This book was really something special, but I wish we had a little more romance.
I loved how fun and light this series is, and would love to continue reading it!

I had a bit of trouble getting into the book at first, but once I got past the first 50 pages i was completely addicted. It had a great pacing and the overall description of the world was on point. I think that it was a great story. It isn't boring and I couldn't find clichés which is great, because sometimes it is too predictable with fantasy stories.
Keep doing a great job!
I can't wait for the 3rd book

Who doesn't love magical boarding schools? I for one would jump at the chance to visit, but I can live vicariously through the heroine in this delightful, fun novel that is full of friendship, magic, and history, and Scotland (one of my favorite places).

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this free copy in exchange for an honest review*
I found out late that this was the second book in the series, so I was kinda lost but I enjoyed it nevertheless.

Please mark books clearly that are sequels. I could have loved this book but unfortunately it was not clear when I requested it that it was the second book in a series. I do hope however to read book one in the future so won't let the confusion deter me.

I did like it alot, though i discovered a bit too late that this was the 2th book in the series, so i was a bit lost in the start of world building and building of the character Cassandra/Sarah, but i enjoyed the book nontheless!

Well, I didn’t like the book😭 I wanted to like to much but the writing style didn’t do the trick for me. Her writing was very whimsical and humorous and that’s not my preference with books. I thought it was going to give me HP vibes, but it needed up giving me Charlie and the Chocolate factory vibes...idk. Maybe it’s just me. had to DNF at 15% or so, so I can’t give you a detailed review.
But, if you do enjoy that kind of writing, please give it a try! The plot was very interesting as well as the characters:)

PLEASE, publishers, note somewhere on the NetGalley listing that books are not the first in a series. It is immensely frustrating to look forward to something like this and not be able to give a proper opinion because you haven't read the first.

However, this is a fun and frothy historical-ish boarding school fantasy, which ticks all my boxes. It would be great for fans of Gail Carriger's Finishing School books, and Stephanie Burgis's Kat, Incorrigible series.

This is not Molly's most unique world; however, it is her most magical. There are magic and magic school tropes a plenty and this feels like a middle book. That being said, her writing always feels like coming home to me and I can't wait to continue on.

The first book in the Sorcery and Society series, Changeling, was a good fun take on a magical school with the typical YA drama we've all come to know (and love?). While there is nothing overly special about Molly Harper's series there is also nothing particularly wrong with it. I picked this one up knowing that I wanted to: go back to a world I knew, read something light and fluffy, and that had just enough intrigue and politics to keep my brain engaged. I got exactly what I asked for.

Plot
Our 'fake' debutante, Sarah, continues into year 2 at her all ladies finishing school (really a front for magic school) alongside her two best buds Alicia and Ivy. This year instead of discovering her own powers, like book 1, she instead starts to realize the powers of others like herself, non-high born children with magical power that is supposed to be impossible. The lead up to the trip to Scotland that brings about the climax of the story is decent and exactly what I expected it to be. Lots more Harry Potter vibes but still different enough that I didn't feel ripped off.

Rushed Ending
Unfortunately Fledging has a very rushed ending. It's like someone told Harper her book could only be a certain number of pages and she spent too much time at the forefront of the story and doesn't give us enough time to really absorb what we learn in Scotland. Also... what are the chances that a girl can randomly learn to fly some fantasy balloon contraption after one attempt? My bet is slim to none. I am proven wrong.

Overall
With a little more polish and attention to the ending I think Fledgling could reach 4 star potential. And while Harper gave me exactly the type of book I was expecting; I guess I was hoping for a little more to draw me in and keep my attention. After All there are so many times one can read about a teen bumbling around with magic and screwing things up, right? Apparently not according to the top publishing houses of today.
Fledgling suffers from the usual middle book curse in that it really exists to set-up the story for (what I presume is) the third and final book of the series. Many pivotal set-up things happen, fate intercedes to put our heroines where they need to be and we are once again treated to a cliffhanger pushing us to find out what happens in book 3.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

A common tale of a child pretending to be someone they are not, Fledgling utilises all the aspects of Historical fiction combined with a YA Fantasy in order to create a novel that is both elegantly written, and yet rugged enough to draw the reader in at every twist and turn.

