high school story translated to a fantasy setting, with cliques, bullying, and secrets galore - however, Sherwood Smith pulls it off and I loved how Rhis and girl-power came to the fore. And I really liked how the HEA in this book was a realistic one for a story where the main protagonists are teenagers. The high fantasy world will be familiar to long-time readers of Sherwood Smith's fantasies, but at the same time, I think it works perfectly as a standalone.

Actual rating probably about 3.5 stars. I really did not like the turn Smith gave our heroine's best friend's personality and romantic tendencies in the last two chapters. It completely undermined her character and what depth she had developed over the course of the novel.

Generally, the story was slow to start, had a decent climax, and an okay if odd ending--I don't quite understand it given that the whole premise of the "party" invitation was to intro the prince to marriageable girls. Overall, strong writing but probably not this author's best work. I am certainly intrigued enough to pick up something else by her, though.

This was just a supper fun book to read! I loved all the princesses with all their silliness and sadness. The story was an old one but redone well. I like Smiths writing, she always keeps it clean and fun. I could read this with my daughters and we'd all laugh together.

Fun, funny girls' adventure fantasy. I loved the first half, while the characters were all at court, whereas I only liked the second half, after they all left, but it was charming and fun to read throughout.

I really enjoy Sherwood Smith's books because her heroines are so rarely sword wielding warrior maidens. I like sword wielding warrior maids just fine, but I do grow tired of them. So many female protagonist in the fantasy genre are ultra tough fighters. It's a breath of fresh air to read about a girl who prefers things like music and dancing to sword-play and horse riding.

Plot

Rhis, is a rather romantically inclined princess who lives a dull, uninspiring life in her secluded mountain country of Nym until she receives an invitation to Vesarja. The crown Prince Lios is looking for a wife, and all eligible maidens from the surrounding kingdoms are invited. Rhis arrives and promptly falls head-head-over heals for Lios. But all is not as it seems. People mask who they truly are and more than one person would love to get their claws on the tidy fortune Rhis left behind her in Nym.

Things I liked

Rhis. She grew a lot over the course of the story. She went from being a slightly boy-crazy girl who went around with her head in the clouds to being a responsible adult. I appreciated that, while her former dreamy self was never a bad thing, she was able to grow and mature too. Another aspect I liked about her character was how genuinely kind she was. She thought about how her actions would affect others, and that was really refreshing.

Shera. While she did get on my nerves, her letters near the end of the book were very entertaining. She is a very classic Sherwood Smith sidekick.

The first half of the story while everyone was enjoying the party Lios was throwing. I liked the social and political dynamics that were being portrayed. There were characters from many different backgrounds, and reading about how they interacted was quite interesting.

Iardith. She was a very entertaining antagonist, just the sort I like too, the sort that you don't have to feel terribly sorry for. I hate being tricked into liking the bad guys. I might pity Iardith ever so slightly, but she is so horrible that I felt very comfortable in my dislike of her in general.

Music. There were multiple musical characters in this book and I really, really liked that. Rhis is a girl after my own heart when it comes to music, I must say. Music might be rather difficult to write about, because it's hard to transfer something audible to a page, so the music itself wasn't described very much, but Rhis and Shera both enjoy making music. I loved reading about Rhis practicing and playing her music and the way you can tell she loves it.

Lois' mom.

Things I Thought Were So-So

Lios. I liked him a lot at first...but at the end I didn't like him as much as I had at the beginning. Ah well.

Glaen and Shera. I thought they were kinda meh.

The magic. I liked that it had rules, but at the same time it seemed too convenient. I wasn't satisfied with how things played out in that arena.

Things I Didn't Like

There was a "ring of power" stand in. Except it was a "diamond of power." That...irked me somewhat. The passages where Rhis was under the influence of the diamond were really vague and confusing and it detracted from the story.

In Summary

This was definitely a 4.5 book for me, so I rounded it up. It wasn't a work of unparalleled genius, perhaps it was even a bit silly, but I sincerely enjoyed reading it.

Such a disappointment - because I love this author. Crown/Court Duel were really well done and I liked the Wren trilogy as well.

However this just didn't cut it.

