This story has me highly conflicted. I actually really like the premise and the characters in this book. I find Aisling to be a strong heroine and the Prince to be a complimentary hero. That said, there are some big writing flaws within the story. The prose is difficult to ignore and the dialogue is stilted and without nuance. I would find myself engrossed in the story only to been jerked out it if by the stilted and simplified writing. It almost felt like it was a translation from another language. The storyline is overly simplified and for a fantasy novel it lacks enough fantasy elements. I think it would make for a really good pre-teen book.

Now that I’ve said all of that, I actually still kind of liked it. Enough that I’ll be reading the sequel. Seems strange I know but even with the weird dialogue I liked the characters.