The Swan Kingdom Book

"Marriott notes Andersen’s ‘The Wild Swans’ as her inspiration, but the novel is entirely her own, full of narrative power and magic." — BOOKLIST

When Alexandra’s mother is slain by an unnatural beast, shadows fall on the once-lush kingdom. Too soon the widowed king is entranced by a cunning stranger — and in one chilling moment Alexandra’s beloved brothers disappear, and she is banished to a barren land. Rich in visual detail, sparked by a formidable evil, and sweetened with familial and romantic love, here is the tale of a girl who discovers powerful healing gifts — and the courage to use them to save her ailing kingdom.

Publishers Weekly

Exactly what this British first novelist is up to in this elaboration of the Hans Christian Andersen tale "The Wild Swans" is not clear. Does the royal heroine, Alexandra, have magical gifts? A special destiny with the enaid-"currents of life"-and a connection to the sacred place called the "Circle of Ancestors"? Alexandra, the ugly duckling of the family, and her three brothers lose their beloved mother to an attack by a frightening creature in the forest, but only when the mysterious Zella arrives and bewitches Alexandra's father and his entire kingdom does the story's pace quicken. Zella threatens the four siblings-Alexandra is exiled and her three brothers turned into swans-an interesting but inopportune development. Just as readers find that they, too, are enthralled by Zella and the havoc she wreaks, Alexandra is banished from the action. Luckily, the handsome Gabriel enters, adding romance and intrigue, reigniting that page-turner impulse-but his appearance, too, is brief. Readers will be impatient for both Zella and Gabriel to return and reinvigorate what is otherwise the solitary story of Alexandra's struggle to understand herself, her powers and how she might wrest her family's kingdom back from the evil Zella. Even with the uneven pacing, however, the mix of magic, royalty and romance will compel many teens. Ages 12-up. (Mar.)

Copyright 2007Reed Business Information