This is an unusual book. Our main character has been waiting, her entire life, to be chosen. For what you might ask? Well, to be the heroine of her own story. Frankly, this is a very creative story. It's punny and yet deep. It's great for kids and adults. It's a read that makes you want more, now, please! There's a mix of almost everything in here, from magical like things, to a huge cast of characters that come from all over the place. Most of all, the struggle of a sidekick, who might be more of a heroine than just an assistant. It's a lot of fun, and wait till you see how Fable is saved. I think I could re-read this one easily.

Thanks, Net Galley. This review is my own and a positive review is never required.

This is the first book in the Talespinners series.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast paced and had a little bit of a HP vibe to it. I read it with my 8year old and he loved it. The characters are fun and well rounded and the story itself was so much fun!

Saving Fable is a darling of a book! It has a great moral hidden behind great characters and adventures. Your child will enjoy reading this story that mentions a lot of their favorite authors and characters.

Reintgen is quickly becoming a favorite author.

This tale is a super fun use of the parts of a story and the publishing industry. I immediately looked for the second installment, along with sharing this will all of my co-workers and promoting it to many other interested readers.

Keep them coming!

3.5 stars!

An absolute delight of a story! Middle-grade books are slowly but surely becoming too young for me. But this one was interesting enough to keep me on my toes. Scott Reintgen is such an underrated author, he hasn’t let me down yet!

Saving Fable is the start of what I think is going to be a fun and exciting series. This concept was built for book lovers. The amount of creativity that went into each aspect is just brilliant. The world-building was so fun, the magic city, the school, the bookmarks, dog ears, it was all amazing.

Now I don’t want to get too much into the actual plot, because I think it’s more interesting if you just jump in. Especially in a unique adventure such as Saving Fable. But I will say, this book has a lovely diverse cast of characters and such a rich exciting plot.

If you are looking for an awesome middle-grade read then definitely pick this one up. I can see it becoming a favorite for many!

I have been a big fan of Scott since Nyxia and as his newer books I release, I still manage to stay a fan. I love the way he pulls you into the story and his pacing is amazing. The characters in this were cute and enjoyable to read about and their storylines were very fun.

Love it! An adorable and adventurous middle grades novel with some fun characters and wonderful world-building. I enjoyed the other "characters" from different well-known works sprinkled throughout this book. What a great start to a series. I'm already looking for the sequel. Strongly recommended. Net Galley Feedback

The whole time I was reading this book, I kept thinking of people I wanted to recommend it to. Indira's greatest wish is to be a character in a story. When she gets selected to go to Fable and train, it's a dream come true - until, of course, things happen. The classes are great, and taught by some beloved classic characters, and Fable is also great with the characters, the (book)Marks, and more. Indira is a character I'd love kids to read about, but I enjoyed this equally as much as an adult. Plus, this story celebrates a love of books. There are so many references (and I'm sure I didn't catch them all) to classic and modern literature. I loved it!

Indira Story is a great character in Saving Fable. From when we first meet her in Origin and throughout her journey we see her learn what it means to be a protagonist in your own story. There were some parts where she wanted to give up and go to Quiver or the Antagonist school, however she overcame her issues and tried to save Fable instead.

Maxi and Phoenix work great as secondary characters, whilst fitting the trope of two best friends. I particularly liked Maxi’s story arc as she recieves a hero’s gold jacket when first arriving at school, which completely alters her actions towards Indira, but then they talk it out like smart people.

The villains of the story were quite fun as your didn’t know who they were going to be. It takes a lot of time to get to the bottom of who the villain is, and it was a good twist. I especially loved the motivations behind their actions, and Reintgen took time to ensure this was clear for the reader.

Whilst most characters we meet at first are auditioning to be heroes and sidekicks, some characters in Fable audition for much smaller roles. Mrs. Pennington and her son Patch audition to be the protagonist’s family whilst at school. The Adoption Agency was a gorgeous scene, where we really learn more about each of the characters due to them matching up to their families. I also loved how good of a mother Mrs. Pennington was to both Patch and Indira – and how she really helps in the story. This was a subversion of the normaly dead or oblivious parents trope.

I loved the world building of this book. All the areas are named about books – so we start of in Origin but then move across to the town of Fable. This is where Protagonist Preparatory is, and I enjoyed how Fable was constantly changing up what it looked like. Similar to a collection of fairy tale stories, each chapter had a different setting with just as much magic.