I've previously enjoyed Molly Harper's adult works, so I was eager to read a novel targeted at younger readers. This series is magical and charming, with lovable characters and plenty of action. I recommend this book to readers looking for YA fantasy focusing on a magical school.

Synopsis:
Cassandra is adapting to be a student at Miss Castwell's Institute for the Magical Instruction of Young Ladies. She is trying to master her magic, but it isn't as easy while she's having strange visions, got attacked by evil unicorns and the Mother Book doesn't speak to her. On top of all that, her former lady's maid suddenly left the Institute.

My thoughts:
The first thing I did wrong by requesting this book was not reading the first book first. I didn't notice it's the second book in the series and I found out about it after reading 100 pages of the book. I felt that something is off because most of the time I didn't know what's going on. They were talking suddenly about the things that happen and I felt I'm lacking something. I was right. I was lacking the whole content from the first book. I'm so mad at myself because I lost my chance to get into a really good series and I started to read it in the wrong way. However, even if I was confused by the story and the past of the characters, I liked the Harry Potter vibe within it. The magical story with clues to solve by talented girl is the type of story all HP fans will love and I am one of them.

Molly Harper gives us a stirring fantasy in the Fledgling. Susan Smith, changeling Cassandra Reid in disguise, has penetrated the upper class under the protection of Mrs Winter. Her special powers betray her when her asset, the Mother Book, stops talking to her. When she and her friends go to Scotland things go from wrong to worse. Will she protect herself and her friends? Will she be outed as not an aristocrat? Read and find out.

I was very unpleasantly surprised when I found out this was a second book in a series. I didn't own, nor read the first book so I had to read that first.

It is sometimes very close to Harry Potter, and let me be the one person that does not like Harry Potter. Sure, there were some good moments, but I don't know what it was exactly. It did feel like a YA, but the girl was 14, in my mind it could have worked so much better if she was just a little bit older, giving the character the opportunity to develop herself more. I'm not sure if I'll be reading the other books if there will be more.

The sequel to Molly Harper's Changeling, one of my favorites from last year, Fledgling tells the continued adventures of Sarah Smith, a commoner trying to pass as a magic wielding elite under the name Cassandra Reed. With visions of Miss Morton's revenant still threatening the future, Cassandra, along with her two best friends, must finish school and somehow manage to enjoy a summer holiday. Fledgling was provided to me by INscribe Digital via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I'll be honest, that's a highly abbreviated version of the back of the book summary. So much happens in this book, it's honestly a bit hard to keep track. Harper dropped the sedate pace of Changeling and instead drags the reader through a high paced chase. This book might have been better off being split in two, with Cassandra's school adventures taking up one and summer adventures taking up another. Ultimately, the focus is really on action and movement rather than character growth and development, which Harper had previously excelled at.

I don't feel as though Cassandra or her two friends truly have grown at all as individuals. While Alicia is getting healthier and Ivy is getting prettier, their characters aren't developing at all. If anything they stay where they start at the beginning of the book, while Cassandra falls deeper into deception. No spoilers, but hopefully the end of this book means we won't have to deal with those extra deception layers for book 3. Cassandra/Sarah isn't particularly good at managing her deceptions nor are they terribly interesting, as they fall deeper into self pity and selfishness rather than exploring the realities of her situation.

While I look forward to seeing how book 3 goes, I do feel as this one was lacking the strengths of the first book. Hopefully, Harper can find her footing again and bring us back around to flow and growth we had in Changeling.

This review will be posted to Commute Reads as of November 12th, GoodReads posting will follow.

This was the second book in a very entertaining series, a page-turner with interesting characters and a humorous author's voice.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes stories with magic schools set in a Regency/Victorian England.
I can't wait for the next book in the series!

