The best way to describe this book would be the word: enchanting. I've never actually heard the story of the real 12 dancing princesses, so I had nothing to compare this story to, but I didn't really feel like I needed to. The characters were charming and memorable, and the villian was wickedly awesome. I'm a little biased when it comes to fairy tales, because I'm a flat-out sucker for any of them, but this one was told exceptionally well. Besides that, the cover is gorgeous!