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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
I was prepared to dislike the book--not sure why. I suppose my continued distrust of sequels. And I didn't love it at first but the last third was so moving, it was responsible for the extra star. I do think Hale tried to squish way too much in this book. She could have easily spent a lot more pages on character development, but despite this I think Shannon has still got it.
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3.5 stars
Shannon Hale’s Princess Academy remains one of my favorite books. There’s nothing like classic Shannon Hale novels, if I can call novels from the early 2000s classics. Well, they are to me, so I will. In more recent years, though, I haven’t been quite as entranced by Hale’s fiction. Despite that, I couldn’t just walk away from this series. Hopes spring eternal for me, as it does for the unassailable goodwill of Miri Larendaughter. My hope was excellently rewarded with The Forgotten Sisters, which hearkens more closely to Princess Academy.
The Forgotten Sisters isn’t The Princess Academy for me, but it was much closer to what I’d been expecting from a sequel than Palace of Stone was. For one thing, in a very different fashion, the princess academy is back. More accurately, there’s a new princess academy. Just as Miri was finally going to head home to Mount Eskel after celebrating Britta’s wedding to Prince Steffan, the King called her to him with a new request: that she tutor three royal cousins as potential brides in an alliance with the nation of Stora.
Every part of me wishes that I could get all the people reading The Selection to read this series instead. For one thing, this series came almost ten years prior. For another, it’s better written. Finally, it’s full of feminism. The premises really aren’t that different, in that, at least in books one and three, they center around the selection of a future queen from a group being properly trained and auditioned.
The reason that the royal cousins need training is that they’d been, as the title indicates, largely forgotten. The royal cousins actually don’t even remember they’re royal, since they’ve spent their childhoods hunting caimans, fishing, and surviving by their own devices. They live in a swampy region that’s difficult to get to, as Miri discovers, fainting upon arriving at their door.
Miri’s the heroine of the series, not because she’s the most politically important figure, but because she’s the motivating force. Miri’s kind, optimistic, clever, and focused on justice. Just because she’s nice does not mean that she ever lets anyone take advantage of her. She’ll resort to whatever means she must in order to take on underhanded foes.
Even better, though, The Forgotten Sisters isn’t the Miri show. Though she’s the uniting figure and central to the plot, it’s not all about Miri. She very much could not have done this alone. Astrid, Felissa, and Susanna, the girls she’s been sent to tutor, may be rough about the edges, but they’re all very strong, both because of the life they’ve lived and their natures. Indeed, they’re strong in different ways. Felissa, for example, has strong emotions and compassion, which benefit her and the others.
Perhaps most touching for me was the story of Queen Sabet. She hasn’t played a huge role up until now, and The Forgotten Sisters doesn’t always show her in the best light. Ultimately, though, she gets a strong character arc. In fact, look at any female character in this book and you’ll see that she gets an empowering character arc. It’s really wonderful.
Romance isn’t so strongly an aspect in The Forgotten Sisters. I do like Peder and Miri’s slowly deepening relationship throughout the books. Their love is a steady undercurrent to the novel. I do also like the ship that develops at the end View Spoiler », at least with the proviso of taking it slowly. It all plays out really well.
From the epilogue, I’m not sure if there will be another book in the series, but I rather hope so. If not, this has been a delightful conclusion to the series.
3.5 stars
Shannon Hale’s Princess Academy remains one of my favorite books. There’s nothing like classic Shannon Hale novels, if I can call novels from the early 2000s classics. Well, they are to me, so I will. In more recent years, though, I haven’t been quite as entranced by Hale’s fiction. Despite that, I couldn’t just walk away from this series. Hopes spring eternal for me, as it does for the unassailable goodwill of Miri Larendaughter. My hope was excellently rewarded with The Forgotten Sisters, which hearkens more closely to Princess Academy.
