The witches, in addition to the usual curses and spells, project fear and despair, not unlike a Dementor attack. The witches are pretty terrifying, and the book opens with our heroine encountering a witch. SPOILER ALERT: Things you might want to know before suggesting this to your kid Violence and Scary Stuff It definitely seems to be setting up a series as the Cadets proceed through the Academy and get drawn into the war. It’s an interesting setting with some interesting fantasy politics thrown in. Of course she turns out to be more than anyone expects. Since she can’t remember her name, she’s listed as Cadet Eleven, which her new friends shorten to Evie. There’s much doubt about whether those of lowly blood can hack it, and it’s assumed that our heroine is one of those people. Because the witches have started invading small towns and a full scale war is brewing, the Academy decides to admit anyone who wants to try.

This fairly brutal and competitive boot camp is intended to weed out those who lack the courage and compassion to face a witch. Princesses must have courage and compassion-these are the weapons they have against the fear that witches instill. I couldn’t figure out why I should care about what happens to this prickly silent girl who is paralyzed by fear and won’t share anything about herself. Since the book is told from her point of view, that’s kind of off-putting at first. She does have a memory curse that causes some amnesia, but on top of that she refuses to share some aspects of her past, even with the reader. She only knows that she needs to get there.

Our heroine doesn’t really remember where she’s from or why she’s headed to the Academy. Why do we know their stories? Because fairies are the keepers of history (FAIRYtales. It’s a world where Grimm’s fairytales are true, and the famous characters are all graduates of the Academy. You just have to accept the terms princess and knight-they’re titles conferred upon completion of the course ( But they’re not parallel terms! you might yell if you’re me. Pennyroyal Academy is a story of a young girl who joins a military academy where girls study to become princesses who can fight witches while boys study to become knights who can fight dragons.

Pennyroyal academy books