The beginning seemed to be a bit of a rip off of [b:The Ordinary Princess|674749|The Ordinary Princess|M.M. Kaye|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347430925s/674749.jpg|1114147] but as the story progressed it differed and then reminded me heavily of [b:Tuesdays at the Castle|10508431|Tuesdays at the Castle (Castle Glower #1)|Jessica Day George|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1331678412s/10508431.jpg|15414344]. Suffice it to say that it was nice little yarn, but it was too wordy to appeal to me as a 10-year-old and to hodge-podge to appeal to me now. The characters were flat and, almost exactly like Jessica Day George, everything just happens to work itself out. Books like this always seemed slightly condescending to me when I was young anyway. The author doesn't think you're smart enough to get it all in a nice beginning set up so they keep reminding you of convenient facts.
Nothing wrong morally with it(THAT was refreshing), I would probably recommend it to a 10-year-old girl. ( )

Amelia, the red-headed fourth princess of the Kingdom of Gossling, considers herself to be quite ordinary when compared to her three older, more regal siblings. Princesss Amelia finds schooling difficult, she does not consider herself to be as beautiful or as graceful as her sisters, and she's a bit of a tomboy. However, when misfortune befalls Gossling, and the evil Count Raven seizes power, it is Princess Amelia who must lead the people to fight for freedom. This is a lovely, well-written story with several important messages: that freedom is worth fighting for; that when women combine their strength, anything can be achieved; and that even ordinary people have extra-ordinary gifts. A must-read for every redhead, with an encouraging message for students who struggle in school. ( )

Reviewed by Joan Stradling for TeensReadToo.com

As the fourth princess of Gossling, Amelia doesn't have to worry about being queen. After all, she has three sisters who will inherit the throne before she does. Besides, Amelia is only ordinary at best. Her school work is poor, and she's not nearly as talented and beautiful as her three older sisters. Amelia is content to play with her best friend and let others worry about running the country.

However, Amelia's ordinary life changes when a plague devastates the country, killing her parents and leaving the burden of ruling to her terrifying uncle, Count Raven. Her three older sisters are under Raven's dangerous spell, and it's up to Amelia and her friends to rescue Gossling from the tyranny and destruction of Raven.

But can an ordinary Princess find the strength to be extraordinary?

I enjoyed the characters and world of THE EXTRA-ORDINARY PRINCESS. The only issue I had was a small hiccup with inconsistency in the case of three stones. My understanding was each stone could only be used once, yet Amelia used the stones four times. Still, this was a small distraction in an otherwise engaging and remarkable tale of finding inner strength.

Ebbitt uses multiple points of view to tell the story of Gossling's darkest days. It's amazing to enter this magical world and yet feel at home. The characters are well fleshed out and easy to relate to. I couldn't help but root for Amelia and the other "good" characters as they struggled against Raven and their own shortcomings.

THE EXTRA-ORDINARY PRINCESS is an extraordinary journey of self-discovery and finding the courage to fight, even when you think you could fail. ( )