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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
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
Me gustó mucho, vine por la portada y me quedé por la historia...
Me resultó ameno y super llevadero. Ideal para recomendar a adolescentes, pero aunque yo no lo sea es un libro que disfruté mucho.
Me encantó la forma de narrar de la autora y me resultó muy agradable la protagonista y sus secuaces.
Me resultó ameno y super llevadero. Ideal para recomendar a adolescentes, pero aunque yo no lo sea es un libro que disfruté mucho.
Me encantó la forma de narrar de la autora y me resultó muy agradable la protagonista y sus secuaces.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
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
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
fast-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:
Complicated
📖 Book Review: A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
Mona is a 14-year-old wizard whose powers are limited to bread and baked goods—her familiar is a sourdough starter named Bob, and she can make gingerbread men dance the can-can. She's perfectly content working in her aunt's bakery until the day she finds a dead body on the floor. Soon, Mona realizes that magic-users are being hunted, and she might be next. With the city under threat and no powerful wizards left to defend it, Mona must use her flour-dusted skills in unexpected—and wildly creative—ways to survive.
A darkly whimsical fantasy that blends quirky humor with real stakes, this story is equal parts cozy baking tale and gripping magical adventure.
✅ What I Loved
- 🥖 Unique magic system — Bread golems, carnivorous sourdough, knife-wielding gingerbread men. It's hilarious and brilliant.
- 👧 Mona's voice — A relatable, snarky teen heroine who wants to bake, but rises to the challenge when the city needs her.
- 😂 Quirky worldbuilding — From reanimated horses to Bob the sourdough familiar (my personal favorite), every page has an unexpected magical twist.
- ❤️ Balance of tones — Lighthearted humor woven with darker, more serious themes of persecution, survival, and courage.
- ✨ Terry Pratchett vibes — Witty, clever, and satirical while still heartwarming.
❌ What Didn't Work for Me
- ⚖️ Uneven pacing — Some parts of the mystery resolve a little too quickly compared to the careful buildup.
- 👥 Side characters — While fun, some felt underdeveloped compared to Mona.
🍪 Craving warning — This book will make you hungry for baked goods at very inconvenient times! I had a hankering for gingerbread people.
💬 Favorite Quote
“The gingerbread man began to dance a very respectable hornpipe. Don’t ask me where the cookies get the dances they do—this batch had been doing hornpipes. The last batch did waltzes, and the one before that had performed a decidedly lewd little number that had even made Aunt Tabitha blush. A little too much spice in those, I think. We had to add a lot of vanilla to settle them down.”
🎯 Final Thoughts
Pure delight. T. Kingfisher has baked up something magical here—a story that's equal parts cozy comfort read and sharp, witty adventure. Whether you're a middle-grade reader who loves quirky fantasy or an adult who still wants a sprinkle of magic in their life, this book is a treat.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ / 5
adventurous
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
3.5 stars - would round to 3 if not middle grade book, but I can’t blame the book for not being in its target range
This was so cute and creative! The idea of a bread wizard is just too much fun, and the magic bits of this book really delivered. I do wish we had stuck with Mona's small scale magic, because escalating her skills, while it made for an engaging and exciting plot, raised all sorts of logical issues that you just have to ignore in order to enjoy the book. Plus the society just didn’t read as one with entrenched magic.
I think the rest of what I didn't like about the book is just due to its middle-gradeness. Like Mona was a bit annoying (how many time does she say some variation "it's just bread, what can it do!!??" in this book?). It makes sense that she starts out that way but it seems like her mindset just doesn't change even 80% into the book. Also please this book did not have to be this gross lol. I straight up skipped the garderobe sequence because I just could not handle the visceral disgust.
While the moral lessons were a bit simplistic and in your face, this book has a good exploration of themes for a middle grade book and I appreciate the ideas it's trying to develop in the reader.
Most importantly... the gingerbread man was so cute and I loved him! Best part of the book so he deserves to be on the cover :)
This was so cute and creative! The idea of a bread wizard is just too much fun, and the magic bits of this book really delivered. I do wish we had stuck with Mona's small scale magic, because escalating her skills, while it made for an engaging and exciting plot, raised all sorts of logical issues that you just have to ignore in order to enjoy the book. Plus the society just didn’t read as one with entrenched magic.
I think the rest of what I didn't like about the book is just due to its middle-gradeness. Like Mona was a bit annoying (how many time does she say some variation "it's just bread, what can it do!!??" in this book?). It makes sense that she starts out that way but it seems like her mindset just doesn't change even 80% into the book. Also please this book did not have to be this gross lol. I straight up skipped the garderobe sequence because I just could not handle the visceral disgust.
While the moral lessons were a bit simplistic and in your face, this book has a good exploration of themes for a middle grade book and I appreciate the ideas it's trying to develop in the reader.
Most importantly... the gingerbread man was so cute and I loved him! Best part of the book so he deserves to be on the cover :)
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Going to start this with I didn’t enjoy this, the pacing, dialogue and characters just didn’t hit right. The whole book was written like a messy journal -something like this where the main character tries to constantly butt in to add something-.
While I think the book isn’t bad by any means there was just so many little things that annoyed me and the pacing which was previously mentioned just made this a nightmare read for me.
None of the emotional beats worked and I wished it did because I did love the setting for the book, I wish it was explored slightly more.
While I think the book isn’t bad by any means there was just so many little things that annoyed me and the pacing which was previously mentioned just made this a nightmare read for me.
None of the emotional beats worked and I wished it did because I did love the setting for the book, I wish it was explored slightly more.