Princess Academy: Palace of Stone

It was a gift for my Granddaughter

had read the first and didn't realise the second and third were available so rushed to buy and was not disappointed

Very interesting

I love this book. The characters are well-developed and likeable, and the plot is interesting. First, let me say that I love the humor in this book. It is clean. It's kind of like Shakespeare's humor. People in every era would laugh at it. I also have to point out that I am usually not touched my romance, but I loved Miri and Peder. I think I liked their relationship so much because it was so innocent. It wasn't mushy, as a lot of fictional romances tend to be. Peder never told Miri "I love you", but it was so obvious, that with everything he did, he loved her very much. He wasn't the best communicator, but I can forgive him for that when he is so likeable. The only one I didn't like was the king, not even after the Revolution. I highly recommend this!

Palace of Stone is the sequel to a book that didn't need a sequel, but the world of Miri would not be complete with it. (This review does contain spoilers for Princess Academy, but not for Palace of Stone). Palace of Stone takes the reader through a series of emotions and thoughts. With Miri we have to decide for ourselves what is right and wrong, both as an individual and as a society. Revolution. This book centers around the concept of revolution. Things in Danland are not what they seemed. There is more unrest than previously expected. Miri from her life on Mount Eskel has had little exposure to the lowlands and thus with her we slowly uncover the tangled weave of Danland's politics and people. Miri was a revolutionary at Mount Eskel and now she can see what this meant to all of Danland. This book questions things that I took for granted from the first, but in an excellent way. It made me wonder why I took those things for granted in the first place, because now I am of the opinion that I shouldn't have. A brief example: my thoughts on Britta. At first I assumed that everyone would feel like I did towards her (and like Miri did within the first book), but in my joy of seeing her happiness with her engagement to Steffan, I had forgotten to consider the entire picture. Palace of Stone shows me that. Miri grows significantly within the book to marvelous results. She is exposed to true and innocent romance, the true meaning of loyalty and friendship and the possibility of a brighter future. This book was an excellent and incredibly sweet read. Thought-provoking and memorable. Fans of the Princess Academy will not be disappointed.