Protagonist Preparatory was brilliantly thought out. From the classes of Love by Page 12, I Thought You Were Dead, and How to Get Captured and Narrowly Escape – which were intriguing. Alice in Wonderland’s Alice was a brilliant teacher. Plus the different hearths you can sit under for certain power ups was a lovely touch. I’d love to be able to sit down somewhere to build my courage!

The overall theme of the story is that everyone can be a hero of their *own* story – or at least that’s what I took from Saving Fable. You may have been placed in certain boxes, but you can always work your way upwards.

I loved the motivation Indira has at the start of the book, and the action near the end. I found the middle to get a little it muddled and messy plot-wise, and I didn’t really know what was happening. However, the world building and characters made up for this.

I loved that this book is a bit of a love letter to books and reading in it’s own way. Based on books means it broke the fourth wall a little bit, it narrated itself and pointed out tropes and aspects of writing that make you laugh.

Positives of Saving Fable
Strong characters
Clever plot
Negatives of Saving Fable
Gets a bit muddled in the middle

Side characters—or characters-in-waiting—in a fast-paced adventure? Sounds like the set up to a fabulous middle grade novel and one that should be a quick and fun read to help get your reading count up before the end of the year! I was so excited for this one and glad I was able to include it in my list of Books to Read Before 2020 for The Young Folks!

Since reading Nyxia a few years back I have been a huge fan of Scott Reintgen (if you haven’t read that go do it!). When I was offered the chance to read and review his latest middle grade book I was really excited. Plus the premise sounds fantastic, right? And luckily it was a fantastic read. I loved the characters the Reintgen created and the world they inhabit. There is something so cool about reading a book about characters who are waiting to become characters in a book someday. Its kinda crazy but also amazing. I really enjoyed the friendship and themes found within the book as well and I think that this will be a fantastic book for young readers!

Cute story. A little bit overdone in the reference to story building (Protagonist Prep?). Would love to see more of the dark side developed in future books in this series.

Title: Saving Fable

Series: Talespinners#1

Author : Scott Reington

Genre: Middle Grade

Pages

Rating :4.5:





Side characters can be heroes too in this charming and fast-paced adventure that is The Land of Stories meets The Phantom Tollbooth!

Indira has been a character-in-waiting her entire life. So she can't believe her luck when she's finally chosen to travel to Fable and study at the renowned Protagonist Preparatory, a school known for producing the best heroes.
Side characters can be heroes too in this charming and fast-paced adventure that is The Land of Stories meets The Phantom Tollbooth!

Indira has been a character-in-waiting her entire life. So she can't believe her luck when she's finally chosen to travel to Fable and study at the renowned Protagonist Preparatory, a school known for producing the best heroes.

But Indira's dreams of achieving hero status don't exactly go as planned. A failed audition lands her in the school's side-character track, and her best efforts to prove advisors--famous characters like Alice from Wonderland and Professor Darcy--wrong are constantly sabotaged. Indira is starting to feel like an evil antagonist might be to blame.

As the danger spreads, Indira discovers all of Fable is under siege. With her friends Maxi and Phoenix by her side, she pieces together clues that will reveal who is behind the dark magic threatening them all. But the more Indira uncovers, the more doubt she feels about her place in this world of stories. After all, can a side character really save the day?



My thoughts

Would I recommend it? yes

Will I be going one with the series? yes

Would I read more by this author? yes

This is the four book by this author I've read and have liked ,while his other books of been young adult and this is one is middle grade it can be read by anyone , and the story itself is very different from any other middle grade book I've read, noted I don't read that much middle grade to begin with but this one is unique because it's told in a way where the story itself is talking to you the reader.And as your read it you find out that that everything about books has literally come to life, and I do mean everything, and the characters wow just wow some of them are out there even for been book characters , And in the story you meet some of Indira's teachers like Alice from Alice In Wonderland , Professor Darcy just to name a few. And other characters that are just as crazy . With that said I want to think Netgalley for letting me read and review it .

Saving Fable is, first and foremost, a very fun book to read. Think Sky High meets The School for Good and Evil. With a setting that plays on books and writing, turning things like bookmarks and editors into fantastical aspects of a made up world, this story was a a delight to read.

Indira takes center stage in this story, and she is fantastic. Determined, resourceful, a character that’s going to resonate with readers who fell in love with Hermione and Annabeth. A terrific lead who, by the end of the story, really stole my heart. The side characters, fittingly enough, were also very well done. Maxi is my personal favorite, at first seemingly a bit of a cliché character, but she ended up so well developed and has some small twists in her own story. With each of his books I’ve thought Reintgen’s strong point was his characters, and he’s once again delivered a stellar cast in this book.

