Royal Ransom

Anne Hutchings, a former elementary-school teacher-librarian with the
Durham Board of Education, is an educational consultant.

Jamie Ransom, a 13-year-old Cree, finds it strange that his cousin Ray
wants him to act as a guide on his next canoe trip. Even more unusual is
that only four people—two of them kids—are going camping.

The proposed trip nearly ends before it begins when Jamie’s
grandmother recognizes the two children. They are none other than
Princess Victoria and her younger brother, Prince Andrew, heir to the
British throne. After much debate over security issues, Albert and
Nigel, the royal children’s bodyguards, decide that he trip will
proceed as planned. They will, after all, be in the northern wilderness,
far from any threat of danger. Predictably, that is not the case. Before
long, Nigel is dead; Albert and Ray are captives; and Jamie, Victoria,
and Andrew are fleeing for their lives.

Fast-paced, exciting, and funny, this adventure thriller will appeal to
Walters’s usual audience: junior- and intermediate-grade boys. But the
inclusion of the strong, courageous, and resourceful Princess Victoria
character may make it just as enjoyable for girls. And the hint of
romance doesn’t hurt.

Walters skilfully weaves a few “lessons” into the novel. Worth
noting are his orienteering and wilderness-survival tips. More
importantly, he points out the dangers of Internet chat rooms, for it
was through one of them that the kidnappers found out Princess
Victoria’s plans. One of them brags that he had “been talking to our
little Torie for months … gathering information, gaining her trust. Me
knowing exactly who she was, but her thinking that I was a
thirteen-year-old girl!”

Despite the publisher’s disclaimer, many readers will notice some
parallels between the novel’s royals and members of the real Royal
Family. Prince Andrew’s ears and the fact that his and Princess
Victoria’s mother, who had been the most-photographed and one of the
most beautiful women in the world, died in a crash are the most obvious.

Royal Ransom has enough action and suspense to satisfy even the most
demanding reader. Highly recommended.