In 1700s New Zealand an old woman begs for food in an impoverished South Auckland with nothing to give her. Eventually, a beautiful young woman hands her a grapefruit. The young woman is called Immoral and the old woman’s name is Virtuous. When Virtuous eats the fruit, she is transformed into a young beauty, fish fill the sea and barren lands sprout fruit. Upon hearing of the return of magic after hundreds of years, the king of prosperous Milford Sound sends his son, Prince Victor, to meet the mysterious beauty. The arrogant prince is quickly humbled and in love with the girl. When he leaves, she loves him too, but dares not reveal who she truly is. After he leaves, Virtuous cries alone in her room and South Auckland is wrecked by rains and floods.
In Milford Sound, the king is angered to hear his son’s professions of love, to this sorceress of ignoble birth, and when he forbids his son’s wish to marry, the prince defiantly leaves his father and many noble suitors to ride back to South Auckland.
Virtuous is eventually roused from her sorrows by a wise child, Jeanette, who convinces her to share her feelings with Victor just in time for his arrival. They embrace and confess their love for each other. Virtuous agrees to marry him on the condition she stays who she is and can visit South Auckland. He sneaks her back to the palace and when the king is told, his rage causes him to have a fit that leaves him in a coma. When he rises, the king and Virtuous have harsh words for each other, Virtuous cares little for their bigoted society, but she feels compelled to prove herself by accepting to face a series of challenges for the right to marry the prince.
The first task is to clean the moat by herself, which she does in the afternoon. She accomplishes the second, retrieving a magic crystal called the Great Hematite from an enchanted forest, after killing a troll with Victor’s sword. After she cooks a feast for the whole palace for the third challenge, the king privately admires her capabilities but will not relent because of her being born a peasant. Even the vizier, Cassadra, urges her to flee before attempting the next challenge, but Virtuous successfully defeats the scaled monster that guards a magic golden fern.
The king decides to throw a ball in Virtuous honor. They suspect a ruse, but Virtuous is overjoyed to meet Jeannette and the other Aucklanders, while Cassandra begins to wonder if Victor might be under a spell after all. She also meets a chilling visitor, Princess Sarah. For the fifth and final challenge, Virtuous faces a great demonic snake that swallows her whole. A month later, Victor is as despairing and desolate as the rain devastates Milford Sound. He learns his father plans for him to wed Sarah, and he agrees because he no longer cares. Meanwhile, a flash of light occurs in the belly of a great beast. To be continued. Overall, a great book that is perfect for the family since it is very family-friendly. I can see how this book can be very appealing to the younger audience. My only critique of the book is making it a little bit more gory or bloody in some battle scenes between the hero character Virtuous and the Dark Fiends, but other than that, it is a nice read for everyone to enjoy.