New York Times bestselling author, Terry Brooks writes fantasy. While he is best known for his tales depicting the land of Shannara, A Princess of Landover depicts his mystical kingdom of Landover. Ben Holiday rules the Kingdom of Landover with the aid of the Paladin, but A Princess of Landover tells the story of Ben’s daughter, Mistaya. As with all teenagers, Mistaya is testing her limits and driving King Ben nuts.
Brooks has written five previous books of Landover, and most of the characters are reintroduced into this novel. But don’t expect a lot of her mother, Willow or Ben Holiday in this book. It is indeed the Princess Mistaya’s story.
Mistaya has been suspended from boarding school for being disruptive, and has returned home to castle, Sterling. Ben, not knowing what to do with her, banishes her to the kingdom library, Libiris. The library is the last place Mistaya wishes to visit, so she runs away.
Along the way she picks up a couple of G’home Gnomes, short for Go Home Gnomes because no one wants them around. An elfin cat, Edgewood Dirk, also befriends Mistaya and he has the personality of a cat – independent, and less than reliable. He tends to pursue his own goals, especially when he is needed most.
The Kingdom of Landover novels tend towards the lighter side of fantasy, and focus on the foibles. For instance the place where Mistaya wants to be the least, Libiris, is the place where she ends up. While magic can get you out of trouble more than likely, it can have unintended consequences that can lead you into even deeper trouble. Generally in fantasy it is the more resourceful mind that gets you out of danger rather than brute force or magic.
As with all of Terry Brooks’ works, I enjoyed reading A Princess of Landover. It has been over ten years since he wrote a Kingdom of Landover book, and I was looking forward to reading this one. I was a bit disappointed that Ben and Willow were not more involved, but this did not detract from the story. Brooks did a splendid job of painting Mistaya as the spoiled, unlikable, petulant, and recalcitrant teenager making it hard for me to like her at first, but I have an idea that was the plan.
Bruce G. Smith 10/6/2009