Fledgling continues the story of Cassandra Reed, aka Sarah Smith, from Changeling, the first novel in the series. It follows Cassandra and her friends during their second year in Miss Castwell’s and a holiday with her friends. However, Cassandra is having issues with gaining more knowledge from the Mother Book.

So I’m honestly writing this review nearly 3 months after finishing it, once again, my motivation to blog has been shocking. I apologise in advance for this! However, I do remember loving this book as much as the first in the series. I’m so glad I requested these books on Netgalley!

I love the story line and the world! I love the somewhat Hogwarts feel Miss Castwell’s gives, but also it feels completely different. I loved the beginning, experiencing Cassandra’s magical strength again and seeing how she’s improved with her magic as well. I didn’t think I would ever experience reading about an evil unicorn, yet here I am having experienced it and the storyline as to why the evil unicorn was attracted to the girls at school was probably one of the highlights of the book, just because of how witty it was. After somewhat picking the villain in the first book, the villain in this book, I most definitely did not pick, and I don’t think I bought into it as much as I did in the previous book. I felt the ending with this villain was a bit too rushed for my liking, and I would have liked it to be fleshed out a bit more. That is probably my only low lights of this book, which means I’m still pretty impressed by this series!

I continue to love the friendship between Cassandra, Ivy and Alicia. I love all the support and kindness that this girls are all about. I love that they don’t care where each other come from before Miss Castwell’s, and continue to be there for each other through thick and thin. I also was a major fan of the slow burns of the relationships, as I felt this was a lot more realistic compared to some magical and YA books.

I cannot wait for the next in the series to see how Cassandra, Alicia and Ivy go about their magical schooling and lives!

Thank you very much to NYLA for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This is another fun adventure filled with magic and mystery. My rating 4.25.

Sarah was born a Snipe expected to remain in the serving class like her parents. But she possesses magical skills that only the Guardian class members are supposed to have. Her parents’ employer, society influencer, Mrs. McCray, took Sarah on and transferred her into a Guardian girl, presenting her to society as a niece, Cassandra Reed. (Book One Changling.)

Sarah/Cassandra has almost completed her first year at the elite Guardian school, Miss Castwell’s Institute for the Magical Instruction of Young Ladies. This term she strengthens her friendship with Ivy and Alicia. She has also made other friendships with a ‘room’ study group while she waits for the Mother Book to talk to her again.

Sarah discovers someone else who may have a surprising connection to the Mother Book. That reminds her that she needs to intensify her efforts to locate other Changling Children who have powers like her. Sarah discovers a location for a training school of Changling Children and she, Ivy and Alicia make plans to visit the place during the summer holidays.

They will have to be creative to escape Alicia’s strict mother and to stay away from other threats. Their adventures are filled with magic and tension.

This is a good sequel to the first book. I enjoyed Sarah’s quick thinking in times of danger. She tries to protect her friends, not realizing how much she needs their help. The strong loving friendship of the young women is engaging. I am interested to see what will happen in the next book. I recommend reading the books in order and enjoying the adventures.

Source: 2019 NetGalley.

This was a delightful and whimsical read that read like a wonderful and refreshing mix of the Libba Bray trilogy and Harry Potter. I did not read the first book in this series, and while I could tell that I was missing some of the backstory, it didn't impede my reading enjoyment of this story.
The novel begins immediately with some instant action, tossing the reader directly into the magical worldbuilding when the main character shows abilities that should be beyond her when she defends herself and her classmates against a magical beast that looks like a unicorn. While it deceives the others, she is quick to determine that all is not as it seems, which is our first clue that there is something more going on with this Changeling girl.
In a lushly described setting that feels like something out of a classic British novel but filled with witty repertoire and honest yet biting descriptions, I enjoyed every page of this book and only wish I'd read the first novel before beginning this one. I will definitely be adding both of them to my library in the near future.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance reading copy. A positive review was not required.