Palace of Mirrors

Title: Palace of Mirrors

Author: Margaret Peterson Haddix

Pages: 297

Rating: B

Summary: Cecilia knows that she is not just another peasant girl; she is actually the true princess, in hiding until the evil forces that killed her parents are vanquished. A commoner named Desmia is on the throne as a decoy.

As she gets older, Cecilia finds it harder to study statesmanship and palace protocol secretly at night and then pretend that she has nothing on her mind other than scrubbing the gruel stains out of her best apron by day.

Cecilia knows that it is time to take charge. Along with her best friend, Harper, she flees to the capital city, determined to reclaim her throne and face the danger head on.

When Harper and Cecilia reach the famed Palace of Mirrors, they discover complications: Princess Desmia believes an entirely different version of the story.

Review: Palace of Mirrors kind of suprised me. I know the author, Margaret Peterson Haddix, from her other series that I love called Among the Hidden. We read those books back in 4th grade, so its been a while since I have read any of her writing. Palace of Mirrors was great. I can absolutely say that it lived up to the reputation of Ms. Haddix's former work.

You guys probably already know that I'm a sucker for historical fiction, so this was right up my alley. Now, the book isn't really true historical fiction, because none of the events ever happened, but I count it, because it is set in a more primitive time period. The story is set in a old-timey, feudal state ruled under a monarchy. There are villages surrounding the capital which holds the regal castle, and the serfs live in surrounding poor towns. Beggars populate the city streets and farmlands ring the lowly villages. It is pretty much your average princess story in every way. I guess you could say that is why I liked it so much.

I think I like historical fiction and fantasy so much because it takes you out of this world and into a completely new place. Why would I want to read about something I can experience right now? Realistic fiction has to be GREAT for me to read it, but I can definitely sit through a lukewarm fantasy and still be interested.

I can't tell you very much about this book without spoiling it, but just know, the suspense rocks. So phenomenal. 

I think the demographic of Palace of Mirrors is totally towards girls, just with how Cecilia (don' t you love that name!? I loveee that name) deals with her problems and handles her inner perturbed self. So ladies, this is a book you will most likely want to check out if you need a quick, suck-you-into-the-story, interesting read. 

Bon appetit!