I think this book tried to do too many things - kidnapping, forbidden magic, a love story, corrupt kingdoms, an epistolary novel, etc etc etc. The first 160 pages are about Rhis and her friends attending balls and parties. Then suddenly about halfway through the book, a bunch of girls dash off to rescue another girl who has been kidnapped. I'm not sure why they do this (wouldn't it have made more sense to send guards or something versus members of several royal families???) but they do.

Then that storyline is forgotten and the weird magic element takes over. That was around page 250. Then the love story was back for the ending. It moved from plot to plot like it wasn't sure what to do.

I didn't really warm to any of the characters either. Rhis was rather stupidly naive, and while I liked Shera in the beginning, I couldn't stand her by the end. She was just too boy crazy. Yuzhyu and Taniva were too hard to understand with their weird accents. Iardith was the stereotypical beautiful yet snotty girl.

Overall a disappointment considering how much I have enjoyed this author's other works.

Oh that was lovely: Court intrigue with plenty of royal girls being friends, adventures, music, romance and just a little dash of magic. This was perfect - gentle, lovely, intriguing and ultimately very rewarding. This reminded me of Summers at Castle Auburn. I loved this and what a treat to be finding a new-to-me author with an extensive backlist! I can't wait to dive into all her works.

4.5 stars. yes i guessed the Shocking Surprise TM (gasp emoji) from miles away, yes i still fully enjoyed this darling little story. sweet, straightforward, with characters you care about and a romance that satisfies both emotionally and logically.

4.5 stars, a really admirable book, I think more people should read Sherwood Smith's book, there amazing, and have character. It's a shame not many people know about them.

Rhis, the main character in this book, was a darling of a character--the sort of person you'd want to be friends with in real life. All in all I really liked this story.

Review from A Journey Through Pages

Something about the title and plot of this book made me not want to read it. It's really quite strange, I can't explain it, but it was one of those books that kept popping up on my goodreads.com recommendations so I finally said screw it and checked it out from the library.

I was pleasantly surprised.

There are really two parts to this book, the introduction of characters and then the growing of these characters. The plot expained up in the synopsis happens in the second part of the book, though honestly it is the first part that I enjoyed more.

I have a thing for spunky heroines that buck the social norm of their society so that they are considered "not good princesses" by the social obsessed characters. This books is full of them. We are introduced to Rhis first and she goes to go spend time with every other princess and prince her age and ends up becoming very popular just from the fact that she does buck the "natural order"

What I liked best about this book is how every character approaches things differently, including love, crushes and politics. There was also a lack of clichés in a book that was so ripe to become full of them and that is another thing I really appreciated about this.

I do wish that the transition from the first part to the second part was a bit smoother, so I wouldn't be able to think of them as part one and part two, because the pacing and point of the book changed so drastically seemingly out of no where. This book honestly felt more like two books instead of one, but that is probably the only real gripe I had about this book.

(Read even more of review on blog)

This is a fun read which I totally recommend to teens, and younger readers, too.

Rhis is a great character, not too proper, but acting like a princess should (unlike so many other improper princesses), and with her own opinion that isn't completely dependent on her peers. She's kind to everyone around her despite their ranking, a natural leader, though she doesn't realize it, and overall just a really good person.
She dreams of romance, and thinks a bit too much of boys. But I loved how, while she loved Prince Lois from afar, as soon as she saw him in person she changed her mind and was over him.

There were great friendship in this book, full of friendly banter, positive interactions, and fun. Half the book I was smiling at the characters and their interactions.
And, the twist towards the end of the book was great.

It was a bit hard to place the horse-riding, fighting trousers-wearing princesses into the reality that we know of princes and princesses. But hey, in fantasy anything's possible right?

There's a lot of teen politics and teens getting angry over silly things that make the book more for teens than adults. However, I think all ages might at least enjoy parts of this book.

Content: Clean.
Romance: Nothing that you wouldn't expect during a party for a prince searching for a bride. The worst of it was flirting and a few kisses.
There was a play that Rhis suggests the boys and girls change parts for, just to break up an argument, but it never happens.
Violence: There were so scary scenes too.Swordfights, scary magical stones, and being imprisoned in a castle. Someone's injured in their daring escape.
Other: There is magic in the book.