More than a Princess is a fun adventure to read. I had to reread the beginning of the book a few times because the author was creating the world that these characters lived in and at times I was a little confused and the reading was tedious. After feeling more comfortable with that portion I really enjoyed the story. Princess Aislin and the other characters were developed really well. I enjoyed reading about Aislin's journey to protect the people she loves, while embracing her inner strength, beauty, and honesty. This story is a fun and interesting read and I look forward to reading more books this in this series.

*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

E.D Baker’s "More Than A Princess" is a book of magic, power, love and friendship. A fun-filled fantasy of friendly characters and ones you’re sure to despise. "More Than A Princess" is a book you’re sure to read again and again! I highly recommend this book!

I wasn't sure what to expect, but I enjoyed reading this. An interesting story with fun characters. Well written.

A lovely story about a young princess who gives up her home by leaving her kingdom to go into the world of humans. Humans have finally made it through the pass and into the kingdom, a horror that had recently been only play acting among the young fairies, pedrasi, and other creatures. Aslin knows that if the humans stay, they may discover too much. She goes with them into the world of humans where she discovers that although some humans are horrible people, not all of them are evil. Uncovering a plot she never expected and discovering things she didn't know about her own people along the way, this is an adventure with twists and turns, magic and friendship, and anticipation at what will come in the next book.

I have loved E. D. Baker’s novels ever since I was in Middle School reading The Frog Princess. More than a Princess did not disappoint! It was fun and adventurous! I adored Aislin. She was strong, determined, and clever! I hope that there will be more of Aislin’s adventures! I recommend this for fans of Gail Carson Levine, Shannon Hale, and Jesica Day George!

Another great story from E.D. Baker for young girls! Strong, self-reliant, problem-solving female protagonists are Baker's specialty. I love the underlying themes of bullying, true friendship, love and family, and being true to yourself. I look forward to more of Aislin's adventures in book two!

More Than a Princess is the first book in a new series by E.D. Baker. Aislin of Eliasind is more than just a princess, she's half-fairy and half-pedrasi, with magical gifts from each side of her heritage! One day, as Aislin is venturing through the woods, she is alarmed to hear a band of humans coming through. How did they get past the guarded magical passageway that leads to her hidden kingdom? Mistaken for a human herself, Aislin is captured, and soon realizes she's in even bigger trouble. She is being used as a pawn to help the king of this nearby kingdom, Morrain, find a secret passageway to the warring land of Scarmander so that he can capture his enemies by surprise. Aislin must find a way to break free, while also minding the beautiful human princess and ladies-in-waiting she now shares a castle with, who are all too ready to point out her differences. Thankfully, Aislin's inner strength goes beyond her magical qualities. And with a few loyal friends by her side, she's ready to stand up for herself and her kingdom once and for all.

More Than a Princess is a good start to a new series, with a few secondary characters that I think I might have seen mentioned in previous series by Baker- but not many familiar locations or characters so new comers will not feel left out or lost. Aislin is a smart and independent princess that feels less than or other than the majority of her family because her skills are different than theirs. I like that she is willing to take risks to protect others, but at the same time does not blindly make dangerous choices without forethought. This book introduces a new cast of secondary characters that will be important in Aislin's journey as it continues through the series, and I think the most important are very well fleshed out and made complex and interesting in their own right. I am a little over the hints for a future romantic relationship. I think it is more important for the middle grade set to see valuable friendships work regardless of gender, and not go right for the love match every time a boy and girl work together for a common goal. It is well done here, subtle with a will they/ wont they kind of feel- but I just want them to be a team without that feeling like a couple. It might not go that route- but I get the feeling that it will here. I enjoyed the journey and I think there were some great twists in the story and some significant danger and secrets conquered. There is nothing in the book that I could point to that made me unhappy, Baker did exactly what I have come to expect with their middle grade fantasy, however I still felt rather meh about the whole thing. Maybe it is just because I read it shortly after finishing the latest entry in the Frog Princess series, but I did not love it as much as I had hoped.

More Than a Princess is a book that fans of Baker will want to pick up, as it follows the themes and feel of what I have seen from them thus far. It did not feel as fresh and new to me as some of the earlier books, but I think this was more because of how soon I read it after another of their books rather than because of anything lacking or wrong with the book itself.

