About this item
School Library JournalGr 58By layering the exoticism of Romanian folklore onto her novelization of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses," Haskell sets this expansion of the story apart from others in a popular genre. Creatures such as the zmeu, a dragon that can assume human form, and the capcaun, a dog-headed ogre, as well as information about the failures and successes of medieval herbalists can be found within this unsettling tale. The curiosity and tenacity of 13-year-old Reveka, an apprentice herbalist at the castle of Prince Vasile, drive the narrative forward. She is determined to discover the secret of the curse laid upon the 12 princesses. At first she only wants the reward promised to anyone breaking the curse, but soon she becomes emotionally invested in saving the lives of the others who've tried to solve the mystery and now lie in near-death slumber in a tower of the castle.
About the Author
Merrie Haskell grew up half in Michigan, half in North Carolina. She works in a library with over 7 million books, and finds this to be just about the right number.
Merrie won the Schneider Family Book Award in 2014 for HANDBOOK FOR DRAGON SLAYERS, and was a finalist for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children's Literature in 2013 for THE PRINCESS CURSE. Her third book, THE CASTLE BEHIND THORNS, is a Junior Library Guild Selection. Visit her website at merriehaskell.com
