Long Live the Queen

The President's Daughter #3

by Ellen Emerson White

Being the President's daughter isn't easy, but Meg's getting used to it. She's even starting to have a life again―okay, not a normal life, but things are beginning to fall into a routine.

Then it happens―machine guns blast, a van screeches to a halt, and masked men grab Meg and take her away.

Meg doesn't understand what the terrorists want. She doesn't understand how her security was breached. But she does understand one thing―they have no intention of letting her live―and she has no intention of dying.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary, Teen, Realistic Fiction, Politics, Survival

320 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1989

About the author

This talented writer attended Tufts University (and published her first book, Friends for Life, while a senior there) and currently lives in New York City. Ms. White grew up in Narragansett, Rhode Island. Many of her novels feature characters who reside in or around Boston and are fans of the Boston Red Sox (as is Ms. White). In addition to novels, Ms. White has published several biographies. She also writes under the pseudonym Zack Emerson (taking the name Zack from the name of her shepherd dog) and under the pseudonym Nicholas Edwards (Santa Paws series).

Reviews

[Tamora Pierce · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm re-reading this book for the sixth or eighth time; I'm not really sure. It's my favorite of White's President's Daughter quartet, a book about damage and the hard road back by a woman who served as a nurse in Vietnam and ought to know. A warning: this book is not for the squeamish. There is violence to a teenager.

Meg is in her senior year, restless under the constraints on her ambitions as a tennis player that are the result of being the President's daughter. Security has been even tighter since her mother's shooting in the previous book, and Meg's plans to compete are the source of major arguments with her parents and the Secret Service. She has hopes for the summer, though, as the last week of school comes to a close.

And then, thanks to an assist from one of her own security detail, she is kidnapped as she leaves school. Her saga from here on, while bloodcurdling, is my favorite fictional hero story. It is painfully, heart-breakingly real. Her relationship with her family, her powerful mother in particular, her friends, her kidnapper, are all painful, and yet her battle to survive and recover her self makes me cry every time I read this book.

Some things are a little dated: the tv shows, the technology (no omnipresent cell phones/laptops/iPods). They aren't essential. Meg, her family, her friends, they are what matter.

[steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

June 2023: Bumping it up to 5 stars. This is my favorite book after #4. I feel like I'm right there with Meg through the kidnapping and aftermath and how she deals (and does not deal) with everything. MY GIRRRRRRL

Review March 2020:

Honestly, this has been A WEEK and though I have about ten library books on my TBR pile and I am reading a really good non fiction book at the moment, I couldn't read any of them yesterday. My brain could not handle any new information or characters and instead I found myself reaching deep into my bookcase for this book because I needed to read Meg Powers once more and see her strength, will and determination to fight in the face of being kidnapped, chained and left to die in the middle of nowhere. It was exactly what I needed to read yesterday, what I needed to get lost in and I don't regret it one bit. Meg is an original BAMF and one of my favorite literary characters. I know she would hate me saying this (because she's a real person in my head) but what an inspiration she is to me.

Review September 2012: Really well done. This particular book is by far the most plot-intriguing of the series (imo) and some of my favorite moments where with Meg during the kidnapping and how she didn't give up, not once even FREAKING SAVING HERSELF, even though at times, she really, really wanted to. The aftermath of it all is really well done too in regards to her feelings and emotions and her families feelings and emotions etc and can I just say that I love Beth? Like, she was the only one Meg was able to truly open up to and tell what happened without being judged or worried or whatever, and she accomplished it all in such a Beth way that, ugh. I just adore her, that's all (and Meg too!). I love their friendship and the way the book closed was very well done as well. It gave a little hope that it was all going to turn out ok (of course, now that number four has been published I guess this story's ending is not as uplifting as it once was).

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book makes me think a lot of things. I first read it years ago, probably when I was about 11 or 12. I remember thinking it was a good thriller, I liked the main character, and it was fun to read. I actually read this book as a stand alone the first time, and recently went back and read all three in about five days. The first two are decent, but this is clearly where the author knew she was going all along.

Reading it again, I realize how terrifying this book is. As a YA reader, I don't think I understand how utterly, completely, nightmarishly horrifying this was. I spent a good amount of time trying to imagine what it must have been like for Meg, and I can't. Most of the time it's what White didn't talk about that really made me think. Like those agonizing hours of nothingness...waiting in pitch black, waiting for him to come back, waiting for dawn, waiting to die. Honestly, how are you supposed to get through each second in that situation?

