Customer Reviews

The Princess Diaries, Volume IX: Princess Mia

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Mia Thermopolis - Princess of Genovia - may be sixteen, but her year has been anything but sweet. After two years of calling Michael Moscovitz her boyfriend, and spending countless hours smelling his neck; Mia made the mistake of calling of their courtship when she learned, on the night she was going to bestow Michael with "her Precious Gift," that he had lost his virginity to Judith Gershner - a girl who can clone fruit flies - years earlier. Devastated by this newfound revelation, Mia called it quits with Michael. But, after much thought, she realized that a mistake had been made; and strived to make it right with the love of her life. Unfortunately, he was already on a plane to Japan, where he will spend one very long year of his life constructing a robotic arm that is destined to change the medical world forever as we know it, leaving Mia on her own for the first time since their whirlwind romance began.

Flash forward a bit, and Mia finds herself devastated beyond belief. After countless e-mails, calls, voicemails, and text messages to Michael, she has heard nothing from her beloved. Sure, she enjoyed a fun night at the theatre with J.P., a boy who managed to sit through the entire "Beauty and the Beast" production without laughing and/or falling asleep, and actually managed to shed a tear or two; but it's not the same. Mia wants Michael, and only Michael, and finds herself throwing a pity party all her own. One that consists of watching TV, avoiding people at all costs, raiding the refrigerator at all times of the day and night, and living in her Hello Kitty pajamas. Until her father gets wind of her newfound personality. Whisking her away, Mia finds that she is now forced to endure therapy with a Psychologist cowboy on a weekly basis, and couldn't be more shell-shocked. Even worse, she's forced to go back to Albert Einstein, to finish out her high school education - much to her chagrin. Unfortunately, Lilly refuses to even look in Mia's direction, the whole school believes that Mia is dating J.P. - which she's so not - and, suddenly, for the first time ever, Mia finds that her school uniform - along with the rest of her clothes - have gotten a little snug...everywhere. With all of the drama surrounding her, Mia is convinced that she'll never make it through the next two years. Luckily, she has stumbled upon the diary of one of her long-lost relatives, who ruled Genovia for a total of twelve days; and has discovered a secret that will rock her future, and the entire country of Genovia, more than she ever thought possible.

I feel as if I have grown up with Princess Mia. From day one, I have devoured each and every one of her rants and raves, and have found myself drawn deeper and deeper into the world of Mia. PRINCESS MIA is no exception. The second to last installment of THE PRINCESS DIARIES series packs more punch in its 274 pages than any of the previous novels. Mia, as always, is her usual philosophical self - freaking out over mysterious illnesses, worrying about anything and everything in her life. Only this time, she has fallen into a deep depression that has truly changed her. Gone are the complaints about the lack of vegetarian items in Albert Einstein's cafeteria, and her musings about whether or not she will ever develop a chest; and in their place are insecurities about where she stands with Michael, wonderment over who has started a hateful website about her, and confusion over her feelings for Michael, J.P., and even her new psychologist. Lilly has been one of my favorite characters for years, but her new personality, and way of thinking, has truly made me dislike her. The mere presence of her character brings a sour taste to my mouth. On the other hand, Lana's character is presented in a new light that makes you see that she's simply misunderstood, and, possibly, not as mean as originally believed. The disappearance of Fat Louie was rather disheartening, as I always loved reading about his furry face. However, the inclusion of Dr. Knutz was humorous and rather delightful from the moment he was introduced to the story. Cabot has dropped many bombshells over the years, but none have rocked Mia's world as much as the ones found within the pages of PRINCESS MIA. It's obvious that Cabot is gearing up to end the series; and, at this rate, it will most certainly go out with a bang. The one book you can't miss this year!

Erika Sorocco
Freelance Reviewer

Nine books into this series, you might expect that the story of Mia, Princess of Genovia, has grown stale and predictable, heading toward a pat ending soon. If so, you're in for a treat with Princess Mia; it's definitely the freshest, most absorbing entry in the series to date.

