The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley
Aerin may be a princess, but she has never been truly accepted as part of the royal family. Her mother, a witchwoman, died giving birth to Aerin. Although Aerin develops a relationship with her father, the King of Damar, she has basically been raised by a series of governesses. Anxious to prove she is an important part of the Kingdom, Aerin figures out how to kill dragons. She becomes a hero in the outskirts of the Kingdom but still struggles to gain acceptance in the royal family.
Aerin may be a princess, but she has never been truly accepted as part of the royal family. Her mother, a witchwoman, died giving birth to Aerin. Although Aerin develops a relationship with her father, the King of Damar, she has basically been raised by a series of governesses. Anxious to prove she is an important part of the Kingdom, Aerin figures out how to kill dragons. She becomes a hero in the outskirts of the Kingdom but still struggles to gain acceptance in the royal family.
Then she discovers that she must fight a much darker power than dragons to save her beloved Damar.
This book truly has it all…adventure, betrayal, action, well-developed characters, intense plot, coming of age themes, romance, dragons, wizards, potions, war and family.
The beginning and end of this book dragged a bit for me, but the meat of the story was totally worth it. It won the Newbery in 1985, so it would fit into the “Oldie-but-goodie” category. I can see why it won. It is an excellent clean read.
This book truly has it all…adventure, betrayal, action, well-developed characters, intense plot, coming of age themes, romance, dragons, wizards, potions, war and family.
The beginning and end of this book dragged a bit for me, but the meat of the story was totally worth it. It won the Newbery in 1985, so it would fit into the “Oldie-but-goodie” category. I can see why it won. It is an excellent clean read.
Posted by me, Emily
I LOVE McKinley (but I've yet to read this particular title). So far my favorite of hers remains "Beauty". She's a whole lot of fun! Thanks for this review. I'll have to pick up a copy of this one as well.
ReplyDeleteMy teenage niece recommended this book as well as "The Blue Sword" so I bookmooched both. So it's good to hear more good things about it.
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