Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith

3 stars....although that could be because I was tired while reading some of it...which could definitely distort my opinion. And it took me a long time to finish the book, not necessarily because I didn't like it that much...but I think I might have worn myself out previously. 

Anyway....

Get through about the first 45 pages and it will get better! I was kind of hesitant about finishing the book, but because it had such great ratings, I decided to do it. And the book does get better. Something exciting-ish is kind of constantly happening afterwards. 

There's a great heroine in the book. There's not really a people love story at all(although I think the second book in the series is more of it). It's somewhat a fantasy book, but the book itself doesn't really revolve around it though...not really. I mean the protag is not magical, and the people she's fighting isn't...(actually it is so hardly a fantasy novel. Hardly!)

But it's a good story about two seemingly nonthreatening count and countess who's mission is to fight the king and protect the Covenant (with the people who are magical) and their own people of Tlanth. 

It's not a very popular book, but it is a good one. Amazon has great ratings for the book. 5 stars from like over 250 ratings. That's not shabby. There's a different version that has the 1st and 2nd books combined, which I would probably suggest. 

Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale

3 Stars. I liked this book. The beginning and ending were good. Well, I actually skimmed through the end parts mostly. I enjoyed The Goose Girl more. There wasn't much action in the book, so I guess it went a bit slow for me. 

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

    

4 stars.

 I'm really enjoying Shannon Hale's books. I've only read three so far-Austenland, Princess Academy, and now The Goose Girl. But I think Shannon is a great storyteller/re-storyteller. It was a cute/great story and I'm sure I'll reread the book again some time. 

I enjoyed the protagonist and her growth throughout the book to become a courageous girl. I really enjoyed the ending and was trying to figure out what the whole story was with Geric until it was written at the end. 

I see that the next two books in this "series" isn't really about Ani, which I'm kind of bummed about. But I guess I'll give them a try of course.

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Great book. 4 stars. 

 I've seen the movie and liked it, but it's also kind of different from the book, if I remember correctly. I think I like the book better. The ending was great and I'm glad I'm not cursed like she was. To have to be obedient to everyone who commanded it would be horrible. It's a cinderella story, but better. I think I read on Levine's website something like that it's a cinderella story, but cinderella, aka Ella, isn't really such a naturally good person. She is forced into obeying and can be quite rebellious. Which I think that is what probably makes her character more interesting than the old Cinderella.