- Princeton, Fantasy, Gargoyle’s and a secret test – sounded good to me =)
- Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
- The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
Summary from GoodReads:
What Lily Carter wants most in the world is to attend Princeton University just like her grandfather. When she finally visits the campus, Grandpa surprises her; She has been selected to take the top-secret Legacy Test. Passing means automatic acceptance to Princeton. Sweet! Lily’s test is to find the Ivy Key. But what is she looking for? Where does she start? As she searches, Lily is joined by Tye, a cute college boy with orange and black hair who says he’s her guard. That’s weird. But things get seriously strange when a gargoyle talks to her. He tells her that there are two Princetons; the ordinary one and a magical one; and the Key opens the gate between them. But there are more secrets that surround Lily. Worse secrets.PWhen Lily enters the magical Princeton, she uncovers old betrayals and new dangers, and a chance at her dream becomes a fight for her life. Soon Lily is caught in a power struggle between two worlds, with her family at its center. In a place where Knights slay monsters, boys are were-tigers, and dragons might be out for blood, Lily will need all of her ingenuity and courage; and a little magic; to unite the worlds and unlock the secrets of her past and her future.
My Review:
I didn’t cave to the pressure of The Ivy or any of the other gossipy-type books dealing with ivy league schools, but I couldn’t resist the fantasy element of Enchanted Ivy. I’m glad as well, because this was an incredibly fun book with a lot of fun information filling its pages.
Sarah Beth Durst went to Princeton and the cover indicates that she spent some time there wondering what the gargoyles would say if they could talk…and so a story woven around the history and architecture of Princeton was born.
Lily has a mother who is fading away mentally and a grandfather who is an alumnus of Princeton. Lily wants more than anything to attend Princeton, but must first finish high school to do so. While there are some strange resolutions to the book with regard to the age of Lily, the story itself is fun, fast-paced, filled with magic and lore.
Enchanted Ivy is a satisfying fantasy book and one I’ll be recommending to the teenage girls in my life. It’s fun to read about college, even more fun to read about the Ivy Leagues and when you toss magic and fantasy into the mix – well, it just can’t get better than that.
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