The Queen Must Die

December 15, 2013
Grades 7-10 Katie Berger-Jones-Berg lives with her aging pop-star mother and finds comfort reading under the bed in their obnoxiously pink and fluffy apartment. After drifting off while reading a book of letters from Queen Victoria's daughters, she awakes under a sofa in Buckingham Palace during Victoria's reign. When Princess Alice discovers her and takes her under her wing, the two new friends set out to learn why she's traveled back in time, how to return her to the twenty-first century, and who is behind the insidious plot to assassinate the queen during the unveiling of Prince Albert's miraculous Crystal Palace. Debut author Quinn jams a lot into her historical fantasy; in addition to the well-researched historical elements, Katie is being pursued by otherworldly figures playing out their political stratagems in Victorian London. Though uneven pacing and a conclusion that raises far more questions than it gives answers occasionally distract from the interesting premise, this is the first in a planned trilogy, and Quinn is likely laying the groundwork for more time-traveling adventures in later installments.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)