A high fantasy as perfectly shaped and eloquently told as Beauty and The Hero and the Crown...a lavish and lasting treat. -Publishers Weekly McKinley writes with complete assurance, and the novel's climax is both compelling and a delightful change from formulaic fantasy. -The Christian Science Monitor As delicately structure as the chambers of a honeycomb, this novel begs to be read...[Readers] who long for beautiful phrases and descriptive writing will find themselves drinking in this rich fairy tale as if it were honey trickling down their throats. -School Library Journal McKinley integrates the world-building smoothly into a narrative that is a sensory delight, laden with tangible tastes and scents. Themes of stewardship, beekeeping and the power of duty and love flow through the story like the honey described so temptingly. -Booklist