The book opens with Mia and Michael, her one true love, having broken up; Michael's gone to Japan for a year and through a series of misunderstandings, he feels it's best for them to just be friends for now. Mia is beyond devastated; she takes to her bed and refuses to leave or shower. We can feel Mia's pain with every word, and it's apparent that this is not something that's going to pass quickly. Indeed, her family becomes so worried for her that her father "kidnaps" her and forces her to go to a psychologist. No quick fix here; Mia begins therapy reluctantly but also sees the value in trying to pull herself out of the black hole of depression. Along the way, she makes friends with Lana (her archenemy), discovers that J.P. is in love with her, and finds a long-lost directive from an ancestress that declares Genovia should be a democracy. What she decides to do is both believable and mature.

One of the issues that forces Mia into depression is the fact that her friendship with Lilly seems to be over, and in a most vehement way: Lilly actively shuns Mia and seems to blame her for every ill effect that's ever happened to her. While my heart ached for Mia because she was so upset over the loss of such a close friend, I have to say that this is a turn of events that tickles me because I've felt for a very long time that Lilly has not been a friend to Mia at all. Mia's learning to deal with it, and also her loss of Michael, and I was behind her all the way.

This is indeed the best book in the series so far, and can be highly recommended for readers of all ages. Mia's coming into her own, and it couldn't have been harder or more hard won. Cheers to Mia and to Meg Cabot for keeping this series fresh and entertaining!

Grade:B-

Comment:This book actually disappointed me when I read it.Because,basically,the only thing she did in this book was mope about Michael and how she had grown a a cup size which I hear reverts back to a B34 in the last book.What really shocked me was that Lana and Mia became FRIENDS!How ironic is that?!Seriously and the climax is so suspenseful and the last book is soooo hard to acquire.

Sincerely
Meme

Princess Mia immediately begins where volume 8, Princess on the Brink, leaves off. Mia is obsessed with hearing back from Michael, her one true love, as he just left NYC for a year in Japan. Mia said (and did) harsh things to him before he left and she wanted to take it all back and try to make their relationship work. He finally contacts her, only to tell her the dreaded words no woman wants to hear: "Maybe we should just be friends." Mia is devastated by this and begins a downward spiral.

Her parents are concerned for her and make an appointment (against her will) to see a therapist. Not only does she have to deal with the breakup of her first real relationship, her best friend accuses her of stealing her boyfriend and is not speaking to her and someone has created a website to torture her: [...]. Just when things start to go from bad to worse, her nemesis wants to be friends with her. Are her intentions real or is there a secret agenda?

Overall, I thought Princess Mia was a good installment for the series, however it wasn't my favorite. Mia does a lot of self-reflecting during her therapy sessions. She's starting to understand her role in her friendships (and just maybe not having Lilly as her best friend isn't such a bad thing after all) and realizes that life can still be good after experiencing a loss.

Meg Cabot promised that, over the course of this series, her character Mia Thermopolis would begin to show maturity. On page 160 of 'PRINCESS MIA', Mia states that she would rather have the plague than be friends with her ex-boyfriend. Then, on page 161, her friend Tina comments on the fact that Mia is growing up. Hmmm...

Sure, girls at sixteen are immature. But I was hoping that we'd see some change from Mia's fourteen year-old-self, and that is clearly not the case in 'PRINCESS MIA'. Rather, she seems to be regressing. Book 8 'PRINCESS ON THE BRINK' in the series showed a little promise in the fun factor of these books, but Cabot continues to rely on tiresome IM conversations and transcripts of phone conversations instead of actually taking the time to write out a page of actual place and setting.

These IM conversations were cute when they were used sparingly, but now it's obvious that Cabot puts too much faith into her dialogue to carry the story. Unfortunately, it is not strong enough to do so. There is a ton of white space throughout the novel and 3 or 4 pages dedicated to the filmography of actress Drew Barrymore. I realize very young girls might find this funny, but it's been overplayed again and again, weaker every time throughout her books.

