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mehsi's review
5.0
A chocolate factory (yum!), a quest, a ghost, mean family members, and magic, lots of magic.
This was pretty much a blind buy. I saw this book being promoted on twitter, read a bit on Amazon previews, loved the cover, and just had to have the book. And boy, I am so happy I did, as this was way too much fun to read. It contains all sorts of elements that I love in books. A quest, magic, chocolate, friendship.
Archie finds out that he is now the owner of a factory, and not just a factory, McBudge Confectionery Company and all its stores. It is a famous confectionery, everyone knows McBudge and their delicious goods. Especially their fudge! And it is all for Archie now that his great-uncle died. But it is not as easy as that. Before he can truly do anything, he needs to go on a quest. What the quest entails and also what the reward is? Well, Archie (and his friends) are about to find out.
I loved reading about the factory, about the house, about the town (especially the town, there were so many stories about all the supernatural and wyrde things happening in the town). The author really manages to write everything in a way that I just could imagine myself there, following Archie or when he is together with his friends (and sure the illustrations also worked to show stuff).
The quest? I just loved it, the puzzles, the little details, the hidden books, the hidden everything. With every step I had a clearer image on what was going on and what all the found objects meant.
The secret ingredient? Boy, I just hadn't expected it to be that. It was really fun, and I was just delighted. Oh boy, that is just the best secret ingredient ever.
The only thing I didn't like were the two cousins, and well the aunt was also annoying (very much so actually), but at least she didn't try to murder people. Yes, her kids were all out for Archie. It was just disgusting. Who the hell lets their kids do this crap? I mean, murder, hello? This was one of the reasons I didn't rate the book as high as I wanted. :(
Archie was such a fun character. I liked him immediately, and with each turn of the story he became even better and better. He became stronger as well, and braver. I am happy with how in the end he was brave enough to stand up and do that. Good job!
Fliss? Well, it took me a bit longer to like her. I love a girl with a strong attitude, but hers was a bit too much. How she thought she was just entitled to all sorts of things, how she thought she was so much better. Eventually I started to like her, but still I was a bit hesitant about her. But she did prove to be a great friend and she also learned to be a bit less judgemental about stuff. For which I am thankful.
Then there is Billy, the guy was pretty weird, but I still liked him and how dedicated he was to finding all there is about the town and the surrounding area. He sure has a big knowledge on the place. And he really helped out with the quest.
I knew from the moment that we saw x happening who the ghost was and also had an idea of what was going on.
The ending was brilliant. So happy for everyone involved, though I guess Archie still has a lot of work ahead of him, but I am sure he will do the job fabulously. Go go Archie.
The illustrations were just fabulous!
I am also so delighted that there will be more books featuring these characters and this place. I was already worried that this would just be a solo book. *dances*
All in all, this was a fantastic book, and I could probably have wrote a lot more about it, I would highly recommend this book to everyone! Be sure to read this fun, magical, and chocolate/candy filled book.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
This was pretty much a blind buy. I saw this book being promoted on twitter, read a bit on Amazon previews, loved the cover, and just had to have the book. And boy, I am so happy I did, as this was way too much fun to read. It contains all sorts of elements that I love in books. A quest, magic, chocolate, friendship.
Archie finds out that he is now the owner of a factory, and not just a factory, McBudge Confectionery Company and all its stores. It is a famous confectionery, everyone knows McBudge and their delicious goods. Especially their fudge! And it is all for Archie now that his great-uncle died. But it is not as easy as that. Before he can truly do anything, he needs to go on a quest. What the quest entails and also what the reward is? Well, Archie (and his friends) are about to find out.
I loved reading about the factory, about the house, about the town (especially the town, there were so many stories about all the supernatural and wyrde things happening in the town). The author really manages to write everything in a way that I just could imagine myself there, following Archie or when he is together with his friends (and sure the illustrations also worked to show stuff).