The aftermath of the kidnapping is written superbly. Of course she's happy to be home, but she's also confused by all these other feelings swirling around in her that she doesn't know are completely normal and that she's allowed, even expected, to have. The conflict with her mother is well done, because it's true none of this would have happened if Madam President had instead been a soccer mom. And then to hear "can not, have not, and will not negotiate?" No matter how much you KNOW that's the only realistic response, that's incredibly painful to hear. It's so horribly "professional" that it's almost unrealistic. I can't help but think of the West Wing arc when Zoe Bartlet was kidnapped, and the president temporarily stepped down almost immediately. It seems like the obvious thing to do, because how is a person supposed to be the president when their daughter has been kidnapped and you have no idea what's happening to her? Obviously both of these were specific decisions meant to further two very different plots, but the ramifications are interesting. Can you imagine your parent, your mother no less, saying point blank that they will not negotiate with terrorists, no matter what? Even if it's your life? I'm honestly not sure a relationship can come back from that. I'm not sure a marriage can come back from that.

Hands down, the most poignant and heartbreaking line in this book is "'He, uh, left me in this-I don't know-cave or something, and the chain wouldn't break, so-'. She shrugged."

Come on. She used a rock to break her own hand to escape otherwise certain death and then claw her way (literally) to safety days later, and she states it in such a nonchalant, matter of fact way. And the thing is, I don't even think she realizes how bad and desperate it sounds until that quiet, sorrowful, pitying, tremendously sad "Oh, Meg" from Dr. Brooks. I think it's amazing what a person can do when they're desperate enough, and in the moment it seems so obvious and logical (127 Hours, anyone?). She did it because her choice was simple: break her own hand and try to escape that way, or die. How horrible.

I wish very much that White would write book from the perspective of the First Family during this time. I would love to see how this entire event played out with them. How do you tell the president that her child has been kidnapped? What sort of conversations did President Powers and the First Gentleman have behind closed doors? What were those West Wing meetings like with her staff? What was going on in the heads of her mother and father?

I love Meg, I love her sense of humor, and the author's writing style. I think every relationship is deeply nuanced and portrayed realistically. I wish so much that we had more of a resolution with the kidnapping, although I understand that's not the point of the story. The kidnapping was just something that had to happen to put Meg and her family in this unimaginable situation. Still, it would be satisfying to know the FBI catches these people, to know who they are, what they wanted, and why they didn't just kill Meg and toss her somewhere (Other than obvious plot purposes, was there ANY reason to leave her in the mine? Did he really want to make her suffer that much more vs. knowing that there are no loose ends? He seemed too smart for that sort of sadistic decision.)

I'm so happy that White wrote Long May She Reign, because this book needs a follow up. I am very much looking forward to seeing how Meg deals with the aftermath of this trauma, and how her family deals with it. Maybe there will be more closure in the next one, although I guess I'll have to be satisfied even if there isn't.


Update: I spent a lot of time daydreaming today about who I would cast if this ever turned into a movie. Any takers? I was thinking Allison Janney came to mind for POTUS. Someone else suggested Connie Britton. What about Meg? Or the terrorist?

[Willa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This third installment of The President's Daughter series is a lot more gritty and harsh than its two predecessors. I didn't read it back when it was released because somehow I wasn't aware of it, and I'm kind of glad. Meg, the daughter of the first female U.S. President, is kidnapped by terrorists and goes through a harrowing hostage experience and, in some ways, an even more harrowing escape. I really think that this book would have upset me greatly as a teenager, but Meg is an amazingly strong, smart and resilient role model and Ms. White continues to deliver intelligent, well-written fiction.

[Alex Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have so many feelings about this book that I'm not sure I can get them all out coherently (and it doesn't help that I've been reading all night and it's nearly 5 am). I was savoring the first two books in this series, taking my time, not reading more than a couple chapters a day. But this book I absolutely could not put down. It was amazing and so incredibly heartbreaking. I'm pretty sure I started crying around page 90 and didn't stop until well after the book ended. (Just kidding, I didn't stop. I'm definitely still tearing up a bit now.)

It's not so much that it's a profoundly sad situation, although it is. I read a lot of sad books and not all of them hit me this hard. It's more the way it's written. White doesn't just say she went thirteen days without food, a doctor asks her when the last time she ate was and she says breakfast, before school. The day she was kidnapped. And the security around her swears. It feels so small and so down to earth that these big dramatic things hit you almost like they're real and happening to someone you know. I had similar feelings about the second book, but that one didn't do more than make me tear up. This might win the award for hardest I've ever cried at a book. (It's at least up there with A Mango Shaped Space.)

The only thing I don't like about this book is the time Meg spends with the terrorist. I honestly found that section a little boring. I'm not sure if that had anything to do with the way it was written or if it's just that I can't connect to scenes like that. But thankfully it was pretty short. I briefly considered knocking it down a star for that and probably would have if it was half the book, but it was only about 50 pages and the entire rest of the book was so intense that it didn't matter.

