Review: Wide-Awake Princess Series by E.D. Baker

Hey peoples!

As you will clearly see later on in this post...I started reading this series a long time ago...so...my reviews are pretty much nonexistant...and I didn't even organize my dates as meticulously as I do now...also...you might notice that I became more harsh and critical with my reviews as the years went by...or maybe not...I don't know...you be the judge...then remember to tell me, okay?

I'd also like to confess something...I may have read the first two maybe three books in this series without any inhibitions, but as I grew older, I started becoming more conscious of what other people thought of me...so I now find myself reading up to five books at a time:

• the book I'm not ashamed of reading and bring to school to read for our beloved silent reading periods (which are irritatingly not silent)

• the eBook that I read on my HTC, the much more mortifying reads that I hope none of you ever find...(nono, don't you go purposely looking for my secretive stuff now, okay?)

• the childish book belonging to a series I started way back in elementary school but am now too old to be seen carrying to school, also...I bring these books out on weekends when my other non-shameful book is too thick, or a hardcover. 

• the ARC that I received and must read so that I can review, hopefully before the book is published....

• and the occasional audiobook I happen to be interested in.

But I digress.  Back to the post at hand!  So here we have a series that I started reading way back in 2013, practically a century now.  As you can see in 2013, I haven't really understood the concept of reviewing yet (a pity), so...non existent reviews coming your way...well, I have a star rating, but that's not a review.


Uggggh...I really feel the need to fill some empty spaces, so I will include blurbs from Goodreads...to...fill the once empty spaces....

Title: The Wide-Awake Princess (Wide-Awake Princess #1)
Read: sometime in 2013
Rating: 4 stars
Pages: 261

"In this new stand-alone fairy tale, Princess Annie is the younger sister to Gwen, the princess destined to be Sleeping Beauty. When Gwennie pricks her finger and the whole castle falls asleep, only Annie is awake, and only Annie—blessed (or cursed?) with being impervious to magic—can venture out beyond the rose-covered hedge for help. She must find Gwen's true love to kiss her awake.

But who is her true love? The irritating Digby? The happy-go-lucky Prince Andreas, who is holding a contest to find his bride? The conniving Clarence, whose sinister motives couldn't possibly spell true love? Joined by one of her father's guards, Liam, who happened to be out of the castle when the sleeping spell struck, Annie travels through a fairy tale land populated with characters both familiar and new as she tries to fix her sister and her family . . . and perhaps even find a true love of her own."
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Title: Unlocking the Spell (Wide-Awake Princess #2)
Read: sometime later in 2013
Rating: 3 stars
Pages: 261

"Now that Annie has helped her sister Gwendolyn (a.k.a. Sleeping Beauty) wake up from the 100-year curse by finding her beloved prince, you would think that things would get back to normal. Think again! That beloved prince, Beldegard, is stuck in the body of a bear and the only way that Annie can be free of the two irritating lovebirds is to help-by finding the evil dwarf who cast the spell. Luckily, Annie has assistance from handsome prince Liam, and she has many tricks up her non-magical sleeve . . ."
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Title: The Bravest Princess (Wide-Awake Princess #3)
Read: Feb 6-14, 2015
Rating: 4 stars
Pages: 272

"Sleeping Beauty's younger, non-magical sister, Annie, still can't rest while trouble in the kingdom threatens her good friend, Snow White. Snow White's evil stepmother has disappeared, and her father wants her married off right away--but who should she choose? How can she tell which prince is best? It's Annie and her good friend Liam to the rescue! A hilarious and and fantastical romp through a fairy tale landscape from beloved author E D Baker. " 

Review

As the last book in the series, I expected something amazing from this book, and I wasn't disappointed at all. I read all the books far apart, so in each book, I had a bit of trouble at the beginning getting used to the characters and plot. But after that, I enjoyed the books very, very, much.

What I liked: the story, obviously. But, really. I loved the idea of Annie helping her friend Snow White find a husband through tests of compassion, honesty, bravery, and other traits Snow White desired in a husband. And I loved reading about how the princes went about proving they were capable of these things, even though most were either lying or exaggerating their story a great deal. It was still so much fun to read.

What I disliked: the direction of the story was too predictable. From the very first test Snow White held, it was clear (to me) who she would pick at the end. So I wasn't the least bit surprized when he did get picked. I guess I had hoped that the author would make it a bit more interesting if some of the other princes did amazing things too, so that the Snow White would have to really think about which prince is right for her. But then again, I wouldn't want a love triangle, where I'd feel sorry for the one that didn't get picked...so...on second thought, I think I'm glad it was such an easy decision for her. (sorry, my thoughts are a bit jumbled up, aren't they?)

I just found out that there is a fourth book! AHHH! I'm so excited. I thought this was the last book in the series and was wondering why the author would end it like this. There seemed to be so many loose ends. I thought I'd never get to find out how Annie and Liam's and Snow White and her husband's wedding went, and what will happen to Lilah, the princess hiding from her father. And also if any witches will plot their revenges on Annie. I hope to read more about Gwendolyn in the next book too. Eeee! Can't wait for the next one!
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Title: Princess in Disguise (Wide-Awake Princess #4)
Read: Jan 17-Feb 8, 2016
Rating: 3 of 5 stars      
Pages: 215

"With the help of family and friends, Annie and Liam's wedding day looks as if it's going to be perfect until everything starts to go wrong. Liam's father doesn't show up, nor do the magic-wielding guests. Members of the wedding party come down with strange afflictions, Annie's gown is ruined, a storm floods the castle grounds, and an unknown king lays seige to the castle. Queen Karolina decides that they need the help of her fairy godmother, Moonbeam, but a pea-soup fog keeps the messengers from leaving. Only Annie and Liam can get past the magical fog to find Moonbeam, but even after they find her, it’s up to them to discover who cast the spells that ruined the wedding, and why the unknown king wants to conquer Treecrest."

Review

I read the first three a really, really long time ago...so I'm glad to be able to finally cross this off my TBR list. Like all series that I read with a large time gap in between books, I have this fear that I'll have no clue what's going on. Fortunately, my fear was unnecessary in this book because...it didn't happen! Yay!

This story was really sweet...you know...after reading stuff about war, angst driven teenagers and their ridiculous love triangles...a tad of romance mixed in with childish (I mean this in the good way) characters and a beautifully simplistic plot...reading this book was a pleasure. I'm glad the characters finally had their HEA...although there was this one lose end that I wished was tied up as nicely as the main characters...sad that the author missed it....oh well.  
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Title: Princess Between Worlds
Read: Aug. 16-23, 2016
Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Pages: 224

"Just as Annie and Liam are busy making plans to travel the world, a witch shows up and gives them a collection of postcards from the Magic Marketplace. Each postcard gives Annie and Liam the opportunity to travel to exotic lands and far-flung kingdoms. What the witch doesn't give them are directions on how to safely return."

I love how all books in this series all have unique stories, not one of them sounds remotely like any of the previous ones. Each book brings a new adventure, woo!

I...actually, was kinda shocked that there WAS another book, I thought the last one was it....so this was a pleasant surprise.

Dragons! I loved reading about the dragons near the end, they were cool! They brought something a little different than what I was used to reading about dragons.......not that I read that many books about dragons, but still!

Anyways....good book! Took me a while to finish though......ah well.

*content sigh*

You know what, despite how great this series has been, I'm glad it's finally over....it's over now...right?  No more books?

*checks Goodreads*

Oh, would you look at that.....!  Another book.  FUN.

 Have you read any books you're ashamed of other people knowing?  Whether they're childish or...the opposite of childish....adult activities, perchance?