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A review by jadeyrae
The Castle of Tangled Magic by Sophie Anderson
5.0
Thank you so much to Usbourne for the Netgalley e-arc of The Castle of Tangled Magic!
The Castle of Tangled Magic follows the adventure of our young heroine, Olia, who's family has lived in Castle Mila for generations, a gorgeous ancestral family castle, holding more magic than one would first assume! As a wild wind story attacks the castle, Olia's grandmother suggests that Olia may be the only one capable of defeating the storm and saving her family's home.
I went into this book with incredibly high expectations, Sophie Anderson is one of my favourite middle-grade authors, with her prior books, The House With Chicken Legs and The Girl Who Speaks Bear, being two of the best MG books I've read. One of my favourite things to read about is Russian folklore-inspired stories, and this is something that Sophie Anderson does so well. With this being one of my most anticipated reads of the year, it's very safe to say that Anderson did not disappoint with this addition to her luscious written world, and I am thrilled to have read this absolute masterpiece.
Olia is a bold and courageous young girl, always putting family first. It was refreshing to see a young sibling relationship in the book that is so wholly built on pure love. Olia's love for her family informs most of the choices she makes, however throughout the course of her journey, she learns much about herself and her family's history that encourages growth in her. Alongside our standout heroine, the cast of side characters Anderson creates is outstanding; something I have loved about Anderson's prior books is the found family aspect, the main character finding their herd, and I adored that about this book too. The characters Olia meets along the way are all so endearing, and as a reader, I cared for each of them individually, Feliks particularly, because he was just stellar!
As always, Anderson delivers a gorgeous and mystical atmosphere in her writing, amplified by the magical settings. Castle Mila is described with such curiosity, you can't help but want to explore every inch of the magical building. But alongside that, the truly magical setting develops more and more each time you turn the page, resulting in a rich and beautiful tapestry of a world.
I found The Castle of Tangled Magic to be an incredibly compelling read, the plot held my interest at every turn, the tension felt real and there was a real sense of danger and the risk-factor throughout were very high. Our characters faced a number of challenges throughout their adventure, keeping the pacing of the plot well driven throughout. It's difficult to put this book down as these characters are moving forward through their journey at such a danger fuelled tempo, you don't want to miss a minute of it.
It would be wrong of me to not also mention the illustrations, which are breathtaking. They add another level to the storytelling, allowing the reader to get a truly fairytale feel.
Overall on CAWPILE this scored 9.57/10 which is an incredibly solid 5-star rating. A Beautiful book that I encourage readers of all ages to pick up.
The Castle of Tangled Magic follows the adventure of our young heroine, Olia, who's family has lived in Castle Mila for generations, a gorgeous ancestral family castle, holding more magic than one would first assume! As a wild wind story attacks the castle, Olia's grandmother suggests that Olia may be the only one capable of defeating the storm and saving her family's home.
I went into this book with incredibly high expectations, Sophie Anderson is one of my favourite middle-grade authors, with her prior books, The House With Chicken Legs and The Girl Who Speaks Bear, being two of the best MG books I've read. One of my favourite things to read about is Russian folklore-inspired stories, and this is something that Sophie Anderson does so well. With this being one of my most anticipated reads of the year, it's very safe to say that Anderson did not disappoint with this addition to her luscious written world, and I am thrilled to have read this absolute masterpiece.
Olia is a bold and courageous young girl, always putting family first. It was refreshing to see a young sibling relationship in the book that is so wholly built on pure love. Olia's love for her family informs most of the choices she makes, however throughout the course of her journey, she learns much about herself and her family's history that encourages growth in her. Alongside our standout heroine, the cast of side characters Anderson creates is outstanding; something I have loved about Anderson's prior books is the found family aspect, the main character finding their herd, and I adored that about this book too. The characters Olia meets along the way are all so endearing, and as a reader, I cared for each of them individually, Feliks particularly, because he was just stellar!
As always, Anderson delivers a gorgeous and mystical atmosphere in her writing, amplified by the magical settings. Castle Mila is described with such curiosity, you can't help but want to explore every inch of the magical building. But alongside that, the truly magical setting develops more and more each time you turn the page, resulting in a rich and beautiful tapestry of a world.
I found The Castle of Tangled Magic to be an incredibly compelling read, the plot held my interest at every turn, the tension felt real and there was a real sense of danger and the risk-factor throughout were very high. Our characters faced a number of challenges throughout their adventure, keeping the pacing of the plot well driven throughout. It's difficult to put this book down as these characters are moving forward through their journey at such a danger fuelled tempo, you don't want to miss a minute of it.
It would be wrong of me to not also mention the illustrations, which are breathtaking. They add another level to the storytelling, allowing the reader to get a truly fairytale feel.
Overall on CAWPILE this scored 9.57/10 which is an incredibly solid 5-star rating. A Beautiful book that I encourage readers of all ages to pick up.