You are going to love Aislin. She can do some things fairies can do, some things Pedrasi can do and she has unique gifts all her own. One of my favorites was her ability to sing and put ogres to sleep. In her home kingdom, Eliasind, a multitude of creatures dwell in harmony. When Aislin discovers a hunting party of humans in their woods she diligently works to protect her kingdom -- even going so far as to allow that royal hunting party "rescue" her in order to divert them from hurting those she loves. Throughout her faithful fairy companion (Poppy) and her living doll (Twinket) work with her to make things right. There is no doubt -- this princess does not need to be rescued; she will do the hard work herself to save her world.

Thank you to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for a digital ARC of this delightful new fairy tale.

Ugh E.D. Baker is a true middle grade queen.

I LOVED THIS. I have been a fan of E.d. bakers writing since I was a young teen and I always know I can count on her to write a fun fantasy that makes my heart happy.
This book is about a girl named Aislin whose half padrasi and half fairy, she then gets kipnapped and is thrown between two warring kingdoms. I cannot say how much I enjoyed this main character. she was strong, smart, independent, and did whatever she could to keep her family and friends safe. The plot wasn't out of this world, but it's a fantasy middle grade so it was good for the age/genre. Now onto my big thoughts. They were many fatphobic comments. Our main character is described as "plump", which was a shock as the girl on the cover doesn't show that. Throughout most of the book she is ridiculed for her size and look. This all comes as a surprise to her because she had always been raised to just think of herself as NOTHING IS WRONG WITH HER BODY. There are several nasty comments about how she needs to wear certain clothes to look thinner, or certain colors and more things along those lines. BUT HERE'S THE KICKER Y'ALL. THE REASON THIS WASN'T PROBLEMATIC WAS BECAUSE THE COMMENTS WERE EXCLUSIVELY MADE BY MEAN/EVIL CHARACTERS. When other good characters heard these comments being made they called out the people for saying them and continued to tell Aislin that she's fine and beautiful the way she is. IT'S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE Y'ALL. It's not unrealistic for fatphobic comments to come up because they happen. But they shouldn't be being said by "good" characters. Certainly not by protagonists without the behavior being called out. All that being said, I loved how it ended up being and it was just such a lovely read.

I'm a sucker for stories with gutsy female lead characters who understand right from wrong, the necessity of hard work, and that personal honor is always important. The parent in me loved the emphasis on manners, kindness, and courage of convictions but I'd recommend it to elementary age kids for the fast-paced plot, well-defined fantasy world, action/adventure, and the hope for future books.

What can one girl do against an invasion?

In More than a Princess by E. D. Baker, Aislin is a half-fairy, half-pedrasi princess who finds herself confronted with a human king and his soldiers on what should have been a quiet outing picking mushrooms in the peaceful meadows and woods of her parents’ kingdom. But somehow humans have gotten past the Magic Gate and entered their sheltered kingdom… humans who kill, humans who hate pedrasi, fairies, and all the other magical people who dwell in Eliasind. Aislin uses all her skill to delay the king, who seems dishonest and unkind, on his way to her family’s castle. But that’s all she can do, is delay them and hope that is enough to thwart the intruding king’s plans. Despite all she can do, Aislan and her best friends, Poppy, a fairy, and Twinket, a living magical doll, must journey into the realm of the humans and what they discover is nothing they could have forseen.

This is a fun read about a strong female character, Aislin, who never hesitates to jump into trouble to save friends, family, or her kingdom. She’s got some tremendous power and so far hasn’t really shown any weaknesses. I think girls especially will enjoy reading about a character that has no trouble getting in and out of trouble, has the courage to back her convictions, and who values her best friends. While I wish Aislin had a weakness or two to make things more real, I have a suspicion some of that is coming up in the next book. While I’ve read a lot of E. D. Baker’s books, it’s been a while, plus they’re for a younger audience, so I’m sure that plays into the complexity of the characters.

The character-building is fun and there are so many characters to love. The world-building is immersive although not as deep as it would be for a book written for older children. I’m waiting to see where some of the storylines go in the next book; there are many exciting possibilities!

Highly recommended for those who love fantasy, strong princesses, and fun books to read with (or without) children.

I received this book as an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) from the publisher through NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

I hadn’t read any of E.D. Baker’s work before, though I have several of her books at work, and have a handful of students every year that will read everything I have. This book was very readable, and reminded me very much in tone of Ella Enchanted - a sprinkling of fairy tale with a good helping of adventure and friendship. I’ll be recommending this to my older elementary students, especially those that are looking to expand beyond some of the shorter fairy/magic books they’ve already read.