Flinn, who is best known for her great realistic fiction for teens, is taking her second stab at writing a modernization of a classic fairy tale. Her last attempt was the great Beastly. She once again does a great time, and it is with the tale of Sleeping Beauty.

Talia is a princess living in the kingdom of Euphrasia in the sixteenth century. For her whole life, she has lived protected and hidden away in the palace for fear that a curse that was set upon her by Malvolio at her Christening would come to pass. It is said that she will be pricked by a spindle before her 16th birthday causing the whole kingdom to fall into a deep slumber. She and the kingdom could only awaken when she receives a kiss of true love.

The tale then jumps ahead to the modern day. Jack, a Floridian teen, is on a summer vacation tour of Europe. He is totally hating it, mostly because he thinks that his parents sent him to get them out of their hair. He and his best friend Travis decide that they have had enough of boring visits to museums and historic sites and decide to take a day off from the tour in the hopes of some fun in the sun at a nearby beach. After irking a salesperson who gives them less than reliable directions, they find themselves in the woodsy frontier of Belgium.

After stumbling through some thick brambles and bushes, they find a large castle in a community that looks like a historical reenactment tourist attraction. The only thing is that all of the workers are asleep. While exploring the village, they find themselves in the castle and come across a beautiful girl. Jack is overcome by his attraction to her and kisses her, awakening everyone around.

Jack and Travis are quickly arrested because they accosted the princess. Talia, who is also attracted to Jack, finds herself feeling bad for Jack's circumstances while also feeling the wrath of her father's ire because she is the reason the kingdom has been in a slumber for the last 300 years. She helps Jack get out of prison and the two runaway together.

Jack is able to arrange for Talia to come home to Florida with him, despite the fact that they are constantly bickering and feigning a dislike of each other. At first his parents and sister Meryl don't like Talia, but her diplomatic skills soon win them over.

Unfortunately, things are not necessarily heading toward a perfect happily ever after ending because Malvolio is back to wreak havoc on the princess. The witch kidnaps Talia, and it will be up to Jack to save her despite doubts about the situation from his parents and the fact that her parents are out to hunt him down as a result of the fact that they think he kidnapped their daughter. Will Jack be able to save the girl and find true love and happiness for the both of them?

Flinn does a masterful job of creating to wonderful characters. Jack and Talia are both realistic sounding teens, and the reader gets a chance to fully get to know them as the chapters alternate between their two perspectives. They both seem to have confident exteriors in which they appear to be who the people around them want them to be, but they also have internal doubts because they know that those roles are not really reflective of their own interests. Their adventures allow them to not only get to know each other better, but also themselves.

The book is also full of humor that seems to mesh Shrek and The Princess Bride into a single tone. Obviously, Talia gets to create some funny moments as she (and others from her time) get exposed to modern day conveniences like phones and planes. The Moonlighting-type interactions that take place between Jack and Talia in the early stages of their relationship are also fun and funny.

My one complaint about the book is the cover. While it is attractive and actually seems to reflect how Talia is described in the book, it (and the title) basically crushes any chance that a guy will pick this one up. It screams girly and romance at the browser. I think it is a shame because the dual voices of the novel would really make it a great read for either sex.