The quest? I just loved it, the puzzles, the little details, the hidden books, the hidden everything. With every step I had a clearer image on what was going on and what all the found objects meant.
The secret ingredient? Boy, I just hadn't expected it to be that. It was really fun, and I was just delighted. Oh boy, that is just the best secret ingredient ever.
The only thing I didn't like were the two cousins, and well the aunt was also annoying (very much so actually), but at least she didn't try to murder people. Yes, her kids were all out for Archie. It was just disgusting. Who the hell lets their kids do this crap? I mean, murder, hello? This was one of the reasons I didn't rate the book as high as I wanted. :(
Archie was such a fun character. I liked him immediately, and with each turn of the story he became even better and better. He became stronger as well, and braver. I am happy with how in the end he was brave enough to stand up and do that. Good job!
Fliss? Well, it took me a bit longer to like her. I love a girl with a strong attitude, but hers was a bit too much. How she thought she was just entitled to all sorts of things, how she thought she was so much better. Eventually I started to like her, but still I was a bit hesitant about her. But she did prove to be a great friend and she also learned to be a bit less judgemental about stuff. For which I am thankful.
Then there is Billy, the guy was pretty weird, but I still liked him and how dedicated he was to finding all there is about the town and the surrounding area. He sure has a big knowledge on the place. And he really helped out with the quest.
I knew from the moment that we saw x happening who the ghost was and also had an idea of what was going on.
The ending was brilliant. So happy for everyone involved, though I guess Archie still has a lot of work ahead of him, but I am sure he will do the job fabulously. Go go Archie.
The illustrations were just fabulous!
I am also so delighted that there will be more books featuring these characters and this place. I was already worried that this would just be a solo book. *dances*
All in all, this was a fantastic book, and I could probably have wrote a lot more about it, I would highly recommend this book to everyone! Be sure to read this fun, magical, and chocolate/candy filled book.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
kirjoihinkadonnut's review against another edition
4.0
Karkkitehtaan kummitus oli kuin yhdistelmä Jalia ja suklaatehdasta, Harry Potteria sekä Malamanteria. Jännittävä tarina piti otteessaan niin lukijan kuin kuuntelijat, juoni tarjoili yllätyksiä ja piti mielenkiintoa yllä. Monipuolinen tarina, joka oli kuitenkin eheä kokonaisuus. Mukavaa luettavaa ja plussaa myös kuvituksesta. Yksi parhaista tämän vuoden lastenkirjoista.
bluewithstars's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this. I ordered it as a possible book for a school topic. It is a great mystery, lots of fun and I really liked the characters.
courtneypaigea's review
4.0
A mystery, chocolate and magic? This was a perfect middle-grade novel about friendship, fun and family.
David O'Connell wrote a great story with quirky and likeable characters, as well as the classic villains, but with a few twists and turns it was an equally fun mystery.
I would recommend this book to all ages as it's charm could bring a few hours of enjoyment to any reader. Very much looking to read more of this writer's works.
David O'Connell wrote a great story with quirky and likeable characters, as well as the classic villains, but with a few twists and turns it was an equally fun mystery.
I would recommend this book to all ages as it's charm could bring a few hours of enjoyment to any reader. Very much looking to read more of this writer's works.
goldenbooksgirl's review
4.0
Set in the fictional village of Dundoodle in Scotland, this tells the story of Archie as he inherits McBudge`s Fudge Factory and must solve a series of puzzles in order to find a hidden missing ingredient required to make the fudge special. I thought the characters were great, especially Archie though I did also quite like his new friends, and getting to meet some of the McBudge`s Fudge staff. The puzzles were so clever, so much so I can only wish I had been able to solve a few, not to mention that I liked them all the more for being themed around sweets. Though I didn’t get to see all of the illustrations as I read a proof, I really liked those I did see and I think this would be a great read for fans of Goodly and Grave. I`m looking forward to the next Dundoodle Mystery, particularly after the very interesting revelations at the end. 4/5
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