The Lost Kingdom of Bamarre

Summary: Peregrine is everything a Lakti should be: strong, fast, and clever. But despite this, she still doesn’t feel like she is enough, always striving to earn a nod of pleasure from her Lady Mother. Her life is one of training and learning, and the most fundamental truth drilled into Perry is that the Bamarre are weak and cowardly, and are lucky to be the Lakti’s servants. But, when her life is turned upside down by the truth that she herself is Bamarre, Perry must fight not only her people’s prejudice, but her own. As she races to save the Bamarre, she learns that maybe, somehow, she can keep her Lakti heart despite her origins.

My Review: I LOVED this book!!!! Gail Carson Levine brings back so many beloved items from The Two Princesses of Bamarre, such as the tablecloth and the seven league boots. The romance is sweet but clean, and the plot is full of twists and turns. Even though this was written after Two Princesses of Bamarre, it actually takes place before it. The only thing about this book is that I found the ending to be anticlimactic and not very satisfying.

My Takeaway: Overall, I LOVED this book! Themes that parents may want to be aware of are romance, prejudice and oppression of a race, and the mild violence, although the scenes are not graphic.

Romance: Light (leaning towards mild), Openly like each other, mentions kissing, thoughts about kissing a little, a romantic touch such as an embrace and hand-holding, a kiss.

Nudity: None

Language: None, maybe mentions of swearing.

Alcohol/drugs/smoking: None.

Violence: Mild, there are a good bit of fight scenes (fights featuring Ogres, magic, humans, etc.), and although not graphic, there are still a good many battles scattered throughout.

Darkness: Mild, the prejudice against the Bamarre brings a darker element to the book, along with the betrayals Perry experiences when her true ethnicity is found out.

Bad Messages: The oppression and abuse of a people (this message isn’t promoted).

Good Messages: Overcoming prejudice, good vs. evil,

Stars: 5