Exactly what this British first novelist is up to in this elaboration of the Hans Christian Andersen tale “The Wild Swans” is not clear. Does the royal heroine, Alexandra, have magical gifts? A special destiny with the enaid
—”currents of life”—and a connection to the sacred place called the “Circle of Ancestors”? Alexandra, the ugly duckling of the family, and her three brothers lose their beloved mother to an attack by a frightening creature in the forest, but only when the mysterious Zella arrives and bewitches Alexandra's father and his entire kingdom does the story's pace quicken. Zella threatens the four siblings—Alexandra is exiled and her three brothers turned into swans—an interesting but inopportune development. Just as readers find that they, too, are enthralled by Zella and the havoc she wreaks, Alexandra is banished from the action. Luckily, the handsome Gabriel enters, adding romance and intrigue, reigniting that page-turner impulse—but his appearance, too, is brief. Readers will be impatient for both Zella and Gabriel to return and reinvigorate what is otherwise the solitary story of Alexandra's struggle to understand herself, her powers and how she might wrest her family's kingdom back from the evil Zella. Even with the uneven pacing, however, the mix of magic, royalty and romance will compel many teens. Ages 12-up. (Mar.)
