HOW RORY THORNE DESTROYED THE MULTIVERSE

Ten generations after Sleeping Beauty was woken by her prince, a new princess is born to the (now interplanetary) kingdom of Thorne.

That Rory Thorne is born a girl comes as a great surprise to her family, who haven’t seen a firstborn daughter since that princess of legend. According to old homeworld tradition, a firstborn princess must have a naming ceremony, and the 13 fairies must be invited to give the baby their magical gifts. The tradition is so old everyone assumes the fairy invitations are a symbol, a nod to the legend, but then the fairies actually show up. Eleven of the fairies give Rory gifts like a talent for harp playing and a pretty face: gifts that seem frivolous until you consider that women are primarily expected to please other people, and a princess who can’t be pleasing will have a rough go of it. In that light, the 13th fairy’s gift—that Rory will “find no comfort in illusion or platitude, and [will] know truth when [she hears] it, no matter how well concealed by flattery, custom, or mendacity”—truly is a curse. Luckily, the 12th fairy hadn’t yet bestowed her gift when the 13th made her dramatic appearance, and so she grants Rory courage. As Rory grows up among scheming politicians, princes who aren’t what they seem, and a plot to overthrow the monarchy, she finds herself needing her curse and her courage in equal measure. With this book billed as the first of a duology, readers will be clamoring for the second installment before Chapter 1 is over. Told with just enough editorializing from a Dickensian narrator, this story delights from cover to cover. The political intrigue never fails to surprise, each character is layered and compelling, and there’s a perfect balance between science-fiction action and fairy-tale fantasy.

Do not, under any circumstances, miss out on this.