THE SLEEPING BEAUTY

Author: Mercedes Lackey ISBN: 9780373803156 7/2010 SCI-FI/FANTASY Publisher: LUNA

Heavy is the head—and the eyelids—of the princess who wears the crown… In Rosamund's realm, happiness hinges on a few simple beliefs: For every princess there's a prince. The king has ultimate power. Stepmothers should never be trusted. And bad things come to those who break with Tradition…. But when Rosa is pursued by a murderous huntsman and then captured by dwarves, her beliefs go up in smoke. Determined to escape and save her kingdom from imminent invasion, she agrees to become the guinea pig in one of her stepmother's risky incantations—thus falling into a deep, deep sleep. When awakened by a touchy-feely stranger, Rosa must choose between Tradition and her future…between a host of eligible princes and a handsome, fair-haired outsider. And learn the difference between being a princess and ruling as a queen. The moral of the story? Sometimes a princess has to create her own happy endings….

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

THE SLEEPING BEAUTY is the fifth installment in Mercedes Lackey’s 500 Kingdoms series. Not since the inaugural story in this series have I enjoyed Lackey’s take on a well-known fairy tale. When Princess Rosamund’s mother dies, The Tradition calls for her father to marry an Evil Stepmother. The Kingdom’s Fairy Godmother, however, steps in and fills the role of the Evil Stepmother, while working together with Rosamund to find the perfect prince. In an effort to weed out all of the potential suitors who just want Rosamund’s hand because of her title, Lily, Rosamund’s fairy godmother, comes up with the idea to hold a competition among princes to win Rosamund’s hand. What results is some seriously funny hijinks.

THE SLEEPING BEAUTY is an amalgamation of several well-known fairy tales: a little Snow White, Hansel and Gretel, and even the Norse Siegfried fable. THE SLEEPING BEAUTY is much lighter in tone than the last couple of 500 Kingdoms books, and I giggled my way through it. The first book in the series, THE FAIRY GODMOTHER, is still my favorite, but THE SLEEPING BEAUTY is a close second. I love to see how Mercedes Lackey reinvents fairy tales that most people are already familiar with, and I can’t wait to see what she does with the next installment, BEAUTY AND THE WEREWOLF.

Melissa Stratford