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Summary: The Hero and the Crown
Review: The Hero and the Crown is about a girl named Aerin. She is the king's daughter and a bad rumor follows her around like a shadow. Her mother bewitched the king to get him to marry her, the rumor says. Furthermore, Aerin's mother died of dispare when she learned she had given birth to a daughter instead of a son (in those days it is nearly impossible for a woman to become qween when not married to the king). When she finds a formula that makes you unburnable (after about 1000 tries and quite a few burnt fingers) she decides to become a dragon hunter. When a huge dragon named Maur awakens it will test Aerin to the peak of her abilities.
Rating: 
Summary: Should probably just be called The Hero
Review: Aerin is the only child of the King of Damar but she is not in line to succeed him. Her mother was a foreigner and rumored to have been a witch and the country also fears Aerin may take after her. So, Aerin grows up not really having a place in the kingdom she loves but wanting to find a way to serve it. She knows that a life as a court lady isn't for her and she soon becomes interested in dragon slaying. She begins slaying small dragons but she soon discovers that an ancient giant dragon has awoken. Although, I didn't really like this book as much as the other McKinley books I've read it's still a darn good book. Aerin is a heroin that you can get really attached to. The action in the book is terrific and action scenes usually bore me to tears. The romance scenes, though brief, are very touching. The reason I feel that this book doesn't quite measure up to McKinley's others is that the last third of the book is far too rushed. Aerin's strongest enemy seems to just come out of nowhere and the battle that results isn't nearly as interesting as the earlier battles. Also, it was not really explained in enough detail why the crown was so important. Another large problem was that Aerin's horse (not that I don't love that horse) was given more personality then either of her love interests. However, I still feel that the book deserves five stars because of the strength of it's heroine. Aerin really is one of the most endearing fantasy heroines I've ever come across.
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Summary: Better than Potter, better than His Dark Materials
Review: I thought I found the greatest young adult fantasy novel in The Golden Compass, until I read this. Aerin is stronger and smarter than any female protagonist I have come across in the genre. The storyis compelling. McKinley effectively uses flashbacks to show instead of tell why Aerin is stand-offish, stubborn, and nearly invisible in her father's court. Aerin possesses a bravery that neither Harry Potter nor Lyra do--she goes willingly to face evil and save her world, knowing full well the magnitude of her quest. The supporting characters are brilliantly drawn, from Tor, her only friend, to Gallana, her nemesis at court, to Talat, her horse, each has a personality and a place in the tale. I highly recommend this novel and look forward to reading others by McKinley.
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Summary: I couldn't put this down!
Review: When I first began this book,I thought it was confusing.Then ,as soon as Aerin was reading the Damar
history book ,things got interesting.Here is the plot:
Aerin is a princess of Damar ,but has never been treeted as if this was true .The people whisper that her mother was a witchwoman,and members of the court harrass her.Then , she finally succeeds in making kenet ,a dragonfire -proof ointment that she has been striving to make for two years.She begins to slay dragons,not huge dragons as we know them,but small,viperous ones.After she slays Maur,a huge dragon,a mysterious man named Luthe tells her that Agsded ,a powerful magician has prepared an army to conquer Damar.This book is so good!
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Summary: A thrilling fantasy novel by Robin McKinley
Review: Aerin is the King's daughter, first sol to Damar, but the country fears her. Everyone gossips about her mother, the witchwoman who cast a spell on the king to make him fall in love with her. When she gave birth to an heir, she died from shame when learning it was a girl, and therefore could not inherit the kingdom. As a result of the Aerin has grown up wild, learning how to ride and fight. She dreams of becoming a fierce dragon killer, not a proper lady who goes to court. Strangely enough after a strange twist of events she gets a chance to make her dream come true. But is she ready for this challenge? Damar is facing another challenge. They are being attacked by a northern country with strange demon-magic that the country of Damar is not aware of. Through Aerin's many adventures she realizes that her worst enemy is closer to her than she had ever imagined. The only way she can defeat him and save her country is by finding the legendary Hero's crown. Will she be able to do this? Or will she be killed before then? After reading Beauty, The Outlaws of Sherwood, and the Blue Sword, I was excited about reading another work by the talented author, Robin McKinley. This book did not leave me disappointed. It's a thrilling medieval fantasy tale with non stop action and magic. The characters are absolutely amazing. Aerin is a wonderful hero that you can't help relating to. I found myself liking this book even more than The Blue Sword, another story of Damar, from a much different time. The only thing that disappointed me was Aerin's choice on love. But even that didn't impair my enjoyment that much. I highly recommend this book to any fans of Robin McKinley's other works or authors such as Tamora Pierce and Diane Wynne Jones.
