The Viola Girl

Counterfeit Princess Series, Book 2

By: Sherri Schoenborn Murray

Narrated by: Danielle Winter

She must learn to cook or face the wrath of 12 hungry giants.

Without her father's permission, Princess Wren begins a journey to Yonder to see Alia, her older sister, and to say the goodbye that was never said.

Alone, and only 15, her plans go awry when she ends up in Gruel Kitchen where she must cook for 12 giants. In this pit of despair, will her gift for music save her?

Will she be able to escape and see her sister one last time?

The Viola Girl is the second book in the enchanting Counterfeit Princess Christian YA fantasy series. If you like wholesome fairytales, riches-to-rags stories, and lessons of love and faith, then you'll adore Sherri Schoenborn Murray's charming novel.

©2016 Sherri Schoenborn Murray (P)2017 Sherri Schoenborn Murray

The ending

I loved the whole story I once listened to it in my car with my mother but I forgot the last part so I listened to it again:)

simply lovely

What a refreshingly beautifully written story. So pure hearted that it brought tears to my eyes. If you are looking for a clean romance that has pure motives and a touch of sci fi & a lot of adventure, look no more. Great Great Great read.

Wonderful!

I really enjoyed this story. The writing was fantastic, and the narration was incredible. I thought the narrator was easy to listen to and did a great job differentiating between characters. The growth of Wren through the story, and her faith, which remained strong although tested, was neat to follow.

Great adventure

Beautiful and exciting adventure with plenty to keep you going. I very much enjoyed this story

Added to my list of favorite romances

I was under the spell of this Christian fairytale, a sequel to Sherri Schoenborn Murray's The Piano Girl (also an excellent story). The story follows Princess Wren, the little sister left behind when sibling Princess Alia (from book one) is forced to disguise herself as a peasant on her long journey to the land of her future husband. Although readers of The Piano Girl know Princess Alia's fate, Wren doesn't understand and feels that her father King Frances betrayed their family by sending her beloved sister away. What follows is Wren's attempts to see Alia one last time before her father the king arranges a marriage for her too.

I don't want to give any of the plot away, but I loved every minute of the story, from Wren's scheming to her plans going awry, as plans do when you don't let God guide your decisions.

This is a Christian romance, so there is a love story. And what a story. I'm not going to compare the plot or style to other books I've read, but the love between these two characters reminded me of the love between Moray and Sophia in Susanna Kearsley's The Winter Sea, the love between Marius and Cosette in Victor Hugo's Les Miserables, and the love between Silas and Eden in Laura Frantz's Love's Reckoning. Sigh.

Like The Piano Girl, this book has giants and folklore and old hags. If you enjoyed reading about Princess Alia's adventures, you'll enjoy reading about Wren's. Wren is smart but headstrong and angry. As Princess Alia learned empathy and selflessness in The Piano Girl, Princess Wren learns forgiveness and joyfulness in The Viola Girl. In their respective stories, each princess learns to trust God and ask for his aid in difficult times during their misadventures.

I think you can enjoy this book by itself since Wren herself recalls important moments from the previous story. However, I would highly suggest you get both books because they are not to be missed.

The narrator Danielle Winter was perfect for the story. I forgot she was there. I was just listening to Wren telling me her wonderful enchanting tale. And Danielle Winter's male brogue... another sigh.

If you enjoy stories like Rapunzel and the Princess and the Pauper or Julie Klassen's historical Christian romances, I think you'd love this book. Tweets, teens and adults who like swoon-worthy but sweet fairytales will eat this one up.

More please.

I was gifted a copy of this book and asked to write an honest review, which I have done.