Who Made You a Princess?

WHO MADE YOU A PRINCESS?, the fourth installment in Ms. Adina's ALL ABOUT US series, focuses on Shani Hanna. Shani has just spent the last part of summer vacation hanging out at Lissa's place. While there, she met a cute boy, Danyel Johnstone. But it isn't until Shani gets the courage at the end of the break to tell Danyel that she's interested in him and believes there's something between the two of them that she can breathe a sigh of relief. Shani returns to Spencer Academy proud of herself for having the courage to approach him, even if nothing happened before she headed back to school. Once Shani returns to school, she finds out that an old childhood friend, Rashid, will be going to Spencer for the term. Shani doesn't tell her friends that she has a history with Rashid, especially when they find out that he's none other than Prince Rashid al Amir of Yasir. Shani's parents alert her that he'll be attending and to show him friendship and kindness. It isn't until Shani is faced with TWO boys after her attention that the reason for her parents' push towards Rashid becomes clear. Shani, not sharing her friends' Christian values until now, resorts to asking God for help and guidance in the tough decision she is ultimately faced with. The ALL ABOUT US series is a wonderful series for teens to enjoy. It shows the confusion that teens face and the tough decisions that they may be forced to make. As with all books in the series to date, the story is free of loose morality and full of friend support and guidance from God. Ms. Adina never preaches in any of her books and leaves the reader feeling proud of the decisions that the characters have made by the end of the stories. Reviewed by: Jaglvr

The Review I have never read Young Adult, Christian Fiction before. What a nice change of pace! When I started to read this book, the twins were washing the truck. One came over for a break and read the back of my book. "Mom... can I read this when you're done?" she asked. "Why?" I answered. "Because this book sounds really cool!" she replied. What? A book that is not in the Twilight series that she's interested in? ABSOLUTELY. Well, if it's appropriate. So, I read it in one night. It was totally appropriate. Of course, she would be able to read it. And, so she did the next day in one sitting! What more can you ask for, as a mother? Your daughter reading instead of watching TV AND it's Christian? Well, for me it's a no brainer! We're in! When I read the book, it was the 4th in a series and I had some catching up to do on the characters. But, after I got past the "history" component of the beginning of this book, I was enchanted in "teenie bopper land" reading this book with the eyes of a much younger girl. And, I liked it. The story had its teen-drama with the romance and what-not. But, it kept it in-line. It kept "romance" in the proper prospective. It reminded its readers that it's God First, family Second, and everything else after that. That's a good dose of morality that I think teens can benefit from. Another thing that I really enjoyed about this book is that the vow of chastity was mentioned several times in the book. Yes... this is something that I want my daughters thinking about, rather than giving into hormones and boys! When I look at this storyline vs. Twilight, I can say that I'd prefer my girls to read this series. Why? Because the girls are making decisions based on their loyalty to God and their friendships, rather than giving up their life for some boy (and, a vampire at that!). This is a much better influence! I don't know how many of my readers have Tween/Teen girls, but I would most definitely recommend this book to the mothers who have them. It's a good, quick read for the moms and the girls love it. It was truly wonderful discussing this book with my daughters after they read it. It was enlightening to discuss the choices that the characters made with them. It was a first for us and I'm so appreciative that this review book opened up a new chapter in my relationship with my children. On Sher's "Out of Ten Scale:" I am only hoping that I get the opportunity to read more books in this series and them pass them onto my girls to read and discuss with me. It was truly a bonding experience and I'm glad that God is the center of this book. For my first review of Fiction: YA-Christian, I am going to rate this book a 9 OUT OF 10

