Princess Betony and the Unicorn by Pamela Freeman illustrated by Tamsin Ainslie

Princess Betony and the Unicorn by Pamela Freeman and illustrated by Tamsin Ainslie
Publisher:  Kane Miller Publishing
Format:  Print Paperback
Number of pages:  107 pages
Published:   January 1st, 2023.  First published 10/1/12 in Australia
Source:  Publisher in exchange for an honest review

Opening Line:  "Princess Betony curled up tight underneath the desk in the Royal Library of Floramonde and held the book she had been reading close, her finger crammed between the pages to keep her place."

Princess Betony's mother, Queen Salixia is a willow tree dryad, but left her home to live in the Castle and to raise a family.  Everyone within the castle has hoped that Betony would turn out to be a plain old simple human, and to certainly not follow in her mother's footsteps or to have any magical powers.  When an argument occurs between the Queen and the Lord Chancellor, the Queen threatens to return to the forest which distresses Betony.  The people of the kingdom have been forbidden from entering The Dark Forest of Nevermore because it is said that it houses Wild Magic, but after the princess sees her mother running toward it, she decides to follow and try to find her mother.  Once Betony steps into the forest she is tasked with a quest to prove she has Wild Magic or perish in the forest.  A test that is further complicated by her needing to catch a unicorn.  

Princess Betony and the Unicorn is a standalone and at a little over one hundred pages it is also a very quick read.  The artwork and cover remind me a little of The Secret Garden.  I really love all the illustrations with trees, flowers, leaves and vines going across the page.  It has a very fairytale like quality to it.  Princess Betony is a fun main character, she's smart, feisty, brave and adventurous.  I also enjoyed that she was into gardening, as it's the only time that she can take off her dresses and change into overalls and gum boots (rubber boots) to truly run free outside.  There currently are four books in the series, which include Betony finding a Thunder Egg, discovering the Rule of Wishing and dealing with an unhappy hobgoblin.  I can see this appealing to children who enjoy stories with magic, unicorns, princesses and adventure.

**A huge thank you to Kane Miller Publishing for the paperback book in exchange for an honest review.   My copy will be donated to a local little free library **