Daughter of the Red Dawn (The Lost Kingdom of Fallada #1)

The fae realm of Fallada is on the brink of war.  The vain, mean-spirited Queen Eranna wants to enslave humans and force everyone in the kingdoms to worship her.  Years ago, she stole the seven infant princesses of the realm, and hid them in the human world.  The evil queen cannot be defeated until all seven girls are back on their rightful thrones.  

Selena McKinley has always felt out of place in her Texas hometown.  When she meets the magnetic werewolf boy Titus, she learns she is the lost princess Eladria, and in order to save the fae (and her birth parents), she will have to leave everything and everyone she has ever known to take up arms against a queen who wants her dead.  

This author has taken bits of various fairytale minutiae and woven them together to create a new and unique fantasy.  Readers will find mentions of werewolves, pixies, centaurs, and even the brothers Grimm right alongside references to current television stars and pop culture.  What a great way to ensnare teen readers!  The scenes in the story speed by, which is actually the biggest problem.  A lot happens very quickly, without giving Selena or the reader much time to acclimate to the new situations.  The colorful descriptions of clothing and scenery are so picturesque; just a bit more fleshing out of the emotional scenes would really bring this novel to life.  This magical beginning to a new series will have fans eagerly awaiting the tales of the remaining six princesses.

Leslie Stokes