The writing style of Saving Fable was fun and very fitting for the story. It was definitely stylized to go along with the setting, and it worked. I think I’ve seen similar styles done a little better, but it was well written and I’m hoping to see the style grow a bit in future books, becoming even more unique and entertaining.

I thoroughly enjoyed Indira’s story. The adventure’s she goes on, both alone and with her friends, were engaging for me even as an adult reader. Another of Reintgen’s strong suits in each of his books has been the twists, and again, Saving Fable delivered on that front. I liked not always knowing what was going to happen next, being truly surprised by some of the developments. The story also felt really well thought out, with little key points from early on tying into bigger things later on. I love for a book to reward me for paying attention, and that’s exactly what I got from this one. I think it will really be fun for younger readers especially to notice little things that come into play later in the story.

Overall, I thought Saving Fable was a delightful, fun read, with a good dose of deeper themes to keep readers of any age entertained. The cast is fully fleshed out, boasting well developed, diverse characters. The story is very entertaining, full of fun references and twists that held my attention through to the end. I’d highly recommend this one for anyone looking for a new middle grade series to fall in love with, and I can’t wait to see where the series goes. It will be very interesting to see if it continues to follow Indira’s story, or if it centers on new characters. Either would be very fun to read, I just know that I definitely want to see more of the world of Fable!

Scott Reintgen describes this book as a love letter to the world of literature and that’s exactly what it is. It’s a fun and adorable adventure/mystery that features all the characters that authors write their stories about, but also the characters that never get a part in a story.

We follow Indira, a character-in-waiting who’s chosen to come to Fable and study at the Protagonist Preparatory, a place where authors find the characters for their stories. But when a failed audition puts Indira as a side-character rather than a protagonist, she has to work twice as hard to prove she can be the hero of her own story.

This book is a light and fun read that never stops to surprise. The world is so interesting and when I read this book, I actually felt bad for all the characters I’ve written about and given up on and deleted in my own writing. Scott Reintgen made Fable seem to real that I wanted to go back and finish my shelved stories and give all of them the chance to shine. And I truly loved that about this book, how it hooked me and made me care so much for the characters that he created here.

The plot was surprising, mostly because I thought it would take a completely different route when I first started reading. But it was a great story and I enjoyed seeing Indira grow as a character.

There isn’t much to say about this novel other than that it was a great and light read that was both serious and fun at the same time. Great characters, great world and great plot. In the beginning, I did feel a little too grown up for the idea of Fable and the characters-in-waiting. It was a little like I wanted to roll my eyes at it all, and the whole idea is in itself a little ridiculous. But it didn’t take more than a few chapters to get into it, and then it was just fun and amazing. And I can’t really blame the book for being a little childish considering it is a middle grade story, it was exactly what it’s supposed to be, and I know that I would have devoured this as a child and loved it.

So, don’t hesitate to pick up this book if you get the chance.

What a voice! This book was everything I want in a MG: strong, unique characters, a heart warming plot, and worldbuilding that makes me want to dive in and never leave.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for offering this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I don’t read Middle Grade books much anymore, but when a publicist from Random House Children’s Books reached out about an ARC, I couldn’t pass it up for the same reason they offered: I became an instant fan and reviewer of Scott Reintgen with his Nyxia Triad, and I couldn’t wait to see what else he produced. In this case, it’s Saving Fable, the charming first book of a Middle Grade fantasy series that’s also a tribute to literature and storytelling.

We first meet Indira Story, an earnest, hammer-wielding girl in a pink tunic who longs to become a character-in-training. Her brother David was never chosen, and she hopes she can one day have an Author choose her so she and her brother can find a place in the hearts and minds of Readers. When she’s finally chosen to attend Protagonist Preparatory in Fable, she can hardly believe it. It seems she’s on the fast track to being a hero after all.

However, everything goes wrong once Indira fails her audition and is regulated to being a side character instead. Even her attempts to impress her teachers—the romantic Professor Darcy, the tragic Romeo Montague, and the unpredictable Alice from Wonderland—seem to do nothing but backfire on her. With her friends Maxi and Phoenix, Indira sets out to uncover a sinister plot, one that not only endangers her but also all of Fable. But can a side character without a place in the story really be enough to save the day?

