Who reigns supreme in the end? You'll have to read the books to find out. She doesn't yearn for the power or the fame or the riches or the ballgowns she wants to bring peace to the kingdoms and make her slain parents, her ancestors, and her beloved caretakers proud. Like Ella, Cecilia isn't afraid to get dirty, to walk barefoot through sludge, to bloody her fingers when trying to get out of a locked room. Their stories are all the same, and each girl was given a royal object as proof of her royalty. Each and every one of these girls thinks SHE's the real princess - and so do their knights. Then Cecilia's village is threatened, and she decides to reclaim the throne. Meanwhile, Desmia, the decoy, thinks she's the real princess. Cecilia can't tell any of her friends about it, not even her life-long best friend Harper.
Cecilia was whisked away and a decoy (Desmia) was put on the throne. When she was little, her parents were murdered. Raised by Nanny and educated and protected by Sir Stephen, Cecilia likes the evening best of all, for that is when she has lessons - "And for me it's the moment that divides my day as hardworking, ragged peasant girl from my evening as secret princess poring over gilded texts." () She goes on to say, "The studying is no easier than the chores, but it's more promising."īut Cecilia isn't the peasant girl she pretends to be. In Palace of Mirrors, we follow a 14-year-old peasant girl named Cecilia. Ella is a selfless, intelligent leading lady, and Just Ella is a very neat adaptation. She must use the same smarts and determination that got her to that famous ball in the first place to get out and to help her country. When she tries to break the engagement, evil steps in and Ella is physically removed to a dungeon.īut the villains should have known that even dungeon bars can't stop Ella. After learning more about the war that's taking place beyond the palace gates, Ella becomes even more disenchanted with her royal life and yearns to do something that will help those suffering. Conversations with the prince prove that, although he's nice, he's really not for her. But being a princess isn't all it is cracked up to be. When the book begins, Ella is already engaged to Prince Charming. Instead of relying on magic, Ella uses her brain and her bravery to make her dreams into reality. Instead of having a pumpkin transformed into a carriage, Ella got a ride from a kind (and human) coachman. Instead of getting glass slippers from a fairy godmother, Ella won them in a wager with a glassblower. In Just Ella, we met 15-year-old Ella after the big ball we're all familiar with - but it turns out the story everyone has heard isn't exactly true. These books are royally good, and I strongly recommend them to fans of Shannon Hale. When kids and teachers ask me for a book that's a twist on the Cinderella story, I offer them Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix and the companion novel, Palace of Mirrors.
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