The Forgotten Sisters isn’t The Princess Academy for me, but it was much closer to what I’d been expecting from a sequel than Palace of Stone was. For one thing, in a very different fashion, the princess academy is back. More accurately, there’s a new princess academy. Just as Miri was finally going to head home to Mount Eskel after celebrating Britta’s wedding to Prince Steffan, the King called her to him with a new request: that she tutor three royal cousins as potential brides in an alliance with the nation of Stora.
Every part of me wishes that I could get all the people reading The Selection to read this series instead. For one thing, this series came almost ten years prior. For another, it’s better written. Finally, it’s full of feminism. The premises really aren’t that different, in that, at least in books one and three, they center around the selection of a future queen from a group being properly trained and auditioned.
The reason that the royal cousins need training is that they’d been, as the title indicates, largely forgotten. The royal cousins actually don’t even remember they’re royal, since they’ve spent their childhoods hunting caimans, fishing, and surviving by their own devices. They live in a swampy region that’s difficult to get to, as Miri discovers, fainting upon arriving at their door.
Miri’s the heroine of the series, not because she’s the most politically important figure, but because she’s the motivating force. Miri’s kind, optimistic, clever, and focused on justice. Just because she’s nice does not mean that she ever lets anyone take advantage of her. She’ll resort to whatever means she must in order to take on underhanded foes.
Even better, though, The Forgotten Sisters isn’t the Miri show. Though she’s the uniting figure and central to the plot, it’s not all about Miri. She very much could not have done this alone. Astrid, Felissa, and Susanna, the girls she’s been sent to tutor, may be rough about the edges, but they’re all very strong, both because of the life they’ve lived and their natures. Indeed, they’re strong in different ways. Felissa, for example, has strong emotions and compassion, which benefit her and the others.
Perhaps most touching for me was the story of Queen Sabet. She hasn’t played a huge role up until now, and The Forgotten Sisters doesn’t always show her in the best light. Ultimately, though, she gets a strong character arc. In fact, look at any female character in this book and you’ll see that she gets an empowering character arc. It’s really wonderful.
Romance isn’t so strongly an aspect in The Forgotten Sisters. I do like Peder and Miri’s slowly deepening relationship throughout the books. Their love is a steady undercurrent to the novel. I do also like the ship that develops at the end View Spoiler », at least with the proviso of taking it slowly. It all plays out really well.
From the epilogue, I’m not sure if there will be another book in the series, but I rather hope so. If not, this has been a delightful conclusion to the series.
4.5 Stars
Shannon Hale has been one of my favorite authors for a while. I first read Princess Academy around 7 years ago and it makes me happy to read more of this world and these characters after such a long time. It's been so long since I read the 2nd book in the series that I was sort of reluctant to read this installation because I wasn't sure if I would remember the world so well. Plus sometimes things just don't need more sequels. Not the case here.
This book felt sort of reminiscent of Enna Burning, also by Hale, because of the plot revolving around a war. Basically, our hero Miri is finally about to return home to Mount Eskel after a year away, but just as she's ready to leave the King and Queen of Danland request that she becomes a princess tutor to the King's cousins who live in the swampy Lesser Alva (I think it's Alva? Literally just put the book down 3 seconds ago and somehow already forgot.). This is needed because a neighboring kingdom has been threatening invasion and the only way to calm them down is to marry off a royal to the king of that kingdom.
Of course, many complications ensue. Seeing how Miri solves problems is such a delight. This is definitely a series I would want my little sister to read if I had one. I don't think I realized it back when I first read the series, but Miri and co. are pure GIRL POWER. It is so great to read about female characters who are incredibly clever and intelligent. Miri actually reminds me a lot of Creel from Jessica Day George's Dragon Slippers series which is another favorite of mine. The books both feature normal peasant girls who manage to be extraordinarily brave and smart while also being connected to the royal family.
This series always makes me feel like learning more so that I can be as clever in hairy situations. It also makes me regret that I am never involved in hairy situations.
