Valiant
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- USD 9.99
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- USD 9.99
Descripción editorial
Saville hates sewing. How can she not when her father, the Tailor, loves his bolts of velvet and silk far more than he's ever loved her? Yet, when he is struck ill shortly after they arrive in the city of Reggen, Saville must don boy's clothes in the hopes of gaining a commission from the king to keep them fed. The kingdom is soon on edge when stories spread of an army of giants led by a man who cannot be killed. But giants are just stories, and no man is immortal.
And then the giants do come to the city gates, two larger-than-life scouts whom Saville cunningly tricks into leaving. The Tailor of Reggen is the hero of the kingdom, the king promises his sister's hand in marriage, and by the time Saville reaches the palace doors, it is widely known that the Tailor single-handedly killed the giants. When her secret—that she's a girl—is quickly discovered by Lord Galen Verras, the king's cousin, Saville's swept into the twists and turns of court politics.
The deathless man is very real, and he will use his giant army to ensure he is given the throne freely or by force. Now, only a tailor girl with courage and cunning can see beyond the tales to discover the truth and save the kingdom again.
Debut author Sarah McGuire artfully crafts a story of understanding, identity, and fighting to protect those you love most in Valiant, a rich reimagining of "The Brave Little Tailor."
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Debut novelist McGuire gives her ambitious retelling of the Grimms' tale of the Brave Little Tailor a solid dose of girl power. After her mother's death, 17-year-old Saville accompanies her gruff father to the village of Reggen, where he will start up his tailoring business anew. When he is felled by an apoplexy, Saville dresses as a boy, calls herself Avi, and takes on the guise of her father's apprentice. The ruse plays on even after Avi outwits two giants who were scouting Reggen for their mysterious leader, a duke who claims to be an heir of the ancient emperor and "holder of the eternal heart." But when the village learns the true identity of its supposed giant-slaying champion, and an army of raging giants approaches, Saville finds unlikely allies (and romance) as she takes on her next challenge. McGuire crafts a richly detailed cast, and her heroine brings verve to a familiar story. Explanations of the giants' mythology and the mystical eternal heart slow the action a bit, but readers will be rewarded by a satisfying conclusion. Ages 10 up.