Palace of Mirrors

Margaret Peterson Haddix

Feb 2010 · The Palace Chronicles Book 2 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

Cecelia looks like a peasant girl and lives in a village so small that it's not even on the map. But she knows that secretly, she is the true princess, hidden away as a baby to be kept safe from the enemies of the kingdon. A commoner named Desmia was placed on the throne as a decoy. Cecelia has always known that when it was safe, she would be taken out of hiding and returned to her rightful place on the throne.

Then danger finds her in her village, and Cecelia has to act. With the help of her best friend Harper, she decides to take matters into her own hands, relieve Desmia of the the crown, and take up her own rule. But when they venture from their small village to the capital city and into the famed Palace of Mirrors, Harper and Cecelia discover that all is not as it seems, and that they have placed themselves in more danger than ever before.

Ratings and reviews

This was a great book. I got it from the library, just thinking it would be another okay book, but it is one of my favorites! Cecilia is a 14-year-old girl, who is a princess undercover. No one except her nanny and her teacher know the "truth", not even her best friend, Harper. Cecilia tells him, but he doesn't believe it. She soon convinces him that it is true. It is a huge danger that she told him, because there are people out to get her. She and Harper go to the palace pretending to be performers, and tell the "fake" princess that Cecilia is the real princess. She comes across 11 other girls, and each one says that they are the only true princess. Cecilia is confused and doesn't know who is right, and if she really IS the princess of Suala.

I love this author, but I do have to admit, I didn't like this story. I thought it could have been better then it was. There were parts that I did like, but I felt that half way through the story, the author changed her mind how it was going to end. I found that it really didn't need Ella Brown (from Just Ella by Haddix) to show up like it was just a last minute decision. I would probably not choose to re-read this book any time in the near future.

This book is ok, I personally thought it was a little babyish. The book was way too short but it was good. I kept on wanting to turn the page but 297 pages is way too short. That is 2nd or 3rd grade level. Definitely not 5th or above. Haddix's other books are all amazing like Double Identity, but Palace of Mirrors was too small and princessy.

About the author

Margaret Peterson Haddix is the author of many critically and popularly acclaimed YA and middle grade novels, including the Children of Exile series, The Missing series, the Under Their Skin series, and the Shadow Children series. A graduate of Miami University (of Ohio), she worked for several years as a reporter for The Indianapolis News. She also taught at the Danville (Illinois) Area Community College. She lives with her family in Columbus, Ohio. Visit her at HaddixBooks.com.