salreads 's review for:

The Crowns of Croswald by D.E. Night

4.0

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I have really enjoyed reading children/young adults fiction recently. I think that there is a particular feel, a sense of reading without the same rules, a sense of possibility and adventure. I was unfamiliar with this book and this author, but I have become rather fond of stories about the acquisition of magic! The first thing that hits you reading this book is the incredible imagination at work. In this imaginary world you are given such amazingly detailed descriptions. This is the story of Ivy who is whisked away from a life of servitude to attend The Halls of Ivy where children learn to use their magical skills. Ivy is excited to be at the school she has always dreamed of and is amazed to discover her exceptional skills, however it is not long before she realises that there are dark forces at large and the Dark Queen and her entourage are on the move. I felt reading at the start of this book was like beginning a board game. You encounter unfamiliar territory, new terminology, rules and ideas which you need to assimilate to move around the board. This did make the beginning of the book, for me, quite difficult. It is loaded with description and detail and I found it slow simply because there is so much to absorb. Sometimes I wasn’t sure if a word was imaginary or one I didn’t know! Then suddenly it came together and the adventure took over. There is a sense of brooding danger which added to the tension and excitement. I think that young adults will find characters in this book who they will relate to: teenage character traits reveal themselves in the costumery and spell casting. The evolving friendship between Ivy and Rebecca was intuitively portrayed as is the blossoming romance. The character of Derwin Edgar Night is fascinating and illusive and with his reappearance at the end of the book the adventure is all set for the next volume in the series. With thanks to Netgalley and D.E. Night for a digital copy of this intriguing story.