Ah, forgot to mention characters. I really loved the characters in this one. I may have also loved supporting characters in the other books, but it's been a few years and I don't remember them so well. I loved the sisters in this. Sus was definitely a stand-out for me. That kid was hilarious and amazing and I would absolutely read a book featuring her as a main character. The romantic aspect was tasteful and came in just the right amount as usual.
Overall a great, exciting book. I couldn't put it down after I got past the first 3 or 4 chapters. There was a nice plot twist that I wasn't expecting...The ending tied things up perfectly for me which is bittersweet since I would always welcome another addition to the series. Oh, andthe little bit about Dogface was so awesome and unexpected. Really made me happy.
This review was all over the place. But I'm excited to see what new series Shannon comes out with in the future.
Shannon Hale has been one of my favorite authors for a while. I first read Princess Academy around 7 years ago and it makes me happy to read more of this world and these characters after such a long time. It's been so long since I read the 2nd book in the series that I was sort of reluctant to read this installation because I wasn't sure if I would remember the world so well. Plus sometimes things just don't need more sequels. Not the case here.
This book felt sort of reminiscent of Enna Burning, also by Hale, because of the plot revolving around a war. Basically, our hero Miri is finally about to return home to Mount Eskel after a year away, but just as she's ready to leave the King and Queen of Danland request that she becomes a princess tutor to the King's cousins who live in the swampy Lesser Alva (I think it's Alva? Literally just put the book down 3 seconds ago and somehow already forgot.). This is needed because a neighboring kingdom has been threatening invasion and the only way to calm them down is to marry off a royal to the king of that kingdom.
Of course, many complications ensue. Seeing how Miri solves problems is such a delight. This is definitely a series I would want my little sister to read if I had one. I don't think I realized it back when I first read the series, but Miri and co. are pure GIRL POWER. It is so great to read about female characters who are incredibly clever and intelligent. Miri actually reminds me a lot of Creel from Jessica Day George's Dragon Slippers series which is another favorite of mine. The books both feature normal peasant girls who manage to be extraordinarily brave and smart while also being connected to the royal family.
This series always makes me feel like learning more so that I can be as clever in hairy situations. It also makes me regret that I am never involved in hairy situations.
Ah, forgot to mention characters. I really loved the characters in this one. I may have also loved supporting characters in the other books, but it's been a few years and I don't remember them so well. I loved the sisters in this. Sus was definitely a stand-out for me. That kid was hilarious and amazing and I would absolutely read a book featuring her as a main character. The romantic aspect was tasteful and came in just the right amount as usual.
Overall a great, exciting book. I couldn't put it down after I got past the first 3 or 4 chapters. There was a nice plot twist that I wasn't expecting...The ending tied things up perfectly for me which is bittersweet since I would always welcome another addition to the series. Oh, and
This review was all over the place. But I'm excited to see what new series Shannon comes out with in the future.
Shannon Hale writes a great story and this did not disappoint. A great read that I will definitely be recommending.
I really love Shannon Hale. She excels at wring realistic fanasty. Her characters are well constructed and she understands that people are multifaceted.
This book filled my heart. I love Miri, the royals, Peder, all the villagers, but most of all Shannon who chose to share them with the world.
This book filled my heart. I love Miri, the royals, Peder, all the villagers, but most of all Shannon who chose to share them with the world.
Genuinely enjoyed this one. It was really sweet, and while you could tell it was written WAY after the other two, it still felt perfectly in place.
Queen Sabet holds a special place in my heart after that speech. (Also Astrid and Felissa and Sus, of course.)
Queen Sabet holds a special place in my heart after that speech. (Also Astrid and Felissa and Sus, of course.)
This was a satisfying conclusion to a really fun and thoughtful middle grade trilogy. While neither this book or the second one lived up to the pure beauty of the first book I still enjoyed this trilogy quite a bit and I absolutely recommend it.
I couldn't think of a more wonderful way for it to end!!