The Rescue Princesses 13 – The Enchanted Ruby

Paula Harrison's The Enchanted Ruby is a Rescue Princesses story for 7 year olds about a birthday girl, a runaway baby otter and a castle full of royal guests.

What happens

It's book 13, but it starts with a brand new set of princesses. Princess Scarlett lives at Bearbrook Castle in the wild Kingdom of Deronda, and she's about to turn nine. Her cousin Ella has sent her a box of tiny silver chisels and a hammer, for making magic jewels.

Ella's letters are full of a secret club of princesses who rescue animals. There are ninja moves and magic jewels, and Scarlett is desperate to try it all herself! She's learning how it works at the same time as your reader.

Her chance comes quickly. Two princesses arrive for the party, bubbly Lily and shy Zina. Scarlett takes them over the stepping stones to her secret island, where a family of otters plays below a waterfall.

Then a speedboat roars up the river and crashes into the bank. The otters scatter, and the smallest one, Sparky, is left behind with a sore paw. And why would two men who say they're fishing have no fishing rods?

Sparky is the star of the book. He vanishes from his box of jumpers during the royal banquet. The girls finally find him paddling in the king's bath (next to the king's crown-shaped sponge).

They lure him out with a packet of fish pinched from the kitchen, which they've already wafted round half the guest bedrooms. At breakfast the next morning, the visitors are complaining about a funny smell!

There's a mystery bubbling underneath too. A bearded king who never smiles glares at Scarlett across the banquet table. Late that night she spots him wandering round the dark hall with a torch. Then the guests' jewellery goes missing, and so does Scarlett's ruby.

It's lovely watching the three girls turn into friends. Lily isn't sure she believes in magic jewels at all, which gives Scarlett a real wobble when her first go at carving the ruby doesn't seem to do anything. Zina is quiet but always ready to help.

If you've got a reader who loves animals, a bit of sneaking about and a puzzle to work out, this one is a treat. The two men on the boat are rude and sneery rather than scary.

What to read next

Scarlett learns from Ella's letters that the club began with a baby deer. If your reader wants to see that very first rescue, The Secret Promise has four princesses at a grand ball and a young deer caught in a trap.