And when I say it was intense, I'm not exaggerating. I cry on a semi regular basis when it comes to books and will succumb to cheap manipulation by authors, but rarely do I ever get a physical ache in my chest like I did here. It was a lot.

I love love love that this book deals a lot with what happens after the trauma. Like yes the kidnapping is covered, but the point of the book feels more like it's Meg's recovery, Meg dealing with the traumatic events. She has injuries that may not ever fully heal, anxiety, PTSD, extreme exhaustion, and it's all dealt with so well. I'm a sucker for books that are essentially character studies, and this whole series definitely qualifies.

Beyond that, most of my notes are the same from the first two books. The family dynamic is wonderful, although much darker here and in less of the book, as Meg isn't around her family for a while. Meg is still hilarious, although again, this book is a lot darker. And it's still highly intelligent. in a way that forces you to think to keep up. Everything good about the first two books is here and a lot more too.

As always, highly highly recommend.

[Willow Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, I can't believe that I read this when I was in middle school! I suddenly just out of the blue thought of this book and looked it up, and I just can't believe I read it without being completely traumatized. It's a super intense story, but also really good, and I think I might have to reread this in the future.

[Libby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like a lot of readers (I imagine), I spent a considerable amount of time alone when I was young. My sister is eight years older than myself, and was frequently out of the house, and both my parents worked long hours. During the summers, however, I would go to San Diego and live with my grandparents. I had a best friend there, also a reader, also kind of a lonely kid, and together we shared and traded books over the course of at least 14 summers.

One of the many wonderful books that she instructed me to read was this one, which I still remember after all these years. I think I was about ten when I read the first novel in the series, The President's Daughter, which I checked out from the San Diego Public Library down the street from my Bobe and Zade's house. The book struck such a huge chord with my little pre-adolescent heart. I identified with Meg completely: she was smart, prone to sassiness, often lonely, and she had a powerful, successful mother whom she loved and admired, but about whom she had complicated feelings. My own mother was (is) a righteous bad-ass of an attorney, of whom I was extremely proud, but also resented and would have liked to have seen more of. Furthermore, I was completely enchanted by the novel's premise: Meg's mother becomes the first female president of the United States. I remember feeling thrilled by this, but also thinking it was an obvious fantasy(!)--this was in 1987 or 1988. I wish my ten year old self could have seen just twenty years into the future.

I gobbled up the following novel, White House Autumn, and then finally, this one, for which I was totally unprepared. Where the first two novels were authentic, non-condescending portraits of a complicated young woman struggling to adjust to a bizarre new life, the third novel went to a really dark place. It may sound soap-opera-esque or melodramatic, but in Long Live the Queen, Meg is abducted. I've never forgotten the eerie, disturbing characterization of her captor, whose terrifying ego and sociopathic charm threatened my sleep. But worse, or more terrifying, than that was Meg's escape. If I remember correctly, she broke her own fingers with a large rock in order to extricate her hand from its cuff. The rest of the (incredibly sad) novel was about Meg readjusting to life post-trauma. I think that a large part of this novel's pull for me was the way that, similarly to the horror movies with which I was obsessed, it distracted me from the more more prosaic but equally unhappy-making terrors hovering on the perimeters of my own life, which were mostly adult, and therefore not fully understood, but fully felt nonetheless, by me.

It's strange how this one small novel, not a classic in any cannon of childhood literature, recalls so much for me, so quickly: my summers in San Diego, my long lost friend Jessica Koziol, my first awakenings of a political sensibility, the taste of the Rainbow Sherbet from the Thrifty's next door to the library (25 cents a scoop!), the smell of the Eucalyptus trees in the canyon near my Bobe and Zade's house, my child's view of my mother, my nebulous fears of the world, and those dilatory, unretrievable afternoons of reading for hours, and hours, and hours, with nothing to do and nowhere to be.

[Ay · Rating 5 out of 5]

...so I cold read this book as part of a series, with no clue what was in the book, other than the MC.

So that was an experience I would not otherwise have had.

Fantastic book - but the best thing about it is book 4.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, as I've said before, I LOVED these books! Probably my favorites this year. They're about . . . um, well, the president's daughter . . . the only daughter of the first female president. Meg is 15 when the books start and 18 in Long May She Reign (and there better be more!), and has two younger brothers.

The first two started off a bit slowly. The author started them when she was in college and they're a bit rough, but still very readable. And I (maybe unfairly) struggled with the knowledge that White updated the first 3 books to make them modern. See, the first three came out in the 80's and the fourth one just in the last couple of years, and White added references to the internet and cell phones and even Bush and Clinton to the first three books. So since I knew things like that weren't in the original version, they stood out to me. (But I don't think they would've if I didn't know these were updated editions.)

