Sometime around the end of last year, I stumbled across a page for A True Princess by Diane Zahler which is a retelling of The Princess and the Pea. Retellings of this story are rare, at least to my knowledge, so I instantly interested. And then the author caught my eye. I had read The Thirteenth Princess by Diane early in 2010 and I was completely charmed by Zita and her story. Because I so enjoyed The Thirteenth Princess, when Misty and I began planning for Fairy Tale Fortnight, I contacted Diane, asking her if she would be interested in participating and she said yes. There is an interview and giveaway coming up soon that Diane was generous enough to contribute, and she also sent me a copy of A True Princess to review during the event.
A True Princess is the story of Lilia, a 12 year old foundling servant. Found as a child around two floating down river in a basket, Lilia has lived in the home or Jorgen and his bitter second wife Ylva. Jorgen also has two children from his first marriage, Kai, who is near Lilia's age, and Karina who is five years older. As I read, I found myself searching for the word of phrase that would best describe how I felt reading it, and I decided that I simply adored this book, and that word — adored — is able to sum up how I felt and wrap it all together far nicer than words.
While I did genuinely enjoy this story, there were two main things that I didn't love. The first is that Lilia is only 12 years old. It tells us Lilia's age in the first few pages of the story, but I promptly forgot about it, and was completely shocked when I glanced at the summary on Goodreads, and it declares her 12. I had to glance through my copy to check, because to me, nothing about Lilia is 12 years old. Not her choices, not her thoughts, not her romance, and not her actions. I spent the entire book imagining her as 15, which is worlds away from 12. Karina also did not seem five years older than either Kai or Lilia either. She seemed much closer in age, which gave more weight to the idea that Lilia couldn't possibly be only 12.
The only other thing I wish had been different is a desire for more. There were so many fabulously wonderful ideas threaded throughout this book, any number of which could have been fleshed out and given more detail. There was a lot I wish we could have learned more about. While reading it, I enjoyed the world that Zahler had created, but I wished there had been more of it. I also wished for more development in the relationships. Things moved very quickly in this story, and what suffered the most was what we were able to see develop of the relationships. Lilia leaves in the middle of the night after overhearing Ylva demand she be sent to serve in the home of the abusive miller, and Kai and Karina set out after her to travel North with her, hopefully to find out where it is she came from and how she came to be floating down the river. We know, from this, that their relationship is close, but there isn't much time for us to see it develop. We don't get to see a lot of it, which makes certain later events (such as romantic developments) a little too... sudden and easy.
Although I did wish for more a little more detail to the story and fleshing out to the relationships, this is one that I am glad to have read, and will very likely read again. I've already picked it up to reread my favorite scenes again because I enjoyed it so much the first time around. I'm not very familiar with stories involving the Fey, especially in fairy tales, but as I find myself read more and more about them in my retellings, the more I wish to know about them. The Elf-King and his lovely, enchanting daughter were fascinating in this story and I found myself gripped and captivated every time they appeared on the page.
The resolution of the story was stunning and in my opinion, the best writing of the book. All of the book is good, but the resolution is where Zahler shines especially bright in this one. I found myself holding my breath a time or two, waiting for everything to be made right or resolved. Lilia really comes into her strength as she marches back into the woods to rescue Kai, knowing that to do so in dangerous, that the Elf-King is likely not to be trusted, but needing to save Kai no matter what.
Although this story is a retelling of The Princess and the Pea, and that infamous pea does make an appearance in the story, it is a tale less about a pea under a mattress and more about what it is that will make a true princess. Given the name of the book and the nature of fairy tales, you sense the truth of Lilia's origins almost as soon as you start the story, but discovering the truth alongside Lilia still feels like an adventure and a revelation. I loved the chapter headings, each a different 'rule' for what makes a true princess, and each rule usually foreshadows a way in which Lilia will break them throughout that chapter.
A True Princess is a charming, truly delightful fairy tale, one that fits well alongside The Thirteenth Princess and other fairy tale retellings. It is a simple yet wonderful addition to any fairy tale collection, and one I will enjoy reading again.
