Fairest by Gail Carson Levin (2006)

Plot Summary:  Aza was left on her now parents' doorstep when she was only a baby. Abandoned, she was taken in by them and loved as one of their own, along with their three other children.  Owners of the Featherbed inn, Aza's parents raised her to be a sweet and kind girl, despite the fact that in their village of Ayortha, she is considered homely.  Because she is so unattractive looking with her large boned body and pale skin, Aza keeps to herself, hidden away within the inn.  She is quite helpful to her parents by doing some maid duties for their guests, and Aza has been blessed with a beautiful singing voice. All of the people of Ayortha can sing, but Aza's voice is the best of all.  Since Aza spends most of her time singing while she is working, she was excited to discover one day that she has a peculiar talent-a talent of being able to "throw" her voice.  She begins to practice it again and again, calling it "illusing." 

Aza also finds that she can not only make her voice sound like it is coming from another direction, but she can also make it sound like specific people.  Aza keeps her gift a secret, not wanting to draw attention to herself. 

When a duchess arrives at the inn in preparation for attending the King's wedding, her attendant becomes ill and she requests that Aza takes her place as her traveling companion.  Aza doesn't want to go, but she doesn't really have a choice, and is sent to attend the wedding with the duchess. 

While at the castle,  Aza is practicing her illusing out the in the courtyard thinking that she was alone.  When she finished, she heard clapping, turned around, and realized that she had been watched by the Queen!  The queen's discovery of her gift is disastrous, since she wants to use it for her own dirty deeds.  This discovery is just the beginning of the journey that Aza must complete in order to recognize her own worth and to realize that she needs to look deeper into herself in order to find her beauty.

Genre:  Fantasy

Subjects/Themes: Beauty, singing, fairy tales

Reviews:  *Starred Review* in Booklist, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, VOYA, Kirkus, Horn Book Guide

Age Group:  Grades 6 and up

High Interest Annotation:  A great fairy tale story that will appeal to tween readers who enjoy royal stories.  For those who are fans of Ella Enchanted, this story is set within the same world.  There is also a third novel by the author, Ever.