Anyway, what I think is done amazingly well in these books is the characters. Meg and her family and friends feel so very real. Take Meg's mom. Because of her career, she hasn't always been there for Meg, and that's something both Meg and her mom struggle with. And I love that Meg and her brothers fight and goof around, but you also see how deeply they care about each other. (And now I have to mention Meg's dad, who is also awesome.)

Also, I'm very in love with Preston, who works on Meg's mom's campaign and becomes a great friend of the family.

I feel like this review is really short on substance, but I just don't want to spoil anything! A lot of serious things happen in these books.

[Wisterious Woman · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a terrible book. I can't imagine why so many people like it. It seemed that every single page had to have the word 'Hell' in it. There are plenty of other times where it is Christ or God or Jesus or Damn. Add to that Bastard and Son of a bitch with a few sh*t and f*cking thrown in. How unimaginative. I just couldn't take the lack of decent vocabulary or well developed plot line. It was hard to feel the girl's pain or fear since she isn't all that likeable. There wasn't any page turning excitement and she isn't the kind of clever heroine that I admire in a book about a kidnapping. I finally gave up reading it the third of the way through when it didn't get any better.

The author didn't make Meg sound like a 17 year old at all. And her mother didn't seem very presidential--definitely not a Hilary Clinton. Maybe if you read the rest of the books in the series you can understand the family dynamics, but I was totally clueless.

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meg Powers returns (book three) as a senior--still in the White House and now looking towards Prom, college, and tennis. Then she's kidnapped and everything turns to survival.

Good but dark. Darker than I expected or wanted. But good.

Sure, Meg apologizes a few too many times and she has a few too many witty comebacks to be believable. Yet, she remains a likable character in a realistic and engaging novel.

White ups the ante with each novel. I'm not sure I'm ready for the fourth book. I don't know if I want to handle it. I loved, loved, loved The President's Daughter (jr. high fav) but after reading this and the second, I don't know if I'll enjoy it in a reread, knowing what horror awaits the Powers.

Granted, this was perhaps not the best book to read while in PT. It was too easy to imagine how much work she'll have to put into possibly recovering.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last book in my reread of The President's Daughter series, in anticipation of finally reading Long May She Reign. All right, so I shudder and cringe every time I see this book on my bookshelf. And I remember the rock. What I did not remember was everything after the rock. Geez. It's really not my kind of book. I don't enjoy reading about kidnapping and violence. I don't enjoy feeling scared. But I like Meg still. And I'll keep reading Ellen Emerson White's books.

If you haven't read The Road Home, read it. Maybe wartime trauma works better for me than a political kidnapping with little resolution.

[Kricket · Rating 4 out of 5]

had to stay up into the wee hours to finish this one. weeping was involved.

[Madelyn Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 Quarter 1 Choice Book
This is the story of a girl named Meghan Powers. She is the president's daughter but is still a relatively normal teenager. Except that she gets kidnapped. She tells the story of what happened and how in this book. She under-go's some significant injuries along the way but still makes it to safety. She ends up with big casts on her hand and leg but she keeps going. I enjoyed this book because of how detailed it is. I would recommend it for the same reason.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meg's family has faced some pretty rocky times in the last couple of years. Her mother, now Madame President Powers, is still recovering from an shocking attack (albeit out of the public eye) and Meg's family seems to now be, not-surprisingly, closer and more tight-knit than ever. Meg's biggest worry is finishing up her senior year while trying to avoid the ever-present reporters who follow her families' every move when the unthinkable happens: Meg is brutally kidnapped by terrorists and forced to endure more than she ever imagined. Meg isn't sure why she was taken or even where, but she knows the terrorists have no plans to let her live. Which quickly becomes her only goal.

Meg goes through some truly horrific stuff in this novel. She's beaten down and left so physically and emotionally scarred, she knows her life will never be the same again. Unexpectedly, I found myself repeatedly in tears while reading because I had unknowingly become so dang attached to Meg, I understand why some scenarios were more painful than others. Ellen Emerson White knew she couldn't start off the series with a story like this, but since she's built up a character (Meg) supported by incredible secondary characters with such believable interactions that I was completely drawn into this story. I could feel and understand every single person's pain because I'd been with them all for so long, I just got it.

So if I thought White House Autumn was taking a risk dealing with a presidential attack, then Long Live the Queen has to take some kind of award for even daring to discuss a teen who is taken hostage by terrorists. I do have one thing to say about Ellen Emerson White, that woman is fearless. Fiercely fearless. She doesn't shy away from any of the tough questions or the questionable emotions, she faces each dead-on with a calm and precise determination. Terrorists, kidnapping, Vietnam - I mean is there anything this woman can't do - and do well?

