Common Sense Media Review
By Michael Berry
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
A girls-vs.-boys twist in magic-filled sequel.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 11+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 3 parent reviews
Based on 21 kid reviews
Kids say this book evokes mixed reactions, with some praising its deeper plot and complex themes about friendship, gender, and self-acceptance, while others find it inappropriate for younger readers due to its dark undertones and instances of violence. Overall, it offers engaging characters and twists, but emotional and dramatic elements may not suit all audiences, particularly younger kids.
- mixed quality
- character depth
- complex themes
- age suitability
- dark undertones
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
A WORLD WITHOUT PRINCES finds best friends Sophie and Agatha back at home, seemingly with all their problems from the first volume of The School for Good and Evil solved. But when Agatha inadvertently wishes for a happy ending with Tedros, her handsome prince, she and Sophie find themselves whisked back to the School -- only everything about it seems to have been changed. Now the boys and the girls are separated into two institutions, without regard to who's evil and who's not. As a war between the sexes brews, Agatha and Sophie must decide whether their friendship is worth saving ahead of true love.
Is It Any Good?
A World Without Princes has its moments of fun and excitement, though the narrative often feels rushed and repetitive. This second book finds a new wrinkle on the premise presented in the trilogy's first volume: By switching up everything up so that the main conflict is now between the Boys and the Girls, author Soman Chainani finds more opportunities for epic confrontations, underhanded scheming, and some satirical observations about the nature of fairy tales.
Unfortunately, the plot sometimes seems as if it's merely marking time until the climactic battle. Complications arise in every chapter, but they can be only minor variations on a theme. And Chainani's prose is much sloppier this time around. He never misses an opportunity to use a synonym when "said" will suffice, and he frequently makes odd verb choices.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about why fairy tales are so popular in so many different media: literature, film, TV, theater, comics, etc.
Are there fundamental differences between boys and girls? Is it better to keep them apart or together in school?
Could you make a choice between your best friend and your "true love"?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Fairy Tale
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic , Fairy Tales ) , Friendship
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : HarperCollins Children's Books
- Publication date : April 15, 2014
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 12
- Number of pages : 448
- Available on : Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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