The Star of Kazan: Stephanie Francis

The Star of Kazan written by Eva Ibbotson is a terrific read. It’s set in Vienna in the late 19^thcentury and proves to be an exciting tale with many twists and turns and adventure up to final chapter a great page turner which is extremely hard to put down.

It’s a tale about a young girl who doesn’t really belong as no-one knows who she really is and where she belongs. She is adopted by a cook and housekeeper after she was found on the steps of church as a baby. The story follows her quest to discover her true identity. She is a very well-known and loved girl who has a talent for cooking and a charming personality and everyone in Vienna loves and adores this young enthusiastic individual. So it's very surprising when Annika leaves her comfortable life to follow her ‘newly found mother’ whom Annika adores until the tale unravels and everyone realises the truth and danger on the young girl. I felt the story was at a very good pace without you getting left behind or confused with all the different plots. Overall this medium sized book of around 400 pages is a great thrill to read.

The cover was the first thing that caught my attention as it is a very detailed and artistic also: I felt it showed a hidden mystery. The only downfall for the book is the actual title as I feel that it has no relevance to the actual story; it is mentioned on one occasion and it's not really made a big point, so I feel this ruins the story. Consequently it’s a great book and Eva Ibbotson proves to be a great author with many ideas. She writes very fluently and in a very interesting way which grabs your attention and gives the reader a very clear picture of the setting and characters.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good read with excitement, mystery and a unique blend of adventure. It could be read by any age-group which would be able to cope with the simple language and structure (ages 12+.)

I would give it an incredible nine out of ten!