Just felt that the protagonist was a bit too young for me to fully enjoy the story, and didn’t feel like I wanted to continue with the series.

A sweet middle grade novel and riff on the George and the Dragon myth. While this is a quick and enjoyable read I would have liked a little more world building, but this is probably me bringing my adult sensibilites to an mg novel.

I would read this in school and also think my daughter will enjoy it in a couple of years time.

This was a super cute story, and one I think fans of Katherine Woodfine and Holly Webb will enjoy. Very character driven with vivid, old worldly descriptions, The Last Duchess was a lovely book with which to while away an afternoon.

Pattern’s ordinary life is turned upside down when she suddenly finds herself shipped away from London, back to the country of her birth to serve as a ladies maid to a young and orphaned duchess. But the land of Elffinberg holds many myths, and Pattern is about to discover that the palace sits on top of the biggest secret of all.

As the residents of the castle gossip, bribe and attempt to plot their way to the throne, Pattern will need all her skills if she is to help her new mistress survive. But first Pattern must gain the duchess’ trust, or be sent back to London in disgrace…

I couldn't help but enjoy this book. In a merge of history and fantasy, Laura Powell brings to life a small country faced with one very big problem. A dragon. And like in any good fairytale, the only way to appease the dragon is to offer him a princess to snack on…. But the characters in this book are no helpless maidens.

Pattern is hearty heroine. Although mousy on the outside, she is quick thinking and practical, winning her battles through sheer will and kindness. A loyal servant, she is a good balance for the hot tempered duchess, and together the two spark a heart-warming friendship.

However the book is set in a fantastical country, and I was a little sad we didn’t get to visit more of it. Most of the book takes place within the palace, with only short jaunts into the countryside. But the village itself teems with life and I hope in the next book we get to see more of Pattern’s world.

The story is also full of plot twists and I often found myself surprised. Between each page and the next I would suspect one thing only to find myself proven half-right, which left me with just the right amount of smugness, yet still enough intrigue to delight in the truth.

All in all, a sweet MG read. 3 stars!

Bit of a slow starter but once it got under way it was a riveting read! Can't wait to see more from this author!

This was a fun and potentially very commercial read. A twist on the George and the Dragon story, this would otherwise be Clockwork Sparrow meets Maisie Hitchens. It's not perfect, some of the plot twists happen very quickly and the murder is dealt with very flippantly. However, it's 225 pages - it's short!! How long have I complained kids books are becoming intimidatingly overlong? Here we have a book as quick as Dork Diaries but with so much more merit. The writing isn't beautiful but it is competent. I can see us selling a lot of this.