#BookReview: Undercover Princess (The Rosewood Chronicles #1) by Connie Glynn #TheWriteReads #UltimateBlogTour

Undercover Princess by Connie Glynn
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

When fairy tale obsessed Lottie Pumpkin starts at the infamous Rosewood Hall, she is not expecting to share a room with the Crown Princess of Maradova, Ellie Wolf. Due to a series of lies and coincidences, 14-year-old Lottie finds herself pretending to be the princess so that Ellie can live a more normal teenage life.

Lottie is thrust into the real world of royalty – a world filled with secrets, intrigue and betrayal. She must do everything she can to help Ellie keep her secret, but with school, the looming Maradovian ball and the mysterious new boy Jamie, she’ll soon discover that reality doesn’t always have the happily ever after you’d expect…

There are some stories you just know you will love them. This one came with a similar feeling to me. Royalty, Secret identities, bodyguard drama, School life, and found friends/family; all in one single book. What more could I ask for. 

I liked Lottie from the very first page and could almost see why she was so eager to help Ellie and be part of the whole royal drama. Ellie , I admit took some time for me to understand and like her, but when it comes to Jamie, I loved him instantly.  He is the one I am most interested to see grow in the books because I know Lottie is going to be an interesting influence on him. Also, I pity him a tiny bit to be responsible for these two girls - who can never be far from trouble & mischief. The school has such a whimsical vibe and the setting is just ripe for both troubles and more wonders happening because these students have the potential to bring the best in each other. As the book opening paragraph says, sometimes such wondrous places are inside a person - and that person can also be you. That's the exact dreamlike adventure this book is - part inspiring, part heartwarming, and more parts entertaining.

When I first read about this book, I wasn't aware that this is part of a series. And after reading it, I immediately bought the next part(s) because I just want to see a peaceful happy ending for this trio. Luckily the series finished recently so you can pick it up without bothering about waiting for the next part.  

A huge thank you to TheWriteReads, the author, and Penguin for my spot on the tour, and my ecopy of the book! So glad I was introduced to this fun series. 

View all my reviews

#BookReview: The Backyard Tales by Aniesha Brahma

The Backyard Tales is the story of the bond shared between 17-year-old Mia Basu Roy and her beloved cat, Pippo. She seems to understand him far too well for a human. And he seems to have another life that Mia begins to suspect. She follows her cat to their backyard and down a very dangerous road which leads her to witches, talking animals, and a story that’s much bigger than what she initially suspected. 

Read this story to discover all of Mia and Pippo’s secrets, be enchanted by magic, and get the answer to a question that has haunted us for ages: does a cat truly love their owner? 

My Rating: 3.75/5

Review: Once in a while it feels good to be lost in a story of animals that can talk and of passionate teenagers who have the courage and sense to make a difference to the world. When Aniesha told me about this book, I knew it would be special for her because she loves her cats and that love clearly shone in the pages of this book. I am not a pet-lover kind of person but I like cat videos and it was adorable to finally read a book that revolved around cats majorly. 

This is a sweet fantasy fiction story that starts in a faraway fantastical kingdom, a failed rebellion, and friends & family separated. We then come to the present times and meet Mia, her new pet cat Pippo, her friends in school and strays & people from the neighborhood. There seems to be some trouble brewing in her area for the animals and to fix it, the assigned witch has come to Earth and devised a plan to send all the stray animals to her kingdom ( with or without consent, isn't too clear ). Then there is Shekhar, Mia's old friend on whom she seems to have a tiny crush too perhaps, who is always willing to help Mia in spite of her odd and often rude behave. 

The parts of the story with the animals, the meetings & planning, and Mia helping all of them escape hard times is written well. I loved reading those sections - Mia's love for Pippo and her determination to fight for the ones who could not fight for themselves so well made for a good read. What I did not like was her behave with other people. She sounded very immature and stubborn at a lot of places which was kind of inconsistent with her character at times. I liked the plot and how all loose ends were tied in the story but character-wise, I do hope to see Mia do better in the next part of the book.

Overall, I really enjoyed spending the weekend with this book. 

Book Purchase Link: Amazon India | Amazon USA

Author Bio

Young Adult and Children’s novelist, Aniesha Brahma, studied Comparative Literature. She started her career has as a social media manager in a publishing house. Currently works as a senior content writer in a digital media agency. When she is not working, she is dreaming up stories, conducting sessions for her popular YouTube Series, Chai & Chill, or planning how to get even more books and bookish content to readers via BUZZ Magazine. You can read more of her work at Aniesha’s Musings and drop a line at aniesha.brahma@gmail.com

Catch Up with Aniesha Brahma on Social Media

Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Website