Dragonfly

By Julia Golding
Lexile = 830

Do you like Ranger's Apprentice? If so, you will LOVE this adventure set in a similarly perilous landscape.

Princess Taoshira (Tashi) has been selected from obscurity to the the Fourth Crown Princess of the Blue Crescent Islands. The strict religious requirements of her office are difficult for her. The other three princesses pledge an alliance with a neighboring kingdom.... and to seal the alliance, they send Tashi to marry the prince of the other kingdom. Although devastated to leave her home and marry the rough and terrible prince Ramil, Tashi attempts to fulfill her duties as a princess. Before the wedding can take place, she is kidnapped by a rival group and the adventure begins.

There's lots of killing, warfare, and a slave revolt here, but it turns out that Dragonfly is a romance, too! It's not really a fantasy... not really historical.... somewhere in between. This is a fun read.