The Orphan's Wish by Melanie Dickerson

From the streets of the Holy Land to an orphanage in a faraway kingdom, Aladdin has grown up alone. Until he meets Kirstyn. With a father who is the duke of Hagenheim and a mother who is the patroness of the orphanage where Aladdin lives, Kirstyn is a member of the most powerful family in the land ... and way out of his league.

This story started with Aladdin, so it was very interesting. However, as the story progressed, I found it really hard to like Kirstyn. I enjoyed the plot, but I couldn't quite like her.

3.5 personal rating; would give four stars if I was the intended YA audience.

This is a great, clean book that I would hand to any teen girl without batting an eye. There are some scenes with a bit of violence, but not a bunch of gore. There is a kidnapping, so heads-up to those who might dislike that element, but otherwise there's really nothing to warn against.

It was a really quick read for me and it was nice that it wasn't too terribly predictable. Aladdin and Kirstyn are enjoyable characters and the Gerstenberg family was a pleasant one as usual.

A few modern turns of phrase in conversation got on my nerves, as well as a man being called Priest (historically, he would be Father ___, not “priest”) and a few other such things. Super stars go to Dickerson for using blonde/blond correctly, since this is an error that has really been on my nerves in a whole stack of books lately.

It was fun to see an interracial couple, since that isn't often seen in CF.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy. A favorable review was not required.