Illustrations by Kali Ciesemier
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Release Date: May 26, 2015
Libby and May were best friends. Together they would make up stories of a superhero bad-ass they named Princess X. Princess X slayed dragons and scaled mountains and was everything the girls wanted to be. Then one night, Libby and her mother were in a car accident. Libby's body was found a few days later, washed up in the river. And May didn't believe it. Perhaps if she had been able to see the body or say goodbye. Perhaps if she had been able to get her hands on their Princess X journals, but instead May moves with her mother to Georgia and Libby becomes a sad reminder of her childhood.
That is until May goes back to Seattle to visit her father and sees a sticker that looks shockingly like Princess X. Libby's Princess X. Maybe someone found the journals? But then there is the website. Featured on the site is a series of comics with a girl that looks a lot like May and Libby. A comic that details what may have happened to her best friend.
Having just recently visited Seattle, I loved all the references of the Emerald City. From trolls to tourist locations to water taxis, there were so many great references to things that I have visited that this alone made the book a good read.
More than that though was the graphics throughout featuring the Princess X web comic and the mystery surrounding Libby. Sure, there were a few things that were a bit far-fetched, particularly a person not being positively identified through DNA and the police not listening when a girl says she has been kidnapped, but the mystery itself was fun. The pacing was quick. It should be noted that this book is solidly a plot-driven story, not a character-driven one. Finally, can I just say that the cover for this book is bad-ass, about as awesome as Princess X herself.
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