The Golden Princess and the Moon

Book excerpt: The Golden Princess and the Moon is a classic retelling of "Sleeping Beauty," steeped in legend and magic. The beautiful but spoiled Princess Rosamund (Rosa for short) has squandered the seven faerie gifts given her on her christening day. She must reclaim these gifts in order to face a terrible curse cast long before her birth. Prince Erik grew up hearing stories of a sleeping princess, but all does not end happily when he wakes her. For what happens when a princess of legend awakens in a world that fears all to do with the old kingdom and Faerie? Intertwined in both Rosa's and Erik's lives is the figure of the Golden King and the ancient curse that separated him from his faerie bride. The luminous world evoked by Anna Maria Mendell in this, her first full-length work, is unforgettable, and will delight readers of all ages. "A deeply felt tale of faery, richly mixing elements from the brothers Grimm, George MacDonald, and even (did I sense at times?) The Princess Bride. Read, and enjoy "--MICHAEL WARD, author of Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis "Anna Maria Mendell's debut novel is a masterly re-telling of the Sleeping Beauty story. At a time when shallow agendas dominate the revival of the fairytale genre, she sets a fresh narrative standard: one drawing equally from modern depth psychology and traditional symbolism. The author conjures a rich, imaginative landscape peopled with believable characters, as she works toward the final eucatastrophe. A 'joyous turn' not easily achieved: and this is perhaps the chief lesson of Mendell's gripping excursion into the realm of faerie."--LEONIE CALDECOTT, co-editor of Second Spring and director of the Centre for Faith & Culture "With passages of striking beauty, this splendid re-telling of the fairy tale 'Sleeping Beauty' touches evocatively on timeless human themes and achieves a poignant depth reminiscent of the work of George MacDonald."--MARK SEBANC, co-author of the "Legacy of the Stone Harp" series Anna Maria Mendell grew up climbing trees in the woods of New England. She studied Literature at the Thomas More College of Liberal Arts and received her Master of Studies in English from Oxford University. While she lived abroad, she traveled far and wide and explored crumbling ruins and castles, secret caverns, and hushed forests--all these places made their way into the scribbles of her notebook."