A Tale of Two Castles By Gail Carson Levine

• 05/07/2014
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A Tale of Two Castles
Gail Carson Levine
HarperCollins Publishers (2011)
ISBN 9780061229657
Reviewed by Sydney Clark (13) for Reader Views (06/11)

“A Tale of Two Castles,” by Gail Carson Levine, is the story of Elodie, a peasant who travels to the town of Two Castles to seek her fortune as a Mansioner, or actor. However, much to her disappointment, she is turned down by the Mansioning master and taken on as the dragon Meenore’s assistant, to her surprise and gratitude. As she learns how to deduce and induce, she is swept up into a mystery, beginning with a kidnapped dog and ending with attempted murder. Suddenly, Elodie is the key in a plan to discover the perpetrator.

As Elodie gets wrapped up in the mystery, she finds herself disguised as a maid working in the kitchens of the castle owned by the shape-shifting ogre, Count Jonty Um.  But during a dinner hosted at the Count’s castle, the cats of Two Castles manage to force the ogre into shape-shifting into a mouse. Now, with the ogre missing and possibly dead, it becomes more crucial than ever that Elodie discover and stop the criminal.

Who can Elodie trust? Can she solve the mystery, discover the whited sepulcher, and save the king’s life?

When the king’s guards arrest Elodie for setting the cats on the ogre, she is taken back to the castle and locked in a tower, where she discovers the identity the true murderer. While trying to think of a plot to catch the murderer, the dragon Meenore gets shot by an arrow and falls to the ground. Will Meenore survive? And will Elodie succeed in her task of unmasking the criminal?

I enjoyed reading “A Tale of Two Castles” because it was an exciting adventure story filled with deducing and inducing dragons, shape-shifting ogres, greedy kings, and lots of acting. I would recommend this book to people who like fantasy, adventure, and acting. It was very fun to read and I would suggest it to all of my friends.