Holly and the Rose Garden

Holly and the Rose Garden
Darcey Bussell

Return to the magical world of Enchantia in the captivating third series of Magic Ballerina by Darcey Bussell!Holly is surprised to find herself in a beautiful rose garden, with her trusty guide, the White Cat nowhere to be seen. As she turns round, she sees a man picking a white rose whilst an ugly beast watches from the shadows. Holly knows that she is seeing the ballet of Beauty and the Beast unravelling before her eyes, but something seems to be going horribly wrong…

Copyright (#ulink_bff3dacb-3660-5cca-9a8c-a74873196c12)

First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins Children’s Books 2009 HarperCollins Children’s Books A division of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, 77–85 Fulham Palace Road Hammersmith London W6 8JB

www.harpercollins.co.uk (http://www.harpercollins.co.uk)

Text copyright © HarperCollins Children’s Books 2009 Illustrations copyright © HarperCollins Children’s Books 2009

MAGIC BALLERINA™ and the ‘Magic Ballerina’ logo are trademarks of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

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Source ISBN: 9780007323227

Ebook Edition © DECEMBER 2014 ISBN: 9780007509287

Version: 2014-11-20

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Welcome to the world of Enchantia!

I have always loved to dance. The captivating music and wonderful stories of ballet are so inspiring. So come with me and let’s follow Holly on her magical adventures in Enchantia, where the stories of dance will take you on a very special journey.

p.s. Turn to the back to learn a special dance step from me…

To Phoebe and Zoe, as they are the inspirationbehind Magic Ballerina.

Table of Contents

Cover Page (#ucd677729-0aa1-52f4-b718-e7f2a6b060ce)

Title Page (#u695e1137-6018-521d-b52d-c4f65d267076)

Copyright (#ufdd7e74b-210d-5572-9a69-0b39d1e9742d)

Dedication (#u539a7517-df7e-574f-bdb8-451339d3176c)

Author’s Note (#ue9d6e4bb-b6a4-5434-8f9e-fba97a355dee)

Map (#u1f0ebcd4-6791-562b-953d-9ef58459809b)

Prologue (#u7c0a3ef8-2d67-5c0e-b06f-7e9936d9fa48)

1. The Rose Garden (#ud24dd468-ae4c-58e2-89bf-f8aa2c267ddd)

2. In the Castle (#udc021733-8c99-56aa-983e-28c7740fb912)

3. A Crazy Castle (#litres_trial_promo)

4. The Magic Mirror (#litres_trial_promo)

5. Finding Beauty (#litres_trial_promo)

6. True Love (#litres_trial_promo)

7. Home Again (#litres_trial_promo)

Darcey’s Magical Masterclass (#litres_trial_promo)

Keep Reading (#litres_trial_promo)

Acknowledgements (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

Map (#ulink_6d93dc54-4b25-53f5-9bde-d0da9b78f610)

Prologue (#ulink_ae989fc2-4c28-5a01-a5cf-adf44ccff83c)

In the soft, pale light, the girl stood with her head bent and her hands held lightly in front of her. There was a moment’s silence and then the first notes of the music began. For as long as the girl could remember music had seemed to tell her of another world – a magical, exciting world – that lay far, far away. She always felt if she could just close her eyes and lose herself, then she would get there. Maybe this time. As the music swirled inside her, she swept her arms above her head, rose on to her toes and began to dance…

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Holly Wilde skipped down the steps of her ballet school. Twirling around, she thought about the class she had just finished. Her teacher, Madame Za-Za, had been teaching them to dance like baby swans. They were holding an open day for parents and that was the dance Holly’s class were going to be performing.

Feeling happy, Holly danced a few of the steps. As she moved forward, stepping first on to one leg and then the other, a picture of her mum doing the same dance up on her pointes a few years ago came into her mind. Holly’s happiness ebbed away slightly. Her parents, who were divorced, both worked for different ballet companies, which meant they were away travelling a lot. Holly had come to live with her aunt and uncle.

It had been hard at first, but it had helped that an amazing thing had happened to her. She’d been given a pair of red ballet shoes that were magic! They had the power to whisk her away to Enchantia – a land where characters from all the different ballets lived.

It was wonderful to have magic in her life, but it didn’t stop Holly missing her mum and dad. Before she had come to live with her aunt and uncle, she and her mum had travelled everywhere together.

Holly sighed as she walked through the ballet-school gates. She couldn’t help wishing that she was going home to show her mum the steps she was learning for the open day.

A car drew up. It was Holly’s aunt.

“Hi, Holly!” she said and smiled.

“Hi,” Holly replied, opening the door.

“There’s a nice surprise waiting for you at home,” her aunt said. “Your costume for the open day has arrived.”

Holly brightened up. “Oh, wow!” She couldn’t wait to get back!