As the mother of a six-year-old girl who recoils, hissing, from anything pink and who would be hard pushed to tell you what a hairbrush is, let alone if she owns one, I am not really in the market for books about sugar and spice and all of that. So when I read a manuscript about four princesses who know ninja moves and use them to rescue cool animals like lions and tigers, I could see the target readership very clearly indeed. Out of the window, in fact, doing cartwheels in the garden surrounded by a vast collection of stuffed cheetahs.
That was a wee while ago and now – today! – the first in the Rescue Princesses series by Paula Harrison is out! (And if you go into WHSmiths this month, you’ll find they have the second one there as well.)
These are great, fast-moving tales of action and adventure in which four intrepid young ladies pit their wits against all sorts of ne’er-do-wells to save animals in peril everywhere. They have lovely dresses and sparkly tiaras, which they often swap for ninja gear, and magic rings that help them communicate with each other and keep their adventures top secret. Especially when their mums think they’re busy practising how to curtsey or make regal table arrangements.
And Paula writes royally lovely prose!
Just then a terrible noise came out of the night.
“That was a distress call!” said Clarabel. “The sound of an animal in trouble.”
“It came from out there in the forest,” added Jaminta, shining her emerald bracelet into the gloom.
“Let’s go!” said Lulu.
The girls climbed quickly back down the ladder and ran across the garden. They passed through the castle gates in a whirl of coloured dresses and rushed on into the forest beyond.
Thanks, Paula, for the first in a fantastic series of books, and happy publication day!
