Tag: Genovia

Book Review: Royal Wedding ARC by Meg Cabot

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23215471-1Genre: 

Adult, salve Contemporary, treat Romance

Pages: 

 

Part of a Series?:

The finale book of the Princess Diaries series. Keep in mind! The first 10 are strictly YA while this is an adult novel!

Release Date: 

June 2nd, 2015

You Can Find the Book At:

Check your local bookstore!

GoodReads

Barnes and Noble 

Book Depository

Author Website

GoodReads Summary: 

For Princess Mia, the past five years since college graduation have been a whirlwind of activity, what with living in New York City, running her new teen community center, being madly in love, and attending royal engagements. And speaking of engagements. Mia’s gorgeous longtime boyfriend Michael managed to clear both their schedules just long enough for an exotic (and very private) Caribbean island interlude where he popped the question! Of course Mia didn’t need to consult her diary to know that her answer was a royal oui.

But now Mia has a scandal of majestic proportions to contend with: Her grandmother’s leaked “fake” wedding plans to the press that could cause even normally calm Michael to become a runaway groom. Worse, a scheming politico is trying to force Mia’s father from the throne, all because of a royal secret that could leave Genovia without a monarch. Can Mia prove to everyone–especially herself–that she’s not only ready to wed, but ready to rule as well?

My Review:

Getting my hands on this book meant the absolute world to me. The first time I read the first Princess Diaries book was when I was 12 years old. I am now 27 years old so you know how long I’ve been reading Meg Cabot and how much these books truly mean to me. I’ve been trying to get my hands on this book for ages and I legitimately cried when I did.

This book is exactly what I could have ever wanted in a final PD book. I’ve been waiting since I was twelve years old for Mia and Michael to live happily ever and in this book…we actually get to see this happen. It’s like…legitimately a fairy tale coming true! I’ve always loved the two of them together and loved that they managed to end up together in the end…as they should!

But it’s more than that! I grew up with Mia Thermopolis. I’ve always felt incredibly close to her as a character, she’s also felt very familiar and relatable. I’ve always wanted to find my own Michael Moscovitz. I followed her through her awkwardness of high school, figuring out friends and boys and school and all of that. I love revisiting the books but this book was amazing. It was written for us that have been around for years. Mia has grown up and so have I and the rest of the fans. Reading Mia’s diary again, as an adult, with problems that I legitimately understand because we are basically the same age. I loved it. I loved seeing them get engaged and having sex and growing up, renting apartments, doing adult things. It felt so weird but so right.

But I also loved that Mia was still SO Mia. She’s grown up but she’s still also awkward and she still does silly things and freaks out over the small things and I love it. I also love that there were surprises in the story that I didn’t expect and it was awesome. I was both extremely happy and bittersweet while reading this book.

Lastly I liked that we got to meet Olivia, Mia’s sister from Mia’s point of view. I have already read Olivia’s story but it was cool to read it from Mia’s side. Olivia sees Mia as cool and sophisticated and mature during the whole thing while we get to be in Mia’s head while she legitimately is like, what on earth is going on and I’m confused and what the hell do I do? It’s so Mia and I liked every bit of it. There was so much newness in this book, and honestly I thought it was an amazing end to the series. I thought Princess Diaries 10 was great and a fabulous ending but this one was just straight up perfect. I can’t imagine a better book to end one of my absolute favorite series!

Rating: 

5 out of 5 Stars

Book Review: From the Notebooks of a Middle School Princess (ARC) by Meg Cabot

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22718809This review is based on an advanced reader’s copy of the novel obtained through snail mail at the permission of Feiwel and Friends. This is in no way had an effect on the integrity of my review. Please note that published novel will differ from this ARC.

Genre: 

Middle Grade, tadalafil Contemporary

Pages: 

192

Part of a Series?:

First in a Planned Series

Release Date: 

May 19th, what is ed 2015

You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Book Depository

Author Website

GoodReads Summary: 

In FROM THE NOTEBOOKS OF A MIDDLE SCHOOL PRINCESS a new middle grade series, viagra readers will see Genovia, this time through the illustrated diaries of a spunky new heroine, 12 year old Olivia Grace, who happens to be the long lost half-sister of Princess Mia Thermopolis.

My Review:

I don’t often read middle grade novels, I tend to focus more on YA and NA but there was NO way at all I was going to turn down the chance to read the newest novel by Meg Cabot in one of my favorite fictional worlds, The Princess Diaries series. Without getting too spoiler-y, we’re introduced to Olivia, who is a somewhat awkward, but totally adorable 12 year old girl who somehow gets into a load of trouble with the most popular girl in school, who wants to beat her up after school. That is, until she finds out that her father, a mysterious man who has sent her letters and presents for years, is actually a crown prince, and her sister, a princess, THE Princess Amelia of Genovia. Enter a whirlwind of changes for the girl as she steps into her new role as Princess Olivia.

There was SO much I liked about this book.

One, the fact that Olivia is biracial. We need more and more diversity in our books and this is just plain beautiful. I love every bit of this completely.

Two, I love that Olivia is writing in a journal the way Mia did. It feels so familiar. It feels familiar to get to know this character in such a similar way that you got to know Mia when she learned that she was a princess.

Three, I love that Olivia is younger than Mia, and I love that she has had different reactions, and a different exposure to this news. True, she’s younger than Mia was in that first novel, and this book is geared toward a different age group but I love that we get a sort of familiar story but with a brand new character.

Four, Olivia is just SO incredibly fun. She’s spunky and honest and fun. She kind of takes things as they came to her. She’s a princess? Cool. She gets a new dog? Awesome. She has the weirdest grandmere on the planet? All right. She has to move to Genovia to learn how to be a princess? Why not?

Five, I like that even though this is a middle grade novel…it hints at some deeper things as well. First off, that even though she’s with her family now, her real family hasn’t been there for quite some time, even though her father knew she existed. Sure, there’s more to that and Olivia’s mom wanted her away from that, that sort of thing but it opens up a larger question of whether she would have ever gained a relationship with her father.

And it also shows the family that she had already, a family that treated her kind of terribly actually. Her adopted family was kind of neglecting, even in their attempts to protect her so that’s kind of interesting as well.

Six, we get to see Mia again, and see the beginnings of her preparations for her wedding to Michael (which, like, ohmygod, I’m fangirling so hard over this! I’ve been waiting…let’s see, I was 12 when I read the first book…so 14 years, 15 years for this?). And Olivia is going to be a junior bridesmaid. We get to see Prince Philipe and Grandmere and it just feels good to see those characters again. I LOVED it.

Straight up, its a great book for those who are already fans of The Princess Diaries and would like a dose of nostalgia and I think it’ll be great for those who haven’t been introduced. They can meet Olivia and perhaps go back and read Mia’s story and that’s just fabulous!

Rating: 

5 out of 5 stars