For this third installment, I find it noteworthy that the artwork was chosen to mimic James McNeill Whistler's classic painting Arrangement in Grey and Black: The Artist's Mother. I can't fault their taste - there is something inherently classic about Whistler's work, I totally dig it. Of course it is tongue in cheek with the hanging picture of the White House in the background and it definitely allows you to see the bright blue leg and hand brace Meg is now sporting. As for the Queen herself, Meg's attitude seems to be almost passive, which after reading this novel, I can assure you is anything but, which is a none too subtle reminder that Meg is under constant scrutiny all the time and that even when she's feeling wretched and depressed, she's still putting on her 'public' face and doing what she has to.

[Chachic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally posted here.

It took me a while to pick this up because based on the premise, it seemed like something that isn't easy to read. I was even warned that it has some trauma and that I should be prepared for it. Ellen Emerson White is an amazing writer but I feel like I have to be in a certain mood before I could read her books. Just when Meg feels like she's starting to get used to being the president's daughter, she's forcibly taken by terrorists and she doesn't even understand why. My heart was pounding the entire time I was reading Meg's ordeal. Even though I already knew terrible things would occur, I was still scared because there's no way that I could predict what would happen next. As a reader, I felt like I was with Meg every step of the way. It all felt very real. The storytelling is vivid and no detail is spared - all of Meg's feelings and thoughts were documented. I actually wanted to jump forward in the novel to take a peek at how things will develop but it's a good thing I waited. I admire Meg for being as strong as she was and she even keeps her unique brand of humor wherever she was.

One of the highlights of the novel (the entire series, in fact) is the distinct and realistic dynamics of the Powers family. You know they all love each other but they don't really know how to act when they're all together and as a result, most of their dealings are awkward. I don't think I've read any other YA series that focuses on the character's family as much as this one. Even the love story took a backseat. Also prominent in this installment is Beth Shulman, Meg's best friend from back home. It's a struggle for both Beth and the entire Powers family to reach out and help Meg as she continually pushes people away. I read this series because it's been repeatedly recommended by both Angie and Michelle. I second (third?) the recommendation because this series is a different kind of YA but be prepared because the books are compelling but they're not easy to read. I think the mark of a well-written novel is that it can make you care for the characters to the point that you don't want anything bad to happen to them (or when bad things happen, you want them to overcome those situations). I have a feeling Meg's recovery in Long May She Reign, the last installment in the President's Daughter series, is going to be difficult but I'm hoping that good things will happen to her. She really deserves to be happy. I kind of wish she'd end up with a certain young and fashionable press secretary.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meg’s back at the White House, doing what she does and loves best: playing tennis. Security has let up a bit since the incident with her mother and her relationships are mostly back to normal. Prom is quickly approaching, and Josh will be her date. Back in Massachusetts Beth is going with her newest guy. Meg’s biggest hurdles seem to be choosing a college – her parents want Harvard and she wants the lower key, skiing-friendly Williams College – senioritis, and finding a way to play tennis competitively. But a dark fate waits for her just around the corner. This time Meg’s the target and her life will unquestionably never be the same again.

Well wow. I thought what Meg experienced with her mother’s shooting in White House Autumn was pretty rough. But this is nothing compared to that trauma. Meg’s cruelly ripped from her normalized life that she is just beginning to enjoy again into the hands of criminal masterminds for the majority of the book. At one point it was so raw and unfiltered that I couldn’t go on, the outlook was too grim and the suffering too painful. Like Meg I seemed to see no end to it. Her reactions – ranging from bravery to terror, resourcefulness to despair – were frighteningly real. When I came back I had the hope necessary to see her through this. But it was almost equally painful to see Meg on the other side, forced to heal and deal whilst refusing everyone and confiding in no one. If the heart of The President's Daughter was the nuanced relationship between Meg and her mother, Long Live the Queen is about Meg and Beth, her feisty, independent best friend from back home. She has this magical power for reaching obstinate, bottled up Meg. I relished their scenes together. Their humor complements each other nicely and adds an accompanying lightheartedness to the heftier discussions and revelations. Because I am already such a fan of both Meg and Beth I only fell in love with them deeper, especially Beth. There is light at the end of the tunnel and I can’t imagine having to wait seventeen years for the next book, Long May She Reign. I’m incredibly fortunate to have it sitting on my shelf, waiting patiently to be read. Funny enough I have this need to know how and where Meg goes from here.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

(5/10/12) Such a visceral and compelling account, both in the violence and pain of the kidnapping and the aftershocks and depression of recovery. White writes phenomenal dialogue and her characters, both heroes and villains, are well written and convincing. Meg's struggles with PTSD are all the more believable since the events of the kidnapping are vividly portrayed. While this book does contain significant violence and sexual threat, the triumphs of this character are the real focus of LONG LIVE THE QUEEN. I've read both the original and the "updated" version, I'm not sure it was necessary to revise the pop culture and technology references.

2/6/2012 - Chatting with a coworker about books we read over and over again, of course this series came up. Imagine my surprise when she immediately recognized my description (and her surprise when I was able to tell her White had written a new Meg book since our high school years). Of course, that excitement sent me back for a re-read. I know it's wish fulfillment in the most basic sense, Meg is as strong and capable as I could ever hope to be, but I still love this book.

3/3/2013 - I gave this book to my niece for Christmas and just got around to giving her my pitch for why she should read it. I don't know if I convinced her (I'm of the mind that it's better to make the book available and let someone fall into rather than build up a big sell and force them in), but just seeing LONG LIVE THE QUEEN on the shelf planted the seed. I found myself plucking my copy off the shelf and settling into a chair to enjoy. Love this book. I'm happy to find more and more of the series is available on eBook, reading LONG MAY SHE REIGN on my phone as I type this. There is something different about having eBook access to a book I've formerly only enjoyed in the quiet of my home. I'm happy to have as many White books in as many forms as I can... but part of me wishes I were curled up in my living room reading right now.

11/31/13 - My husband ran his hand over my head, and the word "phrenology" popped out... and I found my way back to Long Live the Queen. The section while Meg is in the mine shaft always gets skipped, of course I slowed down and savored and cried in so many other places.

11/9/16: The election of 2016 was emotionally brutal, and in the depths of mourning the outcome and already missing the Obamas, I found myself reaching for Meg and her family.

11/26/20: Woke up this morning with the pressing need to overcome trauma with Meg. On to the college years!

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the third volume in The President's Daughter series starts off with Meghan Powers really feeling that things are starting to settled down. Between her mother's election and a later assassination attempt, things have been pretty hectic over the last few years. Then there is her growing relationship with Josh, one of her friends from school. It is no question that they are boyfriend and girlfriend, but she can't help but wonder if he is overwhelmed who she (and her family) is.

Unfortunately, Meg doesn't get to explore it too far with Josh. Just as she has talked to him about their maybe taking a step back and being friends, she finds her world full of turmoil when she is abducted.

The President's daughter is a victim of kidnapping by terrorists. She finds herself in custody of a cruel, yet normal-seeming and intelligent, guy. He does everything to scare her before leaving her chained to die in an abandoned mine. It is up to her to do the things that must be done to survive, but it is really what happens when she returns to her family that things really start to get tough.

From there on, the struggle becomes an internal one as she is confronted with how her physical injuries will affect her plans and how the emotional scarring makes it difficult to deal with her family, her friends, and Josh. It takes the helping hand of Beth, her lifelong friend from Boston, to start to focus on the fact that not only does she have to realize that she has a future but that she has to start living again or she will waste it.

As with the rest of White's book, Meg's voice (both internal and external) is the real strength of the book. While she is such a strong person, the reality of her self-doubt is so real and frank. I know I was on the edge of my seat as I joined her through her abduction, her being held, and her settling back into a new life of normalcy. I have already read the next book, Long May She Reign, in which Meg heads off to college. She is still trying to deal with the remaining physical and emotional scars in that volume, too.

On a really exciting note, I just found out that their will be a fifth volume in the series while I was looking to get a copy of the book cover for this review.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this third installment of Meg Powers’ life as the daughter of the first female president of the United States, Meg is kidnapped by terrorists just before her high school graduation.

The book is divided into three sections. The first is Meg prior to rescue. White keeps us inside Meg’s head and what's going on in Meg’s head seems very realistic. The pages fly by. Meg interacts with only one of the terrorists. He tortures her mercilessly but also brings a bottle of good scotch into the room where she's being held and sits and drinks it with her.

In the second section, Meg is in the hospital. Again, White keeps us inside Meg’s head, and what’s going on in Meg’s head seems very realistic. Again the pages fly by.

In the third section, Meg is home at the White House. We are inside Meg’s head until her best friend arrives. Beth seems to fix Meg's emotional reaction to what’s happened to her much too easily. By the end of the book, Meg is planning to start college at George Washington University in just a few weeks. It's hard to believe that Meg could be planning such a thing when only a week or two earlier the drive from the hospital to the White House terrified her.

Politics are woven into this story of tremendous pain and perseverance. Meg would never have been kidnapped were she not the daughter of the president. And once Meg returns, the president has to divide her time between being a mother to Meg and being the president. Meg is angry with her mother for being the president and thus putting Meg in a position to be kidnapped. Meg is also afraid given the failure of her secret service patrol to protect her. In fact, she knows that one of them betrayed her.

If I could read fast enough, I would have read this book in one sitting. The label “political thriller” certainly fits.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember reading this when I was maybe in the 6th grade and thinking it was such a good book. There were two scenes in particular that seemed so real, and scary, they've stayed with me since then. The book popped up on a "best young adult" list and I decided to give it another read. Years later I still really enjoyed it. Probably one of the better YA reads out there.

+++
From School Library Journal via Amazon:
Meg is a bright, attractive, witty, 17 year old with a penchant for movie musicals, tennis, and skiing--a typical teenager who just happens to live in the White House because her mother is President of the United States. Despite the constant vigilance of her secret service agents, Meg is kidnapped by a group of terrorists, beaten, and left to die chained up in an abandoned mine shaft. The first third of the book, dealing with Meg's kidnapping and harrowing escape, is extremely suspenseful, totally absorbing, and quite realistic. The rest of the novel delves deeply into Meg's emotional and psychological recovery, including her resentment toward her mother for putting their lives in jeopardy by seeking high public office, as well as her physical recovery including extensive physical rehabilitation. Through it all, Meg is funny, courageous, and loving. Readers will stay with this character to the very end. An absorbing, thoughtful, and exciting novel.

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not easy to build a series like this and pull it off, but Ellen Emerson White has done it beautifully. The first book had an undercurrent of sophisticated themes, the second built on those, and this, which is much darker and much scarier, builds on them even further. The plot, however, is so vastly different from the first one (the second book being a bridge between the two), that I'm amazed it works.

In this book, Meg is kidnapped. The kidnapping is terrifying--there are long scenes in which we live inside Meg's head as she slowly breaks from lack of food, lack of water, fear, and loneliness. There are also conversations between herself and her kidnapper which are in no way cliched or what one would expect of a YA book. The physical injuries Meg suffers are permanent and very painful, and Emerson White does not shy away from the subject of rape (spoiler alert: Meg is NOT raped, but she is also not unscarred by the threat of it).

The kidnapping and Meg's subsequent escape make up about half the book, and the second half is her (incomplete) recovery. Despite the... unusual situation of Meg's life (first, her mom becomes president, then her mom gets shot (book 2), THEN she gets kidnapped--come ON, right?), nothing about the book feels unrealistic.

A really amazing feat.

And I'm very glad she finally wrote a fourth book.

[Lovely Rita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, spoilers ahead.

I couldn't quite rate this one YA because of the horrors contained within. Short version, the president's daughter gets kidnapped and completely brutalized. It was especially hard for me to read because the bad guy (in retaliation for an escape attempt) kicks her knee, severely dislocating it. I can't even write this without cringing in horror. I've dislocated knees many times (though thankfully not because someone did it on purpose) and it is literally the most excruciating thing I've ever experienced. Bar none. So it was super hard to read this happening to the main character, and wondering how on earth she managed to survive the way she did with it out like that.

I basically read this in one sitting because I couldn't possibly go to sleep in the midst of it.

So though the knee parts were super hard for me to read, seeing Meg and her family trying to deal with the aftermath of her experience was really interesting.

I would also add that this is the only book of the series not on Kindle. What is up with that? Why books 1, 2, and 4 but not 3? So I had to order a hard copy of this one book in order to read it. No instant gratification and now I have one random book in the middle of the series that it won't be easy to lend.

[Stephanie A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stroll into the dollar store, stroll out with the definitive story for nearly all your terrorist-abduction, violent-hostage-keeping, and medical/emotional-recovery needs (though it looks like I'll need book 4 to finish up the latter). At first I was disappointed that the hostage-keeping part lasted less than a quarter of the book, because that was the best part/entire reason I bought it, but by the end I was glad there was so much focus on recovery, too.

I didn't read the first two books, but they weren't terribly necessary for my understanding of this plot - a lot of backstory/summary was given in the beginning. Plus her whole "let's de-escalate" thing with Josh sounded massively irritating and I could barely stand reading what little was in this book; no way do I want to see something good break.

I also noted that this was an "updated re-release," but didn't find out until afterwards that the trilogy was originally written in the 80s. I hate when publishing companies do that and feel bad for the trampled memories of anyone who loved the originals, but otherwise I never would have run across it. And to protect myself from the same diasppointment, I'll have to stick with New School all the way.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, spoilers ahead.

I couldn't quite rate this one YA because of the horrors contained within. Short version, the president's daughter gets kidnapped and completely brutalized. It was especially hard for me to read because the bad guy (in retaliation for an escape attempt) kicks her knee, severely dislocating it. I can't even write this without cringing in horror. I've dislocated knees many times (though thankfully not because someone did it on purpose) and it is literally the most excruciating thing I've ever experienced. Bar none. So it was super hard to read this happening to the main character, and wondering how on earth she managed to survive the way she did with it out like that.

