The Goose Girl

Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee is Crown Princess of Kildenree. She is born with her eyes closed and a word on her tongue that she cannot taste. As a child she listens to her aunt's stories and learns the language of the birds, especially the swans.

When she is older, she watches a colt being born and hears the first word on his tongue, his name: Falada. The bond between the girl and the horse marks her out as someone with unusual gifts.

The book retells the Grimm fairy tale of a princess who becomes a goose girl before she can become queen. It is a fantasy with an original, magical bent, and the girl at its centre is the one the story follows.

Before Ani can lead the people she has made her own, she has to discover what her own talents are and what they are worth. The book turns on whether she can find them, and what she must become in the meantime.