Nobody's Prize by Esther Friesner

After her first adventure in Nobody's Princess (click here to see my review), Helen has decided to go off on another adventure at the beginning of this sequel novel. Helen's brothers went off to search for the Golden Fleece, so naturally Helen wanted to be a part of the search and see heroes capture their prize.

In order to travel with them without being recognized, Helen once again dressed like a boy and was a weapons servant with her friend, Milo.

What Helen didn't expect before her journey was that

1. she would develop a crush on another weapons servant, Hylas 
2. the great Herkules would fall in love with her boy self on the trip
3. she would meet a jealous, crazy princess who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted - including Helen's death
4. she would attract the attention of a power-hungry prince who would kidnap her and prepare wedding vows without Helen's parents permission
5. her monthly cycle would start in the middle of the adventure, ruining her image as a boy

Things are never easy when it comes to adventure for Helen.

However, with everything that came toward Helen, she took it in stride and somehow found a way out of every situation in order to get back to her destination: Sparta

My Thoughts/Reflections
I really enjoyed Helen's adventures in the first novel, but I found this book to be lacking...

Don't get me wrong, I love the stories that were told and the situations that Helen got into that she had to get herself out of again. It just wasn't as good as the first novel.

I honestly think that Esther Friesner could have ended Helen's story after Nobody's Princess and it would have been a great ending to a perfect adventure.

However, in this novel we were able to see Helen as a woman. She got her first crush, she got her time of the month, and she got more creative in her stories to get out of trouble.

Whereas the first book went through 4-5 years of Helen's life, this was just a few months from start to finish. It let the reader see how mature and grown up Helen became in just a matter of short time, which I was happy to see.

I would recommend this book to teen girls. There was a lot more about becoming a woman in here so teen guys probably wouldn't want to read it. However, if anyone reads the first novel and likes where it ended, I don't think you'll be missing too much if you decide to skip this novel.

Nobody's Princess by Esther Friesner

Growing up as a princess with three other siblings in Sparta can be intimidating. For Helen, the 3rd child of 4, it meant that she would someday rule Sparta as their queen. Instead of her older brothers ruling, it will be her as the Queen of Sparta rules with her husband by her side.

When Helen found out that she was to be Queen, she at first didn't want to. It was too much responsibility and she had no idea how to rule a kingdom.

However, at the age of 10, she decided to take her own fate in her hands and become a leader. Women were supposed to learn how to weave and spin gold into gowns.

Instead, Helen confronted the weapons teacher who taught her older brothers, Glaucus, that she wanted to learn to fight. Helen started training, running barefoot into the woods to get faster, hunting meat with her mother for dinner, and learning how to handle a sword and spear.

Helen did this in secret, since it was not allowed for women to do these events. When her twin sister, Clytemnestra, traveled for her wedding ceremony at age 14, Helen went with to comfort her.

Little did Helen know, though, that she would be on an adventure of a lifetime, hunting boars, visiting holy cities, and running around town dressed as a servant boy to follow her brothers on yet another adventure.

Life is definitely not boring for Helen of Sparta.

My Thoughts/Reflections
I love mythology stories! This one is about Helen of Troy before she could add the "Troy" to her name. This is when she was a little girl who was just trying to found out who she really was. Everyone always called her the "pretty" sister, which Helen was not flattered by.

Instead, she wanted to take care of herself. The thought of having to have a husband for that purpose did not settle too well with Helen.

Helen was a great character, I thought. She was tough. Even when she was sweating, panting, and had rubber arms, she did not give anyone the satisfaction of seeing her quit. She pushed through everything her trainer gave her and finished what she started.

I was a little shocked at how young she was at the beginning of the story - around 9 or 10 years old. However, as the story continued the reader was able to see how mature Helen became and just how responsible she was - which is why she became such a great ruler when she got older.

This is the first book of a two book series. We are left with Helen on another adventure to catch up to her brothers - Helen doesn't like to be left behind when there is more to see and experience. I'm excited to see what will happen in the second, and final, book of Esther Friesner's books.

I would definitely recommend this to any young girl who wants to read about a girl who takes chances, doesn't take no for an answer, and is willing to learn. It's a great adventure and I think any teen girl will enjoy it.