What do you think?
Rate this book
Magnificent tales of misadventure #2
Long Live the Queen
For Elspeth Pule, life is dull and lonely in the real world, where she misses her good friends, Humpty Dumpty, Bo Peep, and Rodney, a giant talking wheel of cheese.
So when she gets a surprise visit and a desperate plea for help from Georgie Porgie and Gene the blabbermouth stick, Elspeth agrees immediately. After holding her breath until she is blue in the face, Elspeth opens her eyes and finds herself back in a land where storybook characters are real.
Here she learns that a horrible witch named Mary Mary Quite Contrary has kidnapped King William the Umpteenth's wife and taken her into a dark forest. To free her, Elspeth and her ragtag crew will have to pay the witch's ransom . . . or else. Can Elspeth use her bravery, smarts, and just a little bit of ill temper to thwart the evil witch and rescue her friend?
Told with a hilarious irreverent voice, this rambunctious tale is perfect for fans of Lemony Snicket and Pseudonymous Bosch.
So when she gets a surprise visit and a desperate plea for help from Georgie Porgie and Gene the blabbermouth stick, Elspeth agrees immediately. After holding her breath until she is blue in the face, Elspeth opens her eyes and finds herself back in a land where storybook characters are real.
Here she learns that a horrible witch named Mary Mary Quite Contrary has kidnapped King William the Umpteenth's wife and taken her into a dark forest. To free her, Elspeth and her ragtag crew will have to pay the witch's ransom . . . or else. Can Elspeth use her bravery, smarts, and just a little bit of ill temper to thwart the evil witch and rescue her friend?
Told with a hilarious irreverent voice, this rambunctious tale is perfect for fans of Lemony Snicket and Pseudonymous Bosch.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published January 24, 2017
5 people are currently reading
472 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
July 4, 2017
This is a cleverly written book, great for read aloud! It is funny and the plot is suspenseful.
January 21, 2017
My granddaughter enjoyed the book very much.
Thank-you Sharon
Thank-you Sharon
February 7, 2017
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Long Live the Queen is a middle grade novel written by Gerry Swallow. It is the sequel to Blue in the Face, and it features the (mis)adventures of a young girl named Elspeth who needs to return to the fairy tale land of New Winkieland to help her old friends. The queen has been kidnapped, and Elspeth discovers the rescue operation might involve working with an old enemy.
I always read the middle grade books I receive with my three elementary school girls. Not only is it bonding time for us, but it also provides me with valuable feedback about the book. My girls absolutely loved Long Live the Queen; we have not read Blue in the Face, but that did not affect our ability to understand the plot of Long Live the Queen. My girls thought the book was very funny, and there were numerous times that I had to ask them to settle down so that I could keep reading. They loved the cheeky humor, and they also loved the nursery rhyme and fairy tale references. They were very excited when they recognized a character, although they were rather partial to Gene the talking stick.
I have to say that the girls loved the book more than I did. I appreciate that Swallow included references beyond the target audience of post-millenials; the Silence of the Lambs homage was quite clever. But sometimes things were a little too twee, and it got in the way of the plot.
Ultimately, my opinion as a book reviewer doesn’t matter as much as what my children think. They loved Long Live the Queen, and so I would recommend the book to middle grade readers who like humorous books like Dork Diaries or Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
Long Live the Queen is a middle grade novel written by Gerry Swallow. It is the sequel to Blue in the Face, and it features the (mis)adventures of a young girl named Elspeth who needs to return to the fairy tale land of New Winkieland to help her old friends. The queen has been kidnapped, and Elspeth discovers the rescue operation might involve working with an old enemy.
I always read the middle grade books I receive with my three elementary school girls. Not only is it bonding time for us, but it also provides me with valuable feedback about the book. My girls absolutely loved Long Live the Queen; we have not read Blue in the Face, but that did not affect our ability to understand the plot of Long Live the Queen. My girls thought the book was very funny, and there were numerous times that I had to ask them to settle down so that I could keep reading. They loved the cheeky humor, and they also loved the nursery rhyme and fairy tale references. They were very excited when they recognized a character, although they were rather partial to Gene the talking stick.
