Book Title: The Pretender
Author: Katie Ward
Series: None (Standalone)
Publication Date: September 2018
Genres: Fantasy, Retelling, Young Adult
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
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In rural France, two babies are born just two hours apart but to two very different lives. Isabella is born as a Princess into a life of opulence and love while Sophia is born into a life of poverty and abuse at the hands of her father. ‘The Pretender’ follows the journey of Isabella and Sophia as their paths cross and after discovering how alike they look, they decide to switch places with each other. Sophia is seeking sanctuary from her abusive home while Isabella is seeking freedom from the tightening burden of her Royal title.‘The Pretender’ is a story of friendship, love and the strange power of destiny.
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review as part of the blog tour hosted by YA Bound Book Tours.
MY THOUGHTS
*Just to let you know, this book touched up on themes of abuse.*
This is such a heartwarming read that it got me turning the pages constantly! With a more young adult twist on the classic The Prince and the Pauper, this book is absolutely charming.
The story started off interestingly with the horrific childhood of Sophia. I sympathize for her deeply as the abuse she put up with was entirely too much, especially for a child at such a young age. Yet, despite that, she shouldered on and continued to be the kind person that she is, so I admire her for that.
On the other hand, there’s Princess Isabella, privileged with a royal title yet shackled by the restraints that it holds, all she wants is to experience life unfettered. Her strong personality is what I love most about her. She is willing to take huge risks just to pursue the direction she set her heart into.
I really enjoyed reading The Pretender as I have a soft spot for royalty. This one also gives profound life realizations that may or may not have dawned on you before. I love that reading this book doesn’t just entail leisure but it provides an essential takeaway to its readers as well.
Overall, I recommend you try this one out, especially if you’re a fan of retellings!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Katie Ward always knew that she wanted to write for a living. After completing a degree in Journalism at theUniversity for the Creative Arts in Farnham, she moved to Dublin. While there, she had a short story publishedin an anthology titled Do the WriteThing which was part of a competition being run by Irish TV show Seoigeand O’Shea. This story was originally written when Katie was 14 after she was inspired by an article in herfavourite teen magazine. The anthology reached the Irish Bestsellers List. Katie was also shortlisted for acompetition judged by Man Booker Prize-winning author Roddy Doyle a few months later.The Pretender is her first Young Adult novel.
GIVEAWAY
Mind of Luxe 