Remembering the fun I had with book one and the fantastic show that Sophie and Agatha fired up during their fight for what they thought was best for themselves, it was quite clear to me that I had to read this second book as well. Well, I didn´t have that much fun with it as I had while reading the first book, but nonetheless, I was entertained. Many things if not everything has changed and yet some are still the same …
A World Without Princes
by Soman ChainaniThe School For Good And Evil #2
Publisher Harper Collins on April 15, 2014
Genre Children 12+
Pages 448
Format Hardcover
Source Publisher
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After saving themselves and their fellow students from a life pitched against one another, Sophie and Agatha are back home again, living happily ever after. But life isn´t exactly a fairytale. When Agatha secretly wishes she´d chosen a different happy ending with Prince Tedros, the gates for the School for Good and Evil open once again. But Good and Evil are no longer enemies and Princes and Princesses may not be what they seem, as new bonds form and old ones shatter.
Story
One afternoon at a wedding Agatha can´t quite enjoy she wishes she´d made another decision during her time at the School for Good and Evil. That she´d had chosen her Prince instead of Sophie. But you better be careful with what you wish for, because not always it turns out the way you want it. Soon Agatha and Sophie find a situation that is as dangerous as new to them and while Sophie does everything to keep her best friend by her side, Agatha tries to get her Happy Ever After and save them both.
Style
The tone has changed that´s for sure. Everything is darker, evil is now in bloom and nothing is as it was before. Even the characters have changed. Good, Sophie is still selfish, arrogant, and malicious and brings a certain mean and jealous tone and behavior to the plot. But you see as well, that she doesn´t really think things through. And her actions have consequences she doesn´t always like. To be honest, I missed the hilarious scenes, the funny things, and great quick-witted dialogues the first book had. That was a real blast and this second book is a lot quieter.
Characters
While Sophie does everything she can to keep Agatha from getting her kiss and the Happy Ending she actually wants, Agatha has to learn the bitter lesson, that she can´t have both; her friendship with Sophie and her love for Tedros. The way how the author brings that conflict to life, how both girls handle the same situation differently, and how they end up in the end, is pretty well told and somehow very entertaining.
Sophie is a real bitch. She wants desperately to go back home but on the other hand, she doesn´t want Agatha to come together with Prince Tedros. And she doesn´t want to become the evil witch she actually is.
And Agatha has to kind of do a dance to keep her friend Sophie happy and to get what she believes is necessary to get them both back home safe.
Conclusion
It was no question, a wonderful story and I had my great moments during reading. But in the end, I missed some of the wit and charms and show the two main figures were showing. Anyway, I recommend this book, too. And am looking forward to the third one.
Happy reading
Soman Chainani
Soman Chainani´s first novel, The School for Good and Evil, debuted on the New York Times bestseller list, as did each of its two sequels, A World Without Princes and The Last Ever After. The series has been translated into over twenty languages across six continents and will soon be a major motion picture from Universal Pictures. As a graduate of Harvard University and Columbia University´s MFA Film Program, Soman has made films that have played at over 150 festivals around the world, and his writing awards include the Sun Valley Writer´s Fellowship. When he´s not telling stories or teaching in New York City, Soman is a die-hard tennis player who never lost a first-round match for ten years … until he started writing The School for Good and Evil. Now he loses all the time.
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