I have to say that the girls loved the book more than I did. I appreciate that Swallow included references beyond the target audience of post-millenials; the Silence of the Lambs homage was quite clever. But sometimes things were a little too twee, and it got in the way of the plot.
Ultimately, my opinion as a book reviewer doesn’t matter as much as what my children think. They loved Long Live the Queen, and so I would recommend the book to middle grade readers who like humorous books like Dork Diaries or Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
February 7, 2017
I received a NetGalley copy in exchange for an honest review.
While I liked the concept of this book, I found that I had difficulty becoming invested in the story.
I enjoyed the nursery rhyme twist, but I found myself growing tired of the characters a few chapters in.
I also wasn't fond of the writing style. There were phrases that were intended to be jokes that I felt were unnecessary.
I thought the end of the book was a bit more drawn out than it needed to be and that the last few chapters could have been resolved more quickly.
I did, however, like the concept; it was very clever. Wee Willie Winkie was the king; and Little Bo Peep the military adviser. Our world is called the Deadlands, because, unlike New Winkieland, sticks and trees and such are not sentient. I like the twists on the nursery rhymes, and how before each chapter classic rhymes were edited to reflect the story. It was really the writing style that kept me from becoming as invested as I could have been.
Frankly, I think the reason that I wasn't completely into this book was because of the reading level that it was intended for. I found my interest waxing and waning the entire time, but a younger Middle Grade reader would likely love this series. The content is perfectly clean, and the adults are kind people who are portrayed in a positive light, which is something that is all too uncommon. If you prefer older MG and YA novels, this probably isn't for you. But if you are looking for a unique book with clean content to give to a young reader, this is certainly a good choice.
While I liked the concept of this book, I found that I had difficulty becoming invested in the story.
I enjoyed the nursery rhyme twist, but I found myself growing tired of the characters a few chapters in.
I also wasn't fond of the writing style. There were phrases that were intended to be jokes that I felt were unnecessary.
I thought the end of the book was a bit more drawn out than it needed to be and that the last few chapters could have been resolved more quickly.
I did, however, like the concept; it was very clever. Wee Willie Winkie was the king; and Little Bo Peep the military adviser. Our world is called the Deadlands, because, unlike New Winkieland, sticks and trees and such are not sentient. I like the twists on the nursery rhymes, and how before each chapter classic rhymes were edited to reflect the story. It was really the writing style that kept me from becoming as invested as I could have been.
Frankly, I think the reason that I wasn't completely into this book was because of the reading level that it was intended for. I found my interest waxing and waning the entire time, but a younger Middle Grade reader would likely love this series. The content is perfectly clean, and the adults are kind people who are portrayed in a positive light, which is something that is all too uncommon. If you prefer older MG and YA novels, this probably isn't for you. But if you are looking for a unique book with clean content to give to a young reader, this is certainly a good choice.
December 2, 2016
I started to read it, and everytime I went to go pick it back up, I found myself hating the idea. Firstly, the main character seemed to be a brat. Secondly, I couldn't get over how silly everything was. The verbiage in the book, the different characters in nursery rhymes that she meets, had me rolling my eyes every other page. I think though it was the disrespect she showed to the parents who adopted her that really caught my ire. Quickly scoffing them in favor of her real parents only made me hate her more.
Want to read
November 21, 2016Note: I received a digital galley of this book through NetGalley.
Want to read
November 21, 2016I received a copy of this book from Bloomsbury USA Children's Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
April 3, 2017
A little darker than the first, but the pace of adventure was still delightful.
April 27, 2017
I liked the play on words and the use of nursery rhyme characters. I think you could call this a genre -busting book as it is a fantasy/fairy tale in which murder, kidnapping and adventure take place. think middle school kids will like this book, especially fans of the Wishing Spell Series by Chris Colfer. This is book 2 in the series, but I feel like it can stand alone just like the cheese. (A bit of story humor.)
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews