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A review by the_bookish_raven
Legend of the Storm Sneezer by Kristiana Sfirlea
5.0
5/5 stars
I received an ARC of this book, and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
Rose Skylar has some rather ambitious career goals: legend seeker, part-time ghost hunter, and time traveler. When she was born, Rose sneezed a storm cloud that continued to follow her around. As you could probably imagine, having a storm cloud constantly with you can be somewhat problematic. Several incidents later, Rose's parents have no choice but to send her away to an asylum for unstable magic. However, Rose didn't expect the asylum to be in a haunted forest. Her life is suddenly full of ghosts, time travelers, and mystery-solving. Crazy, right? At least she has a guardian angel and her future selves around to help her out!
Delightful, whimsical, hilarious, clever, heart-warming, and so much more! There were so many things I loved about this book that I don't know where to start! There is simply no other book out there quite like this one!
Rose, our narrator, is downright hysterical! She has a big imagination and an even bigger heart! She had me laughing throughout the entire novel. Her best friend, Marek, is also an excellent character who participates in her shenanigans and is rather entertaining himself. This is one of those stories where I adored essentially the entire cast of characters! Flawed, quirky, and relatable, the characters are a huge part of what made this story so great! (In particular, I am rather attached to Gor, Silas, and Malachy!)
Next up, the world-building! This story has a lot going on--ghosts, angels, time travel, magic, etc. However, the author managed to weave all of these elements into the plot without them seeming too cliché or excessive! There were many moments where I just had to stop and appreciate how creative and thorough the world-building was without being too complex for middle grade readers.
The plot definitely deserves to be acknowledged! Time travel books can be a huge pain to write, and it's easy for readers to get lost (especially if said readers are middle grade), but Kristiana handled this like a pro! The time travel was clever yet easy to follow, and I don't think it would be difficult for a middle grade reader to understand. Outside of the time travel aspect of the plot, the entire book is action-packed and witty! I was constantly on the edge of my seat, and I adored the plot twists! If I had been given the chance to read this book when I was in middle school, it probably would have been the kind of book I snuck up to my room and read by flashlight under my covers in order to find out what happened next!
And I can't write this review without mentioning how well-written this book is! It's written as a diary with side notes and commentary from the time travelers which is very unique but also probably very challenging to write! Despite this, the story flowed so well, and I found the side notes entertaining! The format actually worked really well for this book. Also, the humor made me literally laugh out loud, and I'm sure a middle grader reader would find this book hilarious!
Middle school me would have adored this book. Rose was the kind of main character that I probably would have wanted to be, and she is still inspiring to me now. I would highly recommend this to middle grade readers, but I would also recommend it to YA and adult readers who enjoy creative stories full of adventure and mischief! I can't wait to continue reading this series, and I'm looking forward to following Rose and Marek on their future adventures!
I received an ARC of this book, and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
Rose Skylar has some rather ambitious career goals: legend seeker, part-time ghost hunter, and time traveler. When she was born, Rose sneezed a storm cloud that continued to follow her around. As you could probably imagine, having a storm cloud constantly with you can be somewhat problematic. Several incidents later, Rose's parents have no choice but to send her away to an asylum for unstable magic. However, Rose didn't expect the asylum to be in a haunted forest. Her life is suddenly full of ghosts, time travelers, and mystery-solving. Crazy, right? At least she has a guardian angel and her future selves around to help her out!
Delightful, whimsical, hilarious, clever, heart-warming, and so much more! There were so many things I loved about this book that I don't know where to start! There is simply no other book out there quite like this one!
Rose, our narrator, is downright hysterical! She has a big imagination and an even bigger heart! She had me laughing throughout the entire novel. Her best friend, Marek, is also an excellent character who participates in her shenanigans and is rather entertaining himself. This is one of those stories where I adored essentially the entire cast of characters! Flawed, quirky, and relatable, the characters are a huge part of what made this story so great! (In particular, I am rather attached to Gor, Silas, and Malachy!)
Next up, the world-building! This story has a lot going on--ghosts, angels, time travel, magic, etc. However, the author managed to weave all of these elements into the plot without them seeming too cliché or excessive! There were many moments where I just had to stop and appreciate how creative and thorough the world-building was without being too complex for middle grade readers.
The plot definitely deserves to be acknowledged! Time travel books can be a huge pain to write, and it's easy for readers to get lost (especially if said readers are middle grade), but Kristiana handled this like a pro! The time travel was clever yet easy to follow, and I don't think it would be difficult for a middle grade reader to understand. Outside of the time travel aspect of the plot, the entire book is action-packed and witty! I was constantly on the edge of my seat, and I adored the plot twists! If I had been given the chance to read this book when I was in middle school, it probably would have been the kind of book I snuck up to my room and read by flashlight under my covers in order to find out what happened next!
And I can't write this review without mentioning how well-written this book is! It's written as a diary with side notes and commentary from the time travelers which is very unique but also probably very challenging to write! Despite this, the story flowed so well, and I found the side notes entertaining! The format actually worked really well for this book. Also, the humor made me literally laugh out loud, and I'm sure a middle grader reader would find this book hilarious!
Middle school me would have adored this book. Rose was the kind of main character that I probably would have wanted to be, and she is still inspiring to me now. I would highly recommend this to middle grade readers, but I would also recommend it to YA and adult readers who enjoy creative stories full of adventure and mischief! I can't wait to continue reading this series, and I'm looking forward to following Rose and Marek on their future adventures!