The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal

Princess and heir to the throne of Thorvaldor, Nalia's led a privileged life at court.  But everything changes when it's revealed, just after her sixteenth birthday, that she is a false princess, a stand-in for the real Nalia, who has been hidden away for her protection.  Cast out with little more than the clothes on her back, the girl now called Sinda must leave behind the city of Vivaskari, her best friend, Keirnan, and the only life she's ever known.
Sinda is sent to live with her only surviving relative, an aunt who is a dyer in a distant village. She is a cold, scornful woman with little patience for her newfound niece, and Sinda proves inept at even the simplest tasks.  But when Sinda discovers that magic runs through her veins - long-suppressed, dangerous magic that she must learn to control - she realizes that she can never learn to be a simple village girl.
Returning to Vivaskari for answers, Sinda finds her purpose as a wizard scribe, rediscovers the boy who saw her all along, and uncovers a secret that could change the course of Thorvaldor's history, forever.
A dazzling first novel, The False Princess is an engrossing fantasy full of mystery, action, and romance.

YES! I haven't read an honest to goodness fantasy in awhile, I'm talking knights, princesses, magic castles, the works. So reading The False Princess was a real treat.

I really loved the plot of this book. We've all read the story of a girl suddenly discovering that she's a princess but the girl discovering shes NOT a princess is a whole new take. O'Neal did an excellent job of capturing the emotion Sinda must have felt. I loved that she really incorporated Sindas personality into her emotions, most people would be angry at being shipped off and I loved how she intertwined the sadness and the duty to her country. I loved the friendship between Kiernan and Sinda, they were very realistic friends and watching them realize that they were in love was very enjoyable.

I think that one of the things that made this book so great was the supporting characters, don't get me wrong, I loved Sinda, but without the other characters for her to banter with the novel really would have fallen flat.

A great 2011 Debut! I will definitely be looking for more of O'Neal's books in the future.