The Goose Girl

Title : The goose girl

Author : Shannon Hale

Citation : Hale, Shannon. The goose girl. New York : Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2003.

The Crown Princess of Kildenree, Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee, spends the first years of her life under the guidance of her aunt to learn to communicate with animals. Developing the skills of animal speech as she grows up, she is never comfortable when speaking with people. Then, Ani is helpless and cannot persuade anyone to assist her when her silver-tongued lady-in-waiting steals her identity and distract control of the guards during Ani's journey in a foreign land, Bayern. She, eventually, acknowledge her own special powers to find her way to her true destiny. This retelling story maintains many similarities to the original tale of Brothers Grimm, including the harsh punishment for treason. Also, similar to Robin McKinley's heroines, this leisurely-paced story is rich, full of eloquent description and beautiful imagery with a complex plot, a large cast of characters and a strong female protagonist. Readers who enjoy getting lost in an enchanted world will be satisfied not only by the conclusion but also by the suspenseful tone, full of danger and surprising twists. These appealing elements make the novel the winner of Jossette Frank Award and of Utah State Book Award.

The Blue Sword

Title : The blue sword

Author : Robin McKinley

Citation : McKinley, Robin. The blue sword. New York : Greenwillow Books, c1982.

An orphan girl, Harry Crewe, leaves her Homeland to live in a desert country called Damar, after the dead of her father. Damar is a bleak landscape where Homelanders and the secretive magical Hillfolk share the area that once part of the great kingdom. She then gets kidnapped by Corlath, the Hillfolk King, who takes her deep into the desert. Without knowing the Hillfolk language, she is wondering why she has been chosen by Corlath who does know that she is to be trained in the arts of war. Will she be ready to accept her true destiny's that of the heir to the Blue Sword, Gonturan?  There had no woman who can handle and use weapons as skillful as the Lady Aerin that gone into battle with the North in the Hill-King's army. The Blue Sword is the first installment of the Damar series. A world-building storyline, fast-paced and strong sense of place mix together with a descriptive and engaging style have made this book of New York Times bestseller.  

Other book in the Damar Series : The hero and the crown (1984)

The Third Eye

Title : The third eye

Author : Mahtab Narsimhan

Citation : Narsimhan, Mahtab. The third eye. Toronto : Dundurn Group, c2007.

For Tara and her brother, a nightmare is defined by the year their mother and grandfather fled the village of Morni in the middle of the night. Having a new stepmother who is cruel and deceptive makes her wanting to protect her brother, especially when men of the village have been disappearing because the village is lacking healers. Then, a mysterious man with a third eye possessing an odd power, Zarku, appears in Morni and everybody is fascinated by his magic, except Tara. She see through his evil disguise. Without nothing but her own courage and wit, can she find her missing mother and grandfather who is the true healer, in time to save her village? This story is such an interesting combination of elements of classic fairy tales, such as Hansel and Gretel with Indian mythology. Its original and entertaining couple with tone of strong sense of place will make readers enjoy the lushly described Indian setting as well as some cultural references such as Hindu Gods. The novel opens with a compelling scene that should captive the heart of fantasy fans. For avid readers, the novel is well worth the extra effort to try it. With its unique setting and beautiful prose, readers can't say no to the next book.

Other book in the Tara Trilogy: The silver anklet (2009), The deadly conch (2011)

Sabriel

Title : Sabriel

Author : Garth Nix

Citation : Nix, Garth. Sabriel. New York : HarperCollins, c1995.

This is an Australian fiction about Sabriel, a young girl sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre to be a necromancer, a person who fight the dead who seek to return to life.   She has little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But then when her father, Abhorsen, goes missing, she must enter the kingdom to save him. Accompanied by Mogget, a raging natural force contained in the form of a cat, and Touchstone, a young Charter Mage long imprisoned by magic, every step of the way bring them closer to the battle of life and death. This first instalment of the Abhorsen trilogy incorporates the virility and compassionate love of a young girl making her a sympathetic heroine. With a rich, complex, world-building and fast-paced, the novel makes it hard to put down. Although it is bleak, readers who enjoy the intricate tales of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials, will find this trilogy is also appealing.

Other book in the Abhorsen Trilogy: Lirael, daughter of the Clayr (2001); Abhorsen (2003)

Zahrah the Windseeker

Title : Zahrah the windseeker

Author : Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu

Citation : Okorafor-Mbachu, Nnedi. Zahrah the windseeker. Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 2005.

Born with dadalocks-dreadlocks containing living vines, Zahrah does not know that she is believed to have special powers. She lives like a normal girl in the northern Ooni Kingdom as she enjoys everything that nature provides. Even she grows her own flora computer and has mirrors sewn onto her cloths. Being different to other people makes her only have one best friend, Dari, who wants to explore the Forbidden Greeny Jungle and discover its dark and prohibited mysteries. Together, they enter the jungle that is located on the boundary of the kingdom to explore her powers. Then Zahrah has to undertake a dangerous quest alone to seek the remedy for Dari after he is bitten by a war snake and falls into a deep sleep.  In the nature of exotic creatures, a magical forest, and children with superhuman abilities, she must find the courage to defeat her fear using her dada wisdom. The world building storyline that is interesting and the evocative setting will draw experienced fantasy readers to enjoy this amazingly written story with full ideas of friendship, self-discovery and following own heart.

Melting Stones

Title : Melting stones

Author : Tamora Pierce

Citation : Pierce, Tamora. Melting stones. New York : Scholastic, 2008.

A call for help to Winding Circle temple has been sent by people on one of the islands south of Emelan. Their concern is their plants, trees and animals that live around are mysteriously dying. A prickly green mage Rosethorn and young stone mage trainee Evvy respond to the call and strive to find the problem that has something to do with a long-dormant volcano. With the help of Luvo, the living stone heart of a mountain, Evvy, then attempts to do whatever it takes to avoid the catastrophic destruction. Will they be able to evacuate the island in time or will they try to shift a volcano? From the author of the Trickster series, Pierce engage the intricate conversational and dialogue-rich writing style and the taste of suspenseful and fast-paced. The world-building storyline seems to be her uniqueness that makes this book hard to put down.