Rating: 5
Summary: The first book- The Goose Girl- is based off of the fairy tale also called, The Goose Girl. It's from the point of view of Crown Princess Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee, or Isi. Her mother has sent her away from her rightful throne to marry a prince she has never met. On the road, her lady in waiting, and her guards attempt to kill her and the guards loyal to Anidori. She has no choice but to run away, and hide as a commoner- more accurately, a goose girl. As a goose girl, named Isi, she befriends many people, and a young man, who she falls in love with. But then she discovers that her lady in waiting is planning to start a war between the Anidori's kigndom and the new kingdom- Bayern. Isi realizes she has to reveal herself and stop her.
This is what begins the events of the rest of the series. Enna Burning is from the point of view of Enna, and begins a year after the events of The Goose Girl. Bayern has just entered war with a neighboring kingdom, and through a series of unfortunate events Enna realizes that the kingdom can't win the war without her. She goes on secret missions to invade the enemy camp, but she makes a mistake and is captured- right after she finds out she's dying.
River Secrets is from the point of view of Razo. He, and others, need to go down to the neighboring kingdom, and make negotiations, but there's trouble in the middle of it. People are being burned alive and dying at random times, and Razo has his own suspicions about who is the one doing the killings. But that would mean betraying a friend.
Forest Born is from the point of view of Rinna- Razo's little sister. She has been stuck in the forest her whole life, but recently she has felt antsy, and wants to go live in the city with her brother. Rinna knows there is a terrible secret pricking at the back of her mind, but she can't remember what it is.
Sexual content: There's a romance in every single one of these books, but the farthest it goes is passionate and descriptive kissing. In Enna Burning someone tries to take advantage of her while she's captured, but he doesn't succeed beyond threatening her. In River Secrets, Razo mentions looking at a girls ankles in fascination. But Forest Born is the one where there is a passionate, deeply descriptive, and seductive kiss.
Magic: Some of these characters have learned to talk to nature. It's odd, and hard to explain, but basically some of them learn to talk to animals, and others can control water, trees, fire, and air. There's another one called people-speaking. This is where the person knows exactly the right thing to say to get what they want, or persuade the other party of something. It's stated in the books that if someone has only one of these powers, then it will eat them up, and most of the time it kills them, so they have to learn a second speaking gift.
Morals: First of all, Isi goes through some tremendous character development in these books. She starts out as a timid, meek girl, and ends as a wise, serene young woman who knows herself and her worth. Rinna has really similar character development also. She starts out as a timid girl, who copies others behaviours, and puts on masks because she's to scared. By the time her book is over, she is a woman who knows who she is, and her talents, and knows how to use them.
Girls, 13-14 years old, fantasy
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