With edgier, more witty YA novels being sold, her books are no longer as original as they used to seem. Even a thirteen year old can't be expected to laugh at character names like 'Rocky' and 'Knutz.' Jabs at other YA series appear consistently in her books and in her online blog, and jokes are campy and condescending. It's frankly disappointing that a promising series turned into a dismal, frothy mess. There is no heart anymore and it feels like Cabot is pulling storylines out of her butt just to get to the last book in a rush.

Being a 13 year old girl, I thought this book was great. Princess on the Brink (Volume 8), was a major disappointment to me, but in Princess Mia, all of the magic was recaptured.

This book starts off right where Princess on the Brink left off. After Mia and Michael's tragic break-up (To be honest with you, this sort of made me happy. I was never a big fan of Michael to begin with), Mia decides she wants to lay in bed all day and wallow in her grief over their break-up. Her week in bed gets a little old for me, because how many times can you say that you miss Michael? But it flows along fairly quickly. Against her will, her Dad takes her to a cowboy therapist in hopes of getting her out of her "black pit". Lars had to carry her into the building because she refused to go in herself, which was a laugh-out-loud moment for me.

Once she returns back to school, she finds that Lilly is giving her the silent treatment, and later finds out that Lilly was the one behind ihatemiathermopolis.com. Since both of the Moscovitz's turned their back on Mia, she turns to her other friends in her group. Tina, J.P., and Lana (Yes, LANA WEINBERGER), play bigger roles in this book, which made me very happy to see.
J.P. breaks up with Lilly early on in the book and suddenly is now interested in Mia. But the question is, does Mia feel the same way about J.P?

Also, Grandmere is up to her schemes again, and makes Mia speak for Domina Rei, a society of powerful businesswomen. Mia uncovers an old family secret...which might just be the thing that could help her write her speech for Domina Rei, but could also change her fate forever.

Overall, it was a great book. (Mrs. Martinez would hate my lack of descriptive adjectives.) For parents who were worried about Princess on the Brink, just know that there is nothing to really be concerned about in Princess Mia. Meg Cabot's fans will definitely be pleased with her newest edition to the Princess Diaries series.

The ninth Princess Diaries book contains as many surprises as ever in this fun series, and fans of Mia Thermopolis will not want to miss this newest installment. Meg Cabot has stated that the series will end when Mia turns 18, and it's clear from Mia's decisions in PRINCESS MIA that she is growing up and getting ready to take on the throne of Genovia. But first she has to recover from her breakup with Michael. And Lily still is not speaking to her.

J.P. is all-too ready to be friendly with Mia and takes her to see Beauty and the Beast on Broadway to try to cheer her up. The problem is that when you roll with a Princess, chances are you will be photographed in the newspapers with her and listed as her new man --- even in the papers of Japan, where Michael sees them.

Although Mia emailed Michael after he left for his new job in Japan, she is not hopeful about that relationship returning to normal. In fact, he decides that they should be just friends. This is not what Mia wants, but she knows that it's better than nothing. The thing is, she can't quite make herself respond to his now-friendly email; it just hurts too much.

In fact, it all hurts too much for Mia to even get out of bed. She pretends to smile when her friend Tina and her boyfriend Boris try to make her feel better, but she doesn't leave her bedroom or even shower and change for several days. Finally, her father forces her to go to therapy.

Mia's new therapist is from the American West and uses a lot of horse analogies, but he does seem to understand her problems and helps her work through her depression. At least it gives her a brief break from Princess lessons.

Lana gets Mia an invitation to speak at a very exclusive women's organization in front of hundreds of ladies. She even asks Mia to go shopping and joins her for lunch with other popular girls. Everything is turned around in her life, but Mia tries to find her way.

A new hate-filled blog begins showing Mia at her worst, and she very much dreads finding out that her former best friend may be involved.

