No Place for Magic [Paperback]

E D Baker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 4, 2008

When Princess Emma and her beloved frog-turned-prince, Eadric, travel to his homeland, they find it in chaos. Eadric's irritating little brother has been kidnapped by trolls and, worse still, Eadric's mother won't allow Emma to use her magic skills to rescue him. Undaunted, they set off through hostile lands and face sea monsters, vampires, as well as Eadric's ex-girlfriends, to try and save little Bradston. Princess Emma takes centre stage again in this utterly charming, magical fairytale adventure - with a twist!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6–This latest installment in the series continues with the travails of Emma as she tries to marry Prince Eadric. The young couple must go to meet his parents in Upper Montevista in order to obtain their consent. This is not a slam-dunk as Emma is a witch and Eadric's mother is not too keen on the use of magic. In fact, she won't even allow Emma to use it to help rescue her younger son, Bardston, who has been kidnapped by trolls. Unfortunately, that is about the extent of the plot; the rest is just window dressing, and not very interesting dressing at that. The story plods along as Emma and Eadric make their journey, but nothing much really happens. Things pick up once the search for Bardston begins. Emma is able to see that the man she loves is more than she thought he was, and his parents see that there is more to Emma than they believed. There certainly is no lack of humor, and kids will get a kick out of the hip Shrek vibe that Baker creates in this updated fairy tale. The attitudes are contemporary, but attitude alone doesn't make a compelling story. This one is for libraries in which the earlier books are popular.–Tim Wadham, Maricopa County Library District, Phoenix, AZ
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

In this latest installment of the Tales of the Frog Princess series, Princess Emma travels with her fiance, Eardric, to his homeland for their nuptials. Upon arrival, they find that trolls have captured Eardric's little brother. Emma and Eardric head off to rescue him, but things begin to look hopeless after Emma's magical powers are neutralized. Emma encounters a full dictionary of magical creatures in this adventure, which includes some rousing and scary moments stitched together with a humorous, lighthearted spirit. Todd Morning
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Childrens Books (February 4, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 074758740X
• ISBN-13: 978-0747587408
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,724,417 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

E. D. Baker made her international debut with The Frog Princess, which was a Book Sense Children's Pick and has sold in many languages around the world. Since then she has written four other books in the series: Dragon's Breath, Once Upon a Curse, No Place for Magic and The Salamander Spell, as well as Wings: A Fairy Tale, a new look at the classic Midsummernight's Dream story. A mother of three and grandmother of one, Ms. Baker lives in Maryland, where she and her daughters breed horses and provide a home for five cats, three dogs, and three goats. www.edbakerbooks.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Princess Emma and Prince Eadric have been through a lot in their relationship over the last three books..., August 11, 2007

By 

Cassandra Richoux "http://yafantasy.com" (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: No Place for Magic: The Fourth Tale of the Frog Princess (Preguel to the Frog Princess) (Hardcover)

Princess Emma and Prince Eadric have been through a lot in their relationship over the last three books. Their friendship began as frogs, when Eadric's Frog Prince curse backfired on Emma when she kissed him, and they joined forces to escape the swamp, as Emma finds that learning to hop and catch flies is harder than one might imagine. Next came the quest to turn her aunt's love back into a human (he was an otter at the time), and after that the curse that was destined to turn Emma into a mean ...uh... *witch* after the age of sixteen if she ever touched a flower.

That last one involved a bit of time traveling to fix. Along the way, Emma and Eadric have come to realize their love, as well as find a few odd friends, such as the bat, Li'l Stinker, her vampire mate, and a young dragon named Ralf.

After all of that, even Eadric's parents' hatred of magic isn't going to be enough to stop these two from getting married. Still, Emma would like to have their permission, or at least be able to say that she tried. His mother is less than pleased, however, to find out that her son is still determined to marry her. There are bigger problems in Eadric's kingdom, though, as his younger (and rather obnoxious) brother has apparently been taken by trolls. Afraid to use magic because the trolls can track her through it, Emma must help Eadric find his brother through the use of her wits instead.

