Pennyroyal Academy

Pennyroyal Academy is opening its doors to everyone.  For years, the academy has only trained those of noble birth to become princesses, but now anyone has a chance.  A girl with no name sees the posting and determines to join the academy.  She doesn't really know why, just that she is compelled to go.

When she arrives, she gets a name, Evie, and understanding begins to dawn on her.  Being a princess means fighting witches, the most powerful evil force in the land.  Pennyroyal Academy is accepting anyone who applies because the witches are gaining power, destroying lives and kingdom as they sweep across the land.

Evie has never fit in with her family or even met any other people.  Now she is thrown into a world of magic and shifting alliances.  While not everyone at the academy welcomes the penniless girl wearing a dress made of spiderwebs, she will make new friends.

As Evie's past is slowly revealed, the danger grows, and suspicion lurks at every corner.

M.A. Larson's series opener is a good pic for fairy tale and magic fans alike.  My only real complaint is the "training" the girls receive seems a bit dubious..