By: Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer
Oliver is Prince Charming. He knows the moves he has to make, he knows he will end up with the princess, he knows he has the fairy tale ‘Happily Ever After’. The problem for Oliver is that he is sick of playing a role, he really feels that there must be more for him than the part he is forced to play, again and again.
Delilah loves books, school not so much but books definitely. In fact she is rather obsessed with one book in particular, she has read it and re-read it so many times she knows it off by heart. The problem is it is a fairy tale for children. Then one day she notices something different and finds out there is so much more going on in the book than she could ever have guessed. The Prince and the Loner are desperate to meet for real but how is this even possible when they come from such vastly different worlds.
For what this book is it is an appealing read. It is a twist on a fairytale complete with it’s own happily ever after. Delilah is a young teenager who is not popular and somehow manages to do things that only make her more unpopular. She lives with her mother and her dad is out of the picture, she has a best friend whom she isolates herself from as she becomes more and more obsessed with the book. Oliver is a prince who just wants to be a boy and experience life.
This is very different to Jodi Picoult’s other work which often deals with much deeper subjects. I think if you are an adult reading this you may be in for quite a surprise as it is very definitely a young adult title. The story itself is broken into three parts; the fairy tale as it appears in the book within the book, and chapters from both Oliver’s and Delilah’s perspectives, all of which are presented in different colours.
The story itself touches on issues of isolation and abandonment but the main focus is the romance and how will these two ever get together. Being co-written by her daughter may explain the style of writing which I’m not sure will appeal to older teenagers. For me it felt very geared towards 12/13 year olds. If you know a preteen or young teen who likes this style of story then this book is worth checking out.
Published: 01 July 2012
Format: Paperback 368 pages
Categories: Fiction, Young Adult, Relationships, Fairy Tales
ISBN 13: 9781743310922
Purchase: here or use Booktopia link on the side of the page
TheKylieVerse 
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