This is the fourth book in the Frog Princess series. While the book is very enjoyable, I would recommend reading the first three books before this one. The series has maintained an entertaining tone through four books now, and each book does stand on its own. This one is no different, but there are lots of little things that will be more enjoyable if you know the series.

One thing I appreciated about this book and the series in general is that the romance is well constructed, even after four books. There are some side couples, but the central two are Eadric and Emma, who met in the first book as frogs, and now in this book get married. Their friendship and relationship progress through the books and reads as realistically as a romance can when you're turned into a frog, sent back in time, and suffering from curses.

Unlike the earliest book in the series, No Place For Magic doesn't draw on any particular fairytale origins. Instead it takes place in a world that works by fairytale rules. Fairies attend the wedding, trolls kidnap Eadric's brother, and witches practice "good" and "bad" magic.

This book takes Emma into Eadric's kingdom where magic is feared and gives her new prejudices to deal with. Back home, she is the Green Witch and respected by the citizens-they know she will protect them in times of need. Here magic is avoided, and she must hide her normal usage of magic and learn to rely on herself instead. In typical fairytale fashion, Emma and her magic skills are accepted once she saves the kingdom, just like Rudolf got to play with the other reindeer once he saved Christmas.

On the downside, the series is not overly unique. It takes fairytale conventions and turns them around, sometimes in different ways, and other times in the same old ways. Emma is your standard "doesn't want to be a passive" princess and Eadric is a sweet, "charming" prince, who cares as much about where his next meal is coming from as fighting, and likes to flirt with Emma (though the flirting might be as much for the fact that it unsettles her and makes her blush, as for other reasons). The other characters that surround them are also fun, but this is a fluffy book. It's a "having a bad day and need something to escape reality" read. I do think that as the series goes on, the books find more interesting turns and twists to throw in, and the characters grow a little.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute, Cute, Cute, March 10, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: No Place for Magic: The Fourth Tale of the Frog Princess (Preguel to the Frog Princess) (Hardcover)

This is a adorable romantic comedy. The writing style is simple yet elegant. The characters are lovable and strong. The story is lighthearted yet not shallow, and a lot of humor is achieved by parodying traditional fairy tale elements. This novel is the best so far is the Tales of the Frog Princess series. If you like this book try Runaway Princess by Kate Coombs.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars No Place for Magic?! It was a magical book!, April 16, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: No Place for Magic: The Fourth Tale of the Frog Princess (Preguel to the Frog Princess) (Hardcover)

No Place for Magic is the fourth book in the Tales of the Frog Princess series. It is a Fantasy book written by E.D. Baker. No Place for Magic takes place in a world where magic, giants, and dragons are nothing out of the ordinary. The story follows the life of a young princess of Greater Greensward named Emma. The thing is that she's also a very powerful witch. She's known as the Green Witch and is responsible for protecting the land with her magic. Her fiancé, Prince Eadric, lives in Upper Montevista, a kingdom that is not as accepting of magic as Greater Greensward. Eadric's parents, especially his mother, disapprove of Emma because of her powers. But when Eadric's younger brother, Bradston, is kidnaped by trolls Emma and Eadric must set out on a quest to find and bring him home.
E.D. Baker has a way of writing where she challenges your thinking in some way or another. In one of the scenes in particular she tests your trust. Aldrich and Emma had just arrived from a long journey to a small town very close to the trolls' castle. They needed rest and one of the residents invited them into their home to eat and stay the night. Emma immediately finds it odd that they live so close to man-eating trolls and when one keeps eyeing her quite suspiciously, she and Aldrich discover their true identity. After finding this they are forced to choose whether or not to trust someone they know who could potentially kill them, or ruin their friendship with one of their companions. This scene made me feel like I was the one who had to choose and kept me completely glued to the book.
No Place for Magic was very fun to read. It flowed easily, but kept me interested. Unlike many fantasy books I've read it really was a comedy. It made me laugh, but also worry. Reading the previous books in the series gives a much better understanding of the characters, but you can follow it either way. Anyone in the mood for a lighthearted book that's not too long or short, and enjoys the "once upon a time's" and "happily ever after's" will enjoy this book.