Saving Fable is such a cute book. As I read, I could feel my 11-year-old self waking up and remembering why she first fell in love with reading and fantasy in the first place. I adore this idea of characters all being real, waiting out there for an Author to take notice of them and put them inside stories. While they wait, characters are also undergoing various training, so they can become more well-rounded and appealing to Authors. The town of Fable and Protagonist Preparatory itself instantly gripped my attention. Maybe it’s the Harry Potter fan in me, but I still love these magic school setups. (Plus, it was awesome to see Harry himself and other noteworthy characters and stories referenced throughout, as if the world of Imaginary really is waiting there, just beyond our Real World.)

Indira is such an interesting character to follow because even while she has clear talent and drive, nothing is easy for her. Nothing goes her way. I also love that Deus ex Machina was assigned as her mentor for reasons I can’t quite articulate. There’s just something about it that’s so fitting.

However, I’m deeply surprised that her rivalry with Peeve Meadows never resurfaced after the beginning of the book. I realize that Peeve was assigned to the Antagonist school instead, but I was deeply intrigued about seeing more come out of their confrontation, and I still am. I actually really want to see what goes on for the antagonists in comparison because I am nothing if not a villain fan.

Regardless, I got a kick out of the classes Indira had to attend, especially Professor Darcy’s Falling in Love by Page 12. I laughed aloud at him showing his students how to look longingly off into the distance in the pouring down rain. One of the reasons this book didn’t get a full five stars from me is because I wanted to see a lot more of these classes and Indira’s dynamics with her teachers and classmates than I actually got. They interested me more than the mystery that occurs in the later half of the book.

However, I realize this is an introductory children’s book, so I can only reason that readers may learn more about Fable in later books. I’m not sure if we’ll still be following Indira or choosing another character to learn more about—and there are plenty to choose from. Reintgen introduces many characters in Saving Fable, but it’s Indira and her adopted family, the Penningtons, who get the most development by far. I definitely want to learn a lot more about Phoenix, Maxi, Peeve, Grant, and Margaret since I only got surface-level stuff with them. However, I’m confident that Reintgen will deliver on that.

Unlike many of the books I grew up reading, however, Saving Fable has something special that they do not: effortless racial diversity of its characters. I rarely found children’s books with POC main characters back then, and when I did, they were almost always written by POC authors. I’d like to think that Saving Fable is a step in the right direction, not just for children’s works but for stories in general, where more and more people can see themselves in the Indiras and Maxis of the story. They can see themselves as the heroes, with different goals, personalities, and methods about how to get there.

I’m looking forward to seeing what else becomes of Fable and these cute magic kids. Thanks again for the adventure, Scott!

Ever since I read Nyxia by Scott Reintgen two years ago, I fell in love with his engaging writing style, the intricate worlds that he creates and also his characters. I've mentioned before how much I love Scott Reintgen’s competitions and now, after reading Saving Fable , I can also say how much I love his adventures.

In Saving Fable we meet Indira, a character in waiting, who lives in Origin where the characters can potentially be selected by an author for one of his future novels, or sent to the Quiver if no-one ever chooses them.

Once the characters are chosen, they move on to a different place to attend Protagonist Preparatory , the school where they learn all that characters need to know to become the best protagonists or their sidekicks.

India has been waiting in Origin for a very long time. She has seen her neighbours come and go, and the house next to hers already changed three owners during her stay in Origin. But finally her time has arrived to move on and go to this magical school, to learn everything there is to know about how to be the best character ever. Brave, rightful and determined, Indira instantly got my attention. She was so easy to love, to root for and to wish that everything would turn great at the end.

Every single book with magical school in it will immediately make it to my favorite list. That is probably due to my love to Hogwarts, but Saving Fable brought back the memories of me reading and re-reading Harry Potter, hoping to one day receive the invitation letter to Hogwarts - School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! Now that I got familiar with yet another magical school - Protagonist Preparatory, I’m not sure anyone which one I’d choose to attend when given the chance.

The classes Indira attended were so much fun! Especially, the one taught by Alic, from Alice in Wonderland, where her students would fall into the classroom at completely unexpected times and had to find a way to escape her elaborate traps.

I also loved the paradox of reading a book about characters-in-waiting that hope to be featured in a book someday, as they don’t know that they ARE already featured in a book! . Doesn't that sound completely crazy but also kinda amazing?!

The best thing about middle-grade books is friendship. I love how quickly the characters usually become friends, but also how durable their friendship is. Of course, there are still a lot of bumps on the roads and turmoils that they need to overcome, but overall they will always be there for one another!

Another favourite element of middle-grade books is, of course, adventure! Growing up, I loved reading adventure books and see these young characters, sometimes not much older than me, do incredible things - setting a camp, driving an air-balloon, save their parents, friends and the whole world.

