Fast-paced prose carries you with it into battle

Gemma, a warrior-monk with a restless spirit, takes up arms against her younger sister on the side of their elder sister. With its terse and swiftly-flowing narrative, "The Princess Knight" is a welcome reprieve from the description-heavy Fantasy offerings populating bookshelves post-GOT. Here, the characterization is tight and the dialog full of impetus. Gemma has as little patience for horseshit as the prose itself, and there are satisfying tensions between her coexisting feelings of hatred towards and concern for her sister (and military adversary) Beatrix. The supernatural elements - shapeshifting centaurs; human male and female statures verging on the gigantic - feel real, giving this fantasy a refreshing tangibility. But what really keeps me reading is Gemma's connection to her Brotherhood, her ambivalence towards Beatrix, and her honorable, spiritual, but somewhat volcanic temperament. Lots to identify with here for readers of all types - I'm looking forward to the rest of the book.