Although Ben (short for Benevolence) has always been a princess by virtue of being her uncle's heir, her parents have chosen to raise her as a fairly ordinary child. Unfortunately, at fifteen Ben's parents are both killed by a neighboring kingdom's assassins (though they deny responsibility) and Ben is immediately moved into the castle to be 'properly' trained at last. Unused to the demands and unwilling to cooperate, Ben suffers the unreasonable expectations of her aunt, Queen Sophia who finally moves her to a bare tower room and locks her in every night. But the tower room ends up to be a benefit when Ben discovers that it leads to a magic room, full of magical implements and a spell book. Now her time is spent learning spells whenever she can get away, but she'll have to learn quickly because she will soon need everything that she can remember.
This was a fairly good book. I enjoyed the characters and the relative unpredictability of the plot, although I felt as though the story seemed slow, particularly in the begin. I was amused by the random allusions to fairy tales that were spread throughout the book, although they seemed almost unrelated since they had no actual bearing on the plot or universe construction. I would have to say that, while this was not an incredible book, it was a good read, and worth picking up for some fairly light fantasy reading.
- If this book sounds interesting, consider these: The Two Princesses of Bamarre, Heroics for Beginners, or Spirit Fox
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