Shelly's Book Blog

Princess Ben, by Catherine Murdock, is yet another on the School Library Journal's Best Books 2008 list. This is a quick read with lots of action and I enjoyed it, but I found the ending somewhat abrupt. This story reminded me of all those romantic comedies (think "You've Got Mail") where the two leads start out hating each other but fall madly in love by the end of the story, except in Princess Ben I wasn't quite sure what had changed their minds. In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, this conceit works beautifully, I think because Austen gives the characters so many opportunities to meet, both in the company of others and, by happenstance, alone. I suppose most stories will suffer if they are compared to Pride and Prejudice, though. I just wanted a bit more from this story. Even so, I would not hesitate to recommend it because Benevolence (Ben) is a great, flawed heroine. I enjoyed sharing her adventures and watching her grow.