Reviews

Promchanted by Morgan Matson

speculativeshelves's review

3.0

Based on the concept (teens end up in the story of Sleeping Beauty, the story gets messed up and they have to fix it to ensure the characters get their happy ending) I thought I would love this but overall it was just fine. It felt a bit too long and I didn't get attached to the characters. Stella, the narrator, irritated me a bit and by extension I never cared much about the romance between her and Reece. That being said, I did quite enjoy seeing them interact with Aurora, Phillip, and the fairies and overall their ending was satisfying.

Overall I think the main reason I didn't enjoy this as much as I thought I would is because I'm not the target YA audience. It's overall a fun story (I think it would make a fun DCOM) and I definitely think Disney-obsessed tweens/teens looking for a lighthearted read would really enjoy this.

erinlikesreading's review

5.0

This story was seriously so cute. I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting— but it wasn’t this.

This FELT like a movie, an unexpected adventure that was equal parts sweet and fun. I absolutely loved how the MCs went from strangers who mostly disliked each other, to friends, to more.

I loved that the male lead was the one with all of the knowledge of Sleeping Beauty, and that the female lead had no idea what was going on. I loved both of them as characters as well. She learns to take a slower step back, he learns to enjoy his life for what it is. I just thoroughly enjoyed this story and I look forward to sharing it with my students.

graciouswarriorprincess's review

adventurous funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

kayleigh_reads_romance's review

Wasn’t feeling the story or the characters

readwithtabi's review against another edition

adventurous funny relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

nvjtgll13's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

bookgirlandthewombat's review

adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

3.5

lisaluvsliterature's review

adventurous funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This is my first book by this author, but I’ve wanted to read her for a while. And this was the perfect one to start with too I think! Now, I’ve only been to Disneyworld, never Disneyland, so I didn’t realize it was not Cinderella’s castle at both parks. Sleeping Beauty was one of my favorites, maybe even more so than Cinderella? So it was fun to have this story where our characters ended up being dropped into the world of that fairy tale.

Stella and Reece first get a weird glimpse in the castle of the scene at the beginning of the movie when Maleficent shows up and curses Princess Aurora. But then they get back to their own time and can only assume it was some kind of weird immersive experience with actors and such. The leave, but then when Reece can’t find his phone and they go back to find it, they get lost into that same corridor only this time they end up in the fairy tale a week ahead of all the big happenings when the prince meets Aurora.

They realize they have to make sure the story goes the way it is supposed to, because now Prince Philip, or Phil as he is going by so that people don’t “know” he is the prince, has met her. Reece convinces him to keep it a secret, which he also wants to do. Over the week Stella stays in the tree home with the three fairy godmothers, or who Rose/Aurora thinks are her aunts. And Reece stays with the prince. They meet up every day, keeping it especially secret from the fairies, and the two get to know each other. Reece and Stella barely knew each other, but had issues with each other, and of course they also get to know each other.

Stella’s pessimistic view of romance, caused by her boyfriend recently breaking up with her before prom, is something she must fight to help keep this story on track. Reece knows the story by heart because his younger sister loves the movie, but he’s got his own family issues. In the end it’s a sweet romance, rom-com, fairy tale. My first book by this author, and now I know I need to read more!

pagingmrsvarnum's review

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This book is absolutely a delight for grownup Disneyland and fairytale fans! Stella is a super organized and driven junior in high school who gets dumped right before prom and is feeling more than a little jaded by the whole “Happily Ever After” motif. However, she and her best friend have been planning to start their prom night at Disneyland since they were in elementary school, so she gets dressed up and heads out to the Most Magical Place on Earth with a group of friends and a new guy in school named Reece. Stella and Reece don’t get along but unwittingly stumble into a wormhole from Sleeping Beauty’s Castle in Disneyland Park to the actual Sleeping Beauty movie.

I enjoyed this book, but I think it will appeal to a very specific audience. The book is marketed as Young Adult, but honestly I think it’s a better fit for 6th-8th graders. It’s pretty wholesome and juvenile and a bit on the cheesy side - but isn’t that part of what we love about Disney?! A big part of my enjoyment had to do with all the Disneyland easter eggs sprinkled throughout the contemporary chapters, and my knowledge of the movie added to the fairytale plotline. I don’t know that someone who wasn’t a middle grade lit and Disney parks\/movie fan would enjoy this book as much.

That being said, if you fall into that reader category, I definitely recommend this book! It’s a fun ride and had me laughing out loud more than once. I really related to the main character and was rooting for her the whole time!

abbyandallthebooks's review

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75