While preparing for her speech, Mia learns about a teen queen of Genovia who made some radical rules during her very brief reign. These rules may impact the future of Genovia, if Mia can get anyone to listen to her discuss these ideas. Mia strives to find the courage to think for herself in the midst of her sadness and her opposition from Lily, her father and her grandmother.

Being a teen princess in New York was never so complicated or so interesting. While Cabot's trademark humor pulls readers in to Mia's thoughts, the plot threads that begin to tie up this series will keep fans wanting more.

--- Reviewed by Amy Alessio

Meg Cabot has done it again. PRINCESS MIA is Volume IX in THE PRINCESS DIARIES series. I've been hooked on Cabot's humor and the voice of Mia Thermopolis since Volume I, and this second-to-last in the series has me mourning the fact that it will soon be over.

With Michael breaking up with Mia, and Lilly giving her the silent treatment, Mia has hit an all-time low. She refuses to talk with anyone, go to school, or even get out of bed. But never fear - depression "Mia-style" is pretty entertaining. Days of wearing Hello, Kitty pajamas, watching reruns on TV, and destroying her vegetarian ways by binging on any available meat in the frig, will have readers grinning and chuckling aloud.

When friends and family members realize their efforts to get Mia back into the real world have failed, she is forcibly taken to her first-ever therapist appointment. Once she adjusts to the fact that her therapist's name is indeed Dr. Knutz, and that he has a penchant for dressing like a cowboy and telling horse stories, she recognizes that he might actually be able to help her survive her depression.

The usual cast of characters is still in place, with some expanded roles for characters like the "hot" J.P. and the previously irritating Lana. Grandmere provides her own wacky brand of humor, especially as she deals with Mia's depression and a sudden growth spurt that give Mia a much more "womanly" figure.

Plot twists offer readers romance, mental health issues, important social engagements, and challenging "princess" decisions. Mia manages to deal with everything in her always entertaining and quirky way. Fans old and new are sure to have a great time reading PRINCESS MIA.

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

In the penultimate of the series, Mia is all cuckoo from her last falling out with Michael. But instead of it being obnoxious, I actually cared about her. I thought of myself at 16 and how I would deal with a break up. I was actually glad that she had major support from most of her friends. Sending her to a therapist (named Dr. Knutz...haha brilliant, Meg!) was actually a cool twist because he gets to say all of the things to Mia that the reader is thinking.

And you know what else didn't bother me? How clueless she was for 78% of the book. I'm totally okay with it. I think after reading 6 books in the same series, you start to understand the MC way more than you would if there were only one book. Or, uh, hopefully. Also, I'm so glad that she and Lilly aren't on speaking terms in this one. As I said in previous review, Lilly just grinds my gears. She's the strangest friend I've ever encountered in a book. I always feel as though she's judging Mia way too much to be her best friend.

Lastly, I skimmed through a lot of the scenes with the Grandmother. She's never been my favorite character in the books either. Skimming aside, this book was very cool and leaves you on ANOTHER cliffhanger for the next. Even though Mia loves Michael, I'm totally Team JP. A cutie who can take me to any Broadway musical at any time? Yes please! I wish that I would have read these books when I was in high school because I could see myself eating these up!

All in all, Princess Mia is a fantastic addition to the series! Highly recommended for lovers of YA fiction, fans of the series, Meg Cabot and stories told in diary form!

Loved it! I didn't think I would after the way book 8 ended, but I loved it!!!

Mia is really trying to deal with the loss of Michael's love and Lilly's friendship; she finds herself stuck in her Hello Kitty jammies until her father carries her from her bed to a therapist! Mia is coping with a lot, including a shocking discovery of her family's history, that a typical sixteen-year-old would and deals with the disturbances in her life in the same manner.

Cabot has redeemed her series with this book, and I am highly looking forward to read the fallout from Mia's decision(s) in her final installment, Forever Princess.