All of the above, combined with Scott Reintgen’s engaging writing style, makes for a perfect book for younger audience.

Recently I’ve been loving middle-grade books quite a lot. There have been so many unique and interesting ones! And this one is definitely one of the most unique ones I’ve read. It’s incredibly adorable and adventurous and… A world where characters train to be the best they can to appear in a book? I mean… Doesn’t it sound awesome?

Our main character’s name is Indira Story and she wants to be chosen to be a character badly. She wants it not only for herself but for her brother too.

You see, in this world, there are some places you can end up in:

Origin – where Indira lives and where they get to be chosen by the authors to be characters in books.
Quiver – The place where her brother is and where people work hard in the mines digging for story nuggets because they weren’t chosen as a character.
Fester – the place where the antagonists go.
Fable – to where Indira hopes to go. Fable is where you go to after being chosen by an author as a possible character for their books. There you train at a school called Protagonist Preparatory, to be the best you can.
I absolutely loved this idea and I was mesmerized by the world.

Indira is now a side character in training at Protagonist Preparatory and she lives with the best family she chose for herself. But things are about to get much tougher!

When Indira is finally chosen, she is super excited. She rapidly makes friends with the other chosen ones – Maxi and Phoenix. But to enter the school, you have to pass your auditions and Indira had some trouble with being accepted as a side-character and not as a protagonist. So, when school starts, things change because the main characters are treated differently from side characters. And that’s what happens with her and her friend Maxi. Plus, according to her advisor, Brainstorm Ketty, and to Indira’s disbelieve, she is not doing so well in her classes. She feels she is being sabotaged… But that’s just a tiny part of everything that is going on wrong in Fable!

There’s a lot in this book that I loved. The world is incredibly interesting and I can’t wait to see more of it. I found it super creative and heart-warming and all the adventures just made it incredibly gripping and exciting for me. I also loved, that although it might not seem, it’s really relatable?! I could totally see myself in Indira at times and I definitely could feel her emotions through the book. The plot was also something I really enjoyed, it was exciting and I definitely did not see it coming. I think some of my favorite parts were the interesting classes Indira had! You for sure gotta see those!

As for our characters, Indira is one tough cookie and she will do anything in her power for her friends and family! I loved her relation with Maxi and Phoenix, but even better than that was her adoptive family – Mrs. Pennington and her son Patch! I freaking loved them! I loved how united and supportive they are of each other! Plus, you get to see interesting characters like the Brainstorms, Marks (bookmarks that talk and walk), Dog-ears, the Grammar Police, Editors, Authors… It’s so unique!

I really enjoyed getting to know these characters and I can’t wait to see what the next book is going to be like, because in this world, literally, anything can happen… If you like middle-grade adventure books with mystery, relatable feelings and awesome characters, this is for you!

This was amazing! I loved this so much. I'm not a huge middle grade reader but when I was provided a copy of this via Netgalley because I read and enjoyed Reintgen's other YA sci-fi works, I jumped on a chance to read this. I have a young reader at home and this looked like a good option for him. I'm going to order him a copy and suggest it to his school librarian.



This follows Indira Story, a fantastic character, who may lose her way but she always finds it again and never gives up. She is resilient and you can't help but love her and cheer for her on her journey to become a hero. Indira is a character who is waiting to become a hero in a story. When we meet her she is hoping to be chosen to go to the famous city of Fable so an Author might pick her to be a hero or a character in a book. She makes her way to Protagonist Preparatory, a magical school, where she takes classes aligned to her skills as character. She also makes some interesting friends and gets adopted by The Penningtons. I have to say Mrs. Pennington is the sweetest motherly character. She gives the best advice, is always there for Indira and her son Patch, and she is always making something delicious to eat. Everytime she was on the page it felt like she was giving you a warm hug. I just loved her character so much! Indira is determined to get a hero role in a story and works very hard on her studies, but she learns from her advisor that feedback from her instructors isn't great. Disheartened by this news, Indira loses her motivation for about 5 minutes, but in true hero fashion she seeks good advice and goes on a quest to get her mojo back.

When she returns to school determined to prove her advisor wrong, strange things begin to happen. Indira knows something funny is going on in Fable and she is determined to get to the bottom of it.



This story was so fun to read. I loved that each character or type of character was an element of a book. I also loved all of the references to other popular novels. There was so much humor and light in this book that I was smiling or laughing most of the time I was reading it. I can't wait to read more in this world and get to see what adventure we get to go on next.