Book #2: The Fae Princess
GOLD MEDAL WINNER in the Reader's Choice Book Awards Summer 2021 Literary Titan's GOLD medal winner for APRIL 2021 In the darkness, an old enemy awoke. And it was very, very unhappy. “Revenge,” it whispered. “I need revenge.” Deep in Australian Bushland lies the hidden realm of the fae. Ten year old Princess Vidya Iives her life, going to school and learning about the Eastern Bushland Kingdom she will one day rule over. But just as her parents King Farrion and Queen Salote, share their concerns about a darkness spreading across the land, the fae adults of the entire Kingdom fall into a magical sleep and cannot be woken up. The magic around them is fading and the fae children are all that’s left to figure out what went wrong. Join Princess Vidya and her daring companion, Pancake the quokka, and the other fae children on their quest to save the fae Kingdom from destruction. It’ll take all their smarts, bravery and fae spirit to solve this problem. Reader's Choice Book Awards GOLD medal winner!
Readers’ Comments: Imaginative, creative and superbly written, Bali’s second book in the Pacific Princesses series does not disappoint. With some familiar friends from book one, The Fae Princess is full of action, mystery and suspense. Perfect for fans of fantasy fiction, young and old. Girl, aged 10. It was really good, I liked how strong and powerful Vidya was and how important friends are. Pancake was funny. Teacher. This is a really imaginative story and we loved all the strange and funny creatures and plants, the quokka’s and yarama’s. It stimulated lots of discussion. We hadn’t read the first book, but it didn’t matter. The story stands alone, although I believe there are references to characters from the first book. My class were enthralled and asked to read the first book after we finished. Whilst I think it is largely aimed at girls, the boys enjoyed it too. Definitely recommend for years 5/6/7. The Literary Titan Book Review ★★★★★ "Prepare for magical delights and dark creatures in The Fae Princess by Ektaa Bali! The second book of The Pacific Princesses series follows 10-year-old faery princess Vidya. She resides deep within the Bushlands of Australia in a hidden faery realm that oversees and communicates with plants. Everything is fine until the first day of Spring. Their annual feast is put to a sudden halt when a mysterious darkness begins to overtake the land and puts the adult faeries to sleep. The fate of the kingdom is on Vidya’s shoulders. Can she save her kingdom? Author Ektaa Bali has created a fun and imaginative children’s fantasy story. Her ability to craft a story that is both meaningful and easy to read is something I greatly appreciated. From the imaginative world-building to the intriguing characters, Bali has set a high bar for indie middle-grade authors. Bali introduces us to a majority of the ideas and concepts of the fae kingdom within the first three chapters. We see her describe who the fae are, where they are from, and what they do within the confines of only 43 pages. I also enjoyed her magical descriptions of both real and mythical plants. She did not go into overt detail but gave you just enough to be satisfied and understand what you were reading – which is a great writing style for younger readers. Watching Vidya come into her own as she has to save her kingdom added a beautiful message to an already magical story! We see her become braver, use her intelligence, and rise to the occasion. Young girls everywhere will find a wonderful role model within Vidya. Although I thought Vidya is a rousing character that I loved following, I felt that she sometimes sounded mature for her age. The Fae Princess by Ektaa Bali is a story infused with adventure and creativity. This is an exceptional book for young girls everywhere, but any young reader will surely get swept away in the story. This is a fantasy story that is empowering as well as entertaining." |