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Summary: The adventures of a Lady Dragonslayer
Review: Aerin is the often despised daughter of a well-loved king. Rumors and speculations have followed her all her life. The people say that her mother was a witch who enchanted the king in order to marry him and place a child of her own on the throne. They also say that the lady died as soon as she learned that she had born a girl. The rumors are the least of Aerin's problems. She struggles to be ladylike and make a place for herself in the court. But it is not in her nature to be a dutiful and idle court decoration. Instead, she turns to swordplay, riding, and herbal experiments and finds her true talent...for dragonslaying. There's so much more to the story than that, but I don't want to completely ruin the book for you. If you are a Robin McKinley fan, give this book a try. It is romantic and adventuresome and I doubt that you will be disapointed.
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Summary: The Hero and the Crown
Review: The Hero and the Crown was an interesting novel with many ups and downs. It was dull at some parts, yet exciting at others. The beginning was probably the dullest part. It droned on and on about the main character, Aerin, and her past life. The "Story" dosen't actually start to about chapter 4 or 5. Yet, some parts were interesting. For example, when Aerin goes into battle with Maur the Black Dragon, my blood froze with fear, and boiled with excitement with the battles many flucuations. Yet again, the dull parts of the book come around. Aerin's many nights with her lover, Luthe, were even more borin than the beginning. But overall te book was okay. The best part in the novel was probably the battle with the Northerners. The detail in which the battle was given was so Realistic and exciting! Yet the worse part in the novel is probably to dull to even read. What should be a great, 30 page battle when aerin fights the Enemy leader turns out to be a half-page of Aerin's childhood memories. That saddended me deeply. When Aerin is described in the novel with flaming red hair, and outgoing personality, along with her other descriptions, you can imagine her character so vividly you have no doubt the entire novel to what she looks like. And the ending is great as well, with a perfect tie-in to the sequel, "The Blue Sword".
Rating: 
Summary: The Hero and the Crown
Review: Unfortunately for Robin McKinley, her fantasy story The Hero and the Crown does not stand a chance when compared to the popular Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien. The Hero and the Crown is the 1983 Newberry Honor book. It talks about perseverance being essential in everyday life and also deals with not judging people based on gossip. Some people may thing this book is outstanding, but I have reason to believe otherwise.
Although The Hero and the Crown has its good points, I greatly disliked the book. The main character, Aerin, repeatedly has pre-marital sex with one of her lovers ("...and if you choose to sleep with me again, it is not sleep you will be getting," page 206). Bad language is also used several times throughout the book. The first chapter with its immense amount of names and fictional terms and Aerin's dreams both prove to be rather confusing. However, there are, as I mentioned, a few good points in the book such as McKinley's vivid descriptions of events as seen on page 217. She also includes suspense, plot turns, and excellent characterization for people we can relate to. All in all, I would not recommend The Hero and the Crown to anyone, not even to someone loves fantasy.
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Summary: Fabulous Fantasy
Review: I first read The Blue Sword, the sequel to The Hero and the Crown, when I was in high school. I didn't even know about this book until someone mentioned that they'd read it. I thought to myself that if this book was anything like The Blue Sword, I had to have it. It did not disappoint. I got it in and I did not want to put it down! The story just pulls you in. This book tells the story of Aerin, a princess who goes from being an outcast, looked down on by members of the royal court for her mother's questionable past, to being the legendary fire haired warrior queen, Aerin Dragon-Killer. This book is well written, if a bit short for my taste, (I want more!)and you really identify with heroine. You want things to turn out well for her. I highly recomend this book to fantasy lovers of any age.
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Summary: great book!
Review: I absolutely loved this book. It's the story of Aerin, the daughter of the hated Northern woman who bewitched the king into marrying her. Aerin is trying to get people at court to recognize her as the king's daughter while still remaining hidden. She decides to go off and fight dragons. She discovers the secret of her mother and finds two true loves along the way. The sequel is wonderful, too.
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