Princess of the Midnight Ball

By Jessica Day George

(Blurb: A tale of twelve princesses doomed to dance until dawn… 

Galen is a young soldier returning from war; Rose is one of twelve princesses condemned to dance each night for the King Under Stone. Together Galen and Rose will search for a way to break the curse that forces the princesses to dance at the midnight balls. All they need is one invisibility cloak, a black wool chain knit with enchanted silver needles, and that most critical ingredient of all—true love—to conquer their foes in the dark halls below. But malevolent forces are working against them above ground as well, and as cruel as the King Under Stone has seemed, his wrath is mere irritation compared to the evil that awaits Galen and Rose in the brighter world above. 

Captivating from start to finish, Jessica Day George’s take on the Grimms’ tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses demonstrates yet again her mastery at spinning something entirely fresh out of a story you thought you knew.)

This is a beautiful fairytale, full of magic and mysteries, love and danger. Unlike many other retellings, this novel is full of sorcery and unbelievable magic that assure us that it's all a fairytale, which is great, as it takes us right back to our childhood! This story is beautifully woven (pun intended ;)) and is great to read when your in the mood for a light-hearted fairytale, that keeps you falling in love with the main characters. 
What I really love about this novel is Rose, the main character and the eldest of the 12 princesses. She's not perfect, we see her getting annoyed with her sisters, blaming Galen for her illness and being rude to the people around her. And Galen is just so sweet! He's quite of an enigma as well! He's an ex-soldier who knits his own socks and such, which, though common in that time, is quite odd to read, at first. But his willingness and determination to save the woman he loves (not to mention her 11 younger sisters), makes his bravery and loveliness shine!! 
This is just the perfect, light novel to read when you want to escape down memory lane to a place and time where monster's lurk just below the surface and where you're knight in shining armour actually wears armour! 
I give this an 8/10! It's so sweet, and you're sure to love it :)