Who hasn't dreamed once in their life of becoming a princess? I used to have a huge crush on Prince William and have now switched to Prince Harry. If one of them ever came to my school and turned their attentions on me, I think I would die of giddiness. Thus is Shani's predicament in this book and it's one most girls would give their right hand to have. This story involved more paparazzi and outside influences than any other book in the series. This is the closest that one of the main characters acts and is treated like a celebrity. It's handled very well and it's interesting to see how Shani handled the incredibly difficult decision her parents put upon her. I would have loved to visit the virtual club that the gang visits where you choose an avatar to represent you in the restaurant. It sounds very high tech and very cool. It's really nice to read a Christian book where people especially teens can go out and have fun yet still be decent, clean and wholesome. One thing though that was distracting to me was the spelling of Danyel's name. Call me traditional or whatever, but when I see a name that's spelled with a y in place of another vowel, it makes me think it's a feminized name. Therefore for the first couple of chapters, I kept thinking he was a girl! While I enjoyed this book a lot, it didn't leave me enthused as the past two books in the series had. The last book in the series had a lot of action and suspense, so this book was a lot slower in comparison. I think part of the problem also stemmed from the fact that I couldn't relate to Shani at all with her dilemma in trying to fend off royalty. While it's an enviable situation, I just couldn't relate to her as I had done the other girls in the series. Still I enjoyed the book a lot. I really liked the ending as it showed gumption and being able to stick to your morals. Once again the visit to the lives of the inhabitants of Spencer Academy has been enthralling and I'm looking forward to reading what else is in store for these girls.

Who Made You a Princess by Shelley Adina is the fourth book in the All About Us series about a group of teenage girls attending the elite Spencer Academy in San Francisco. Shanni Hanna has been on the sidelines in the previous novels, but she takes her turn on center stage here. In her senior year at the school, Shanni's deciding between Stanford and Harvard to get her MBA in business, but her love life has been pretty boring up til now. After meeting surfer cutie Danyel, Shanni's ready to find out what it means to be in love, but then Rashid, the Prince of Yamir, a oil-rich kingdom near Saudi Arabia starts attending the school and paying hard to ignore attention to Shanni. Shanni's hard pressed to choose between the two hotties: Danyel prays for her and writes sweet poetry, but Rashid gives her a $2 million diamond necklace and and never goes anywhere without his two bodyguards. What's a girl to do? I really love this series for teen girls. The characters are real without being cardboard stereotypes, and they struggle with issues of faith along with the real world troubles that make being a teen heaven and hell all wrapped together. The characters have been growing with each novel, and that makes them a joy to read. I was a bit worried that Adina was going to take the cliched road with this plot of prince vs pauper, but the twist is an unexpected doozy with implications that will still be rippling in future novels. I hope the senior year at Spencer Academy is extra long, because I will miss this series when it ends.

Considering I've been a fan of Shelley Adina's series, "All About Us", since the beginning, this volume made me a bit nervous. The storyline was a bit out of my realm until I realized something very important... ...every woman longs to feel like a princess. So, when Shani Hanna finds out she just might be one, the question of "Who Made You a Princess?" takes on an entirely new meaning! Always the rejected one at Spencer Academy, Shani has finally started coming out of her shell of security. With a new group of friends and a potential boyfriend that does more than make her physical senses tingle, her life looks so bright...well, you know. Until her old childhood friend, Prince Rashid al Amir arrives at Spencer as an exchange student. Shani's attraction to him interferes with her longing to belong to Danyel...or does it? The enticement of life as royalty wears thin enough, especially when the truth about Rashid's presence in Shani's life comes to light. Can Shani figure out just who made her a princess, and can she accept His love for her? Shelley has the unique ability to take the unlikely scenarios, such as dating a prince, and make them totally accessible to any young woman picking up her novels. Spencer Academy itself is beyond belief, and yet I feel so at home there! With believable characters mingled in with the glitz and glamour of the rich and famous, Shelley's stories capture your heart and make you think about what truly matters in this life. For girls searching for answers to life questions such as why am I here and what does being popular really mean--and is it worth it--I recommend picking up Shelley's series. I'm giving "Who Made You a Princess?" four out of five bookmarks with a tiny tiara as a charm. And, just in case you didn't know it, God loves to take women of all ages into His Kingdom--and feel free to email me to find out more!