** For anyone who hasn't yet picked up any of the Crisanta Knight books, the first book in the series (called Protagonist Bound, which I have also reviewed here) is about a girl called Crisanta Knight, daughter of the infamous Cinderella. She is destined to become a new princess, who should be completely complacent, submissive and above all, extremely princess-like. This is what she gets taught at her fairytale-finishing school Lady Agnue's, and she absolutely despises it, because she believes she is more than just a proper royal. With her combat boots and her magical wand, Cristanta ventures out to change her destiny which the mystical Author has picked out for her and shows that women should take charge of their own lives with a passion, feistiness and a burning fire that is untameable. **
I think one of the things I appreciate most about this series is just how relatable and down-to-Earth (or down-to-Book) Crisanta is as a character. She is definitely not one of those overused "perfect" female protagonists who is flawless in every way. No, Crisanta is flawed and human through and through. She brings such a rawness and honest perspective as a main character and I just absolutely love it. As a reader, you are intimately experiencing the story and narrative through the main character's perspective and their respective character traits. You are essentially becoming the character for the period of time you are reading. And you know what? If you don't have a flawed character, or at least a character that makes human mistakes from time to time, there is zero room for character development or inner growth to experience as a reader. Crisanta not only has her flaws and weaknesses, but book by book, she is learning from them, growing from them, expelling out the bad and empowering the good. And I feel like as a reader, one definitely experiences that with her. I have learned so much about self-acceptance, being vulnerable, letting others help me, friendship, accepting closure and forgiveness just from reading these four books.
What I also really respect about this series is its emphasis on friendship. With so many young adult books out there with more of a heavy focus on romance, crushes and boyfriends than friendship, it's hard to find a good book that discovers the multi-facetted aspects of deep and long-lasting friendship. The Crisanta Knight series is very rich in this aspect, which is especially manifested in the relationship between Crisanta and Daniel. What I appreciate most about this is how honest Crisanta and Daniel are with one another and how vulnerable they allow themselves to become. I've noticed that the following scenario happens more often than not in books or on TV: two people have relationship issues, they then proceed to barely talk with one another and then when they do open up to one another, it's a very superficial process, the issue is solved without any deep self-reflection in a short period of time with little to no honesty. This is where Crisanta Knight diverts in its approach to relationships and problem-solving. There is a deep, meaningful reflection that takes place (especially in Crisanta's mind) when characters make mistakes and show their flawed human side. There is a deep, intense honesty when two characters confront one another about complications in their relationship. And best of all, we as readers can learn so much from this and grow along with them.
* SPOILERS FROM HERE *
Moreover, the plot itself is filled with so much adventure and fun that this makes most chapters unputdownable as Crisanta must use her life-giving powers to fend off evil antagonists in their quest to finding Paige Tomkins. Witches, evil scarecrows, flying monkeys, Shadow Guardians and the antagonists all pose a threat to our protagonists' quest in stopping Arian and his minions in Book-domination. My personal favorite were by far the scarecrows, bringing in an excellent balance between super creepy and comical. What I also found incredibly brilliant was how the fairytale realms and the "real" world such as Earth are being interconnected, for instance in bringing in writers and directors who travel through wormholes. This just adds an extra touch of realness to an otherwise magical environment.
What was really awesome was seeing Crisanta's home castle for the first time. Crisanta's royal status is an important part of her being, but it's in this book where we finally get to see that reality on a fuller scope when we follow her to Midveil. It's one thing to know that Crisanta is the daughter of Cinderella, but it's a whole other thing to actually see the famous Cinderella, their riches and the royal life. I also felt that the chapters at Crisanta's home added a few moments where the plot kind of slowed down amid all of the fast-paced, action-packed chapters in the novel. I would probably have to say that the big fight which ended the short-lived moment of peace in Midveil, where Mauvrey attacks and Alex is revealed to be traitor was definitely my favorite part of this book.
Speaking of Alex...my heart broke into a million tiny pieces when I found out about Alex's betrayal. I definitely did not see that coming and just thinking about it still makes me incredibly sad. In retrospect, I should have been able to discern the telltale signs of him turning over the The Dark Side but it was still super surprising so hats off to Geanna for that plot twist. While Alex's betrayal is definitely one of the saddest moments in this series, it does tell us a very important truth about our fairytale world: you choose whether you are good or bad; there is no being "born" into being a protagonist or antagonist such is the case with most fairytales. I really appreciate this truth on the balance of good vs. evil in Book. In most typical fairytale stories, you are either good or bad, there's no changing who you are on the inside. However, the Crisanta Knight books really capture the startling truth that actually we are all in control of our decisions and its ultimately our choices which make us "good" or "evil". This is a very refreshing spin on a stereotypical fairytale mindset and I really like it.
Also, I squealed so hard when it was revealed that there was a cure to Pure Magic Disease! I really hope that in the next books, Crisanta manages to make that a reality for herself (as well as finally saving the entire realm and all that comes with being a badass princess hero).
While I don't yet have any concrete information on when the fifth book will be released or what it even will be called, I do have a lot of things I am dying to see in the fifth book.
~ What I want in Book Five ~
- For Crisanta and SJ to finally have made up for real this time and for them to continue being friends
- To see Crisanta and Daniel's relationship bloom
- For Jason to NOT die
- For Alex to turn good again (I know it probably won't happen but a girl can hope!)
- Crisanta getting her Pure Magic Disease cured
- Jason and Blue finally getting together
- Crisanta and Charming going out on a date (what?! I know we're all kinda hoping for it heehee)
- That they get Excalibur and stop Arian from getting to Paige first
- To finally know what's going to happen with Natalie Poole and the Eternity Gate
- For Crisanta to win her first official Twenty-Three Skidd game being on the team
- To see Midveil's castle being rebuilt, with Crisanta's parents safe
- For Alex to finally realize he's being manipulated by Mauvrey
- Mauvrey getting bitch slapped
So overall, I absolutely loved this book and it definitely deserves a spot as one of my favorite books of all time. I can't wait for the next book to be released and I hope that we'll get some information about that sometime soon!
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