Review by Alex- Princess at the Midnight Ball

Princess at the Midnight Ball- Jessica George

A tale of twelve princesses doomed to dance until dawn…

Galen is a young soldier returning from war; Rose is one of twelve princesses condemned to dance each night for the King Under Stone. Together Galen and Rose will search for a way to break the curse that forces the princesses to dance at the midnight balls. All they need is one invisibility cloak, a black wool chain knit with enchanted silver needles, and that most critical ingredient of all—true love—to conquer their foes in the dark halls below.

But malevolent forces are working against them above ground as well, and as cruel as the King Under Stone has seemed, his wrath is mere irritation compared to the evil that awaits Galen and Rose in the brighter world above.

Captivating from start to finish, Jessica Day George’s take on the Grimms’ tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses demonstrates yet again her mastery at spinning something entirely fresh out of a story you thought you knew.

This was such a cute book. Really, it's as sweet as can be. It's like eating a cake with lots of icing and sprinkles. XD

The whole time I was reading it, I kept thinking "Wow, this could be such a great Disney movie!". Because really, it has all the elements. The poor, beautiful princess who is cursed. The strong, attractive hero that is determined to save the princess. Evil doers galore. A time limit to save the princess. Suspense, intrugue, action!

This isn't a deep book, so if that's what you want, don't pick up Princess at the Midnight Ball. It's light. It's a fairy tale. There's curses and evil magicians and magic robes. I haven't read the Grimm's version of this, and have only heard briefly of the title. But I do know that I really liked Princess at The Midnight Ball. :)

Of course, there were down points. All of the princesses, there being 12, are named after flowers. 12! I was so confused, trying to figure out who's who. I'd have to flip back and forth, trying to figure out who was who. I'd say either change the names to be more different, or have an glossary or list of some sort at the back. What comes to mind is Tamora Pierce's books, like in Protector of the Small. It would have been so helpful in Princess at the Midnight Ball.

Also, it's a really quick read. And with lots of characters, it's difficult to get a lot of characterization in. Or any. There's a severe lack of development of characters. But really, that's okay, because I wasn't expecting much. Basically, there's Rose, the good princess, cursed to dancedancedance, poor thing. There are her 11 sisters, who are only briefly described with some of their own character traits. For example, Violet is the genius musician. Fin, period, end. There's Galen, who's the typical hero who has a pure soul he falls in love with the Princess Rose. But, alas, she's cursed, and so Galen tries to figure it out. Other characters include the big baddy, the King, the good Bishop, the bad Bishop, the old gardener who helps Galen, etc.

Also, I love how Galen knits. And how knitting actually saves the day. :D You may have noticed, dear readers, that I love anyone who knits/crochets/the like.

Overall, extremely adorable read that could not be more fun. It's a fun plot and it goes by really quickly. I couldn't put it down either. :)