Warrior Princess

by Frewin Jones

Overview

You can be a warrior, if you choose to be.

Fifteen-year-old Branwen's life is changed forever when enemy Saxon troops attack her homeland and her brother is killed. Branwen wants to jump into action and avenge her brother's death, but instead she is sent to a neighboring stronghold where she'll be safe from harm. Yet while she is surrounded by exquisite beauty and luxury in her new home—as a princess should be—she feels different from the other girls. Deep down, Branwen has the soul of a warrior.

Then a mystical woman in white foretells a daunting prophecy: Branwen will be the one to save her homeland. Suddenly forced to question everything—and everyone—around her, she realizes that the most difficult part of her journey is still to come. With no time to lose, Branwen must make a choice: continue on the path her parents intended for her . . . or step into the role of a true Warrior Princess.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780061985669
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	10/06/2009
Series:	Warrior Princess , #1
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	368
Lexile:	780L (what's this?)
File size:	738 KB
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Frewin Jones has always believed in the existence of "other worlds" that we could just step in and out of if we only knew the way. In the Mortal World, Frewin lives in southeast London with a mystical cat called Siouxsie Sioux.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 7-9

An unexpected encounter with Saxon warriors in the hills near their home ended with the death of Branwen's brother and her banishment to safety in the kingdom of her father's ally Prince Llew. While struggling to adjust to a pampered and dainty new life as a princess, Branwen finds herself increasingly drawn to her old ways as a warrior maiden. Teased and taunted because the people around her cannot understand her strength and mastery with slingshots and the wild falcon that follows her, the 15-year-old eventually gives in to the secret temptation to be trained as a skilled warrior. Thus begins her journey toward becoming the defender of her people. Daughter to a warrior mother, Branwen must quickly press on to maturity and decide whether to marry as tradition and her family wills or follow an uncertain, but prophesied destiny as Warrior Princess. Exciting from start to finish, the story follows her as she moves beyond the awkwardness of girlhood to the assurance of the powerful young woman she is about to become. Filled with battle scenes, fully realized characters, and a conclusion that will keep readers guessing, this story has surefire appeal.-Caryl Soriano, New York Public Library

School Library Journal

A reluctant heroine embraces her destiny in this bland, generic historical fantasy. Branwen is sent away from her border home in seventh-century Wales after her brother is slaughtered by Saxon marauders. Grieving and miserable among more elegant court ladies, Branwen is shocked when the ancient goddess Rhiannon mystically selects her to "save this land." While she bitterly rejects the prophecy, her friendship with a half-Saxon runaway and surreptitious weapons training nonetheless equip her to help repel an invading force-but at a terrible cost. Branwen floats adrift through the narrative, devoid of a distinctive voice and buffeted by more decisive characters. Jones makes some effort to ground the story historically by scattering authentic names and artifacts, but the depiction of early medieval life is both cliched and anachronistic. Especially jarring is the oddly context-free role of religion; Brythons constantly invoke "the saints" and strenuously repudiate their former gods, yet there is not a single reference to the faith or institutions that replaced them. Still, Branwen's adventures may beguile a few dull hours; the conclusion blatantly advertises that sequels are forthcoming. (Fantasy. 12 & up)

Kirkus Reviews