Coronets and Steel

October 11, 2010
History aficionado and champion fencer Aurelia Kim Murray investigates her taciturn grandmother's European roots and her own identity in Smith's sweeping, feminist Ruritanian romance. Kidnapped by Prince Alec Ysvorod, who mistakes her for his not-much-beloved fiancée, the slightly-too-perfect Kim is thrust into the complicated and potentially deadly politics of a small, haunted kingdom threatened equally by its neighbors as by its scheming ruling families. Smith (Inda) engages readers with humor and rapier-sharp wit, and extensive details from Central European history (right down to a 19th-century method of stamping coins) make the nation of Dobrenica terrifically real. Though readers who prefer lightning-paced books may stumble over long sections of expository conversations, a lively heroine, mysterious ghosts, and a complex and intricate plot always get the action going again.

September 15, 2010

Aurelia Kim Murray, a graduate student descended from a family who fled Austria before World War II, travels to Europe to investigate the mystery of her heritage, sparked by the fevered behest of her beloved and mysteriously ill grandmother. In Vienna, Kim encounters her first "ghost" along with an attractive stranger who seems to follow her and who embroils her in the dangerous politics of a country she never knew existed. In her latest novel, Smith (Inda; Treason's Shore) pits a modern-day woman against the intrigues of a past century. VERDICT Recalling The Count of Monte Cristo and The Prisoner of Zenda in plot and theme, this cross-world fantasy/romance should appeal to YA and adult fans of the genre.

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2010
Smiths modern-day fairy tale, influenced by the current urban-fantasy rage, finds 23-year-old Kim traveling across Europe to learn about her grandmothers mysterious past (Grandma has becomes terribly ill and refuses to speak). Kims questions are much more dangerous than she realizes after she is kidnapped in Budapest. Taking matters into her own hands, she travels to the little-known Eastern European country of Dobrenica; there she not only uses her language and fencing skills but also accepts her ability to see ghosts. With two darkly attractive men (not to mention her grandmothers secret husband) pursuing Kim, the romance plot is nicely woven into the story, both its contemporary and past components, along with plenty of action and adventure. Enough plotlines are left unresolved that at least one sequel must be in the works. Highly recommended for all fantasy and general-fiction collections, as the potential readership is wide, from urban-fantasy readers looking for something lighter but still complex to young women who grew up reading the Princess Diaries series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)