I basically read this in one sitting because I couldn't possibly go to sleep in the midst of it.

So though the knee parts were super hard for me to read, seeing Meg and her family trying to deal with the aftermath of her experience was really interesting.

I would also add that this is the only book of the series not on Kindle. What is up with that? Why books 1, 2, and 4 but not 3? So I had to order a hard copy of this one book in order to read it. No instant gratification and now I have one random book in the middle of the series that it won't be easy to lend.

[RedRedtheycallmeRed · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book as a teen when it was originally released (I bet I read it at least 8 times, I thought it was such a good book). I still have the paperback (with the original receipt from Waldenbooks that I used as a bookmark). I let my teenage daughter read it recently and she liked it, too. I borrowed the Kindle version with my Prime membership, mainly because I wanted to see the changes the author made to update it. There really weren't that many changes, a few references to computers/texting and some comments about movies/TV shows that aren't as dated. I don't think the original needed to be changed at all, but the differences didn't detract from the story.

Meg defines the word survivor. She's kidnapped, brutally hurt, and left for dead in the most inhumane way. What Meg goes through is realistic, making it even more terrifying. The parts in the woods were the most brutal, and the depression that lingers long after she's finally safe was well done by the author.

There are still plenty of moments of humor, and Meg's relationship with her family is warm and genuine. Preston, Beth and Josh and great supporting characters as well.

I read a lot as a kid and this is one of those books that has stayed with me for years, I enjoyed reading it again.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmm.... I'm not quite sure how I feel about this book as it relates to the rest of the series. I read The President's Daughter back in the '80s, and it was always one of my favorites. I only recently learned of the other two in the original series, White House Autumn and Long Live the Queen. There is now a fourth book in the series, Long May She Reign which came out almost 20 years after the original trilogy was published. The first three were slightly updated for modern audiences, replacing Meg's Tab with Coke, etc... and republished in 2008.

Admittedly, the storyline of Long Live the Queen captured my attention and kept me hooked, but it was such a striking departure from the other books, and a strange choice as a way to end the series. When it was published in 1989, it won the ALA Best Book for Young Adults, and deservedly so for the writing and intrigue, so it's surprising that a 4th book wasn't written then, amid the acclaim, to end the storyline in a slightly less grey place. Of course, that's assuming that the 4th book does indeed provide a more satisfying culmination.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ellen Emerson White is a YA author who's been around for years. One of her books, Life Without Friends, was one of my favorites when I was growing up. Her series about the daughter of the first female president has been out of print for a while, but she's updated parts of it and the books are being re-released. I say parts of it because the characters do email and text, but whenever they watch tv, it's dvds of old shows like The Brady Bunch and Hill Street Blues.

Long Live the Queen, the 3rd book in this series, takes the story in a new direction when Meg is kidnapped and held by a man hired by a terrorist group. The first 3rd of the book is the kidnapping. Meg is beaten quite a bit while held, and even ends up having to inflicts some harm to herself in order to try to escape. The 2nd third of the book is Meg in the hospital, recovering physically but not dealing with the emotional trauma. The last third of the book, she gets to go home and try to piece her life back together while still learning to live with the long term effects of her injuries.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life never seems to get any easier for Meg Powers. She's kidnapped. At first I was a little apprehensive upon reading that. I figured the author would slip Meg into the helpless damsel that I had admired her for not being, but boy was I surprised. I had expected the author to gloss over the grittier details of her kidnapping and the aftermath, but she didn't. She completely, and adequately, described how this had affected not just Meg, but everyone around her. The FBI didn't swoop in and save her, she dragged her broken self to a rural cabin. Meg didn't automatically feel better and she's still as broken as she was before, but now she has hope, or well at least a little hope. She won't be the professional tennis player she thought she would, but she's on the mend. I can't wait to read the next book. This series is rare for young adult books. It's realistic (up to a point, I mean, she is the President's daughter) and it doesn't insult my intelligence. If anything, I feel like I actually learned something from it.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just when it looks as though Meg Powers has settled into life in the White House while still retaining her own independence, she is kidnapped. It isn't entirely clear what the kidnappers' purposes may be or how they infiltrated the Secret Service, but Meg barely survives the harrowing experience. The scenes in which one of the men hits her and kicks her in the knee are gut-wrenching, and then, when she is left for dead in a mine shaft, she must go to unthinkable lengths in order to survive. When she makes it out of their alive, she is changed, and the road to recovery seems to be a long one since Meg avoids her friends and family. Just as in the previous two books, Meg's courage and spirit and unquestionable, but healing from the emotional and physical trauma will take everything she has. Although I liked many parts of this book more than the other two titles, there are too many holes surrounding the kidnapping for my taste.