The Royal Treatment

The Royal Treatment
By Lindsey Leavitt
Disney/Hyperion Books, 2011. 264 pgs. Young Adult

Desi Bascomb is still working as a substitute princess, taking their place when they want to jaunt off on vacation or avoid a particular event in their lives. While there are still things that Desi likes about her job--including advancing to the next level of training--she also comes to realize that the company she's working for has its secrets, some of which Desi doesn't like. Also, she messed up on a previous assignments by getting a crush on Prince Karl, and her latest assignment has her crossing paths with him again, although this time she's standing in for Karl's brother's girlfriend. If that's not complicated enough, Desi's realizing there's more to her magical potential than she realized and she's acting in her school play, opposite of her best friend's crush who seems more comfortable with her than with her friend.

This second book in the Princess for Hire series started out a little slow for me, but when I hit the middle and realized how things were going to work out, I couldn't wait to see how they played out. Readers will definitely be satisfied with where this one goes, but the cliffhanger ending will have them hoping Leavitt cranks out the next installment really quickly. This series is a lot of fun and will appeal to many tween and teen girls.

AE