3.5 stars. This was an enjoyable and uniquely magical book, and I plan to read the next in the series! While it wasn’t unputdownable, it held my attention and I was invested in the characters throughout.

3 stars

I thought this was a well-crafted middle grade book. I liked the magical concepts and the world this was built in. I thought Ivy was such a cute character as well as her friends Rebecca and Fyn. Also there's a character named D.E. Night as well and I thought that was so cool. There were some portions of this book that I couldn't quite understand how the magic worked and it seemed a bit complex for me so it was kind of hard to enjoy those parts. I also wish there was more action with The Dark Queen. I felt like the last scene was rushed and certain parts felt a bit rushed overall, but it was still an enjoyable read.

The Crowns of Croswald
By: D.E. Night

This book was magical! Full of whimsy, intricate characters and a story line that kept me turning the pages. This is definitely a young adult novel, but just like Harry Potter, it can be enjoyed by all audiences.

I loved meeting Ivy and following her adventures and misadventures and everything in between! I loved meeting all the brilliant characters Ivy meets along the way, too.

The world of Croswald is one I’d love to visit again! I look forward to more by this author!

Many thanks to D.E. Night, Stories Untold Press, and Goodreads for a digital copy of this book. I read and reviewed this voluntarily and opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

📕 REVIEW: The Crowns of Croswald

⭐: ☆☆☆☆ / 5
👩🏻‍💻 Author: @author.denight
📃 # Pages: 249

Okay but I love the cover!!!I actually really enjoyed this! I was a bit unsure to start with but it quickly drew me in. This is the first book in the series (which I absoloutely will read!) And it kinda gave me a bit of Tangled vibes with a lot of similarities to Harry Potter (very similar actually). This was a very easy read and the writing was enjoyable.

I definitely think this is something I would have given 5 stars to if I was younger (as this is middle-grade fiction) but was still an awesome read!

The story follows Ivy Lovely (16) who was banished from all she knew and was taken to Croswald. The Halls of Ivy, the school where she would learn more about her family and herself then she ever new before.

*I would like to thank @storiesuntoldpress for reaching out to me to read this novel via @netgalley And also, a special thank you to @author.denight

Thanks to the author's P.A. for reaching out and sending me a copy of The Crowns of Croswald.

This is my honest unbiased review on Crowns of Croswald, I started reading with little knowledge of the book or the series. So I was pleasantly surprised.
This is a whimsical novel, the world building and the creativity was great. The author did really well with building a whole new world with magical creatures that made the fantasy seem real,
However the book does feature a magic school and it really does read like a Harry Potter novel - not just because of the school but because some of the events read a bit close. I was an avid HP fan so maybe that's why I noticed.
Take away the similarities, you've still got a well written novel. The characters were all thought out and each had a grit to them that made them stand off the page.
The author's writing style, with attention to detail definitely made this a creative and magical read.

This book took me back to the years when I was obsessed with Harry Potter, The Famous Five, The Chronicles of Narnia and so many more adventure packed books that made me fall in love with reading.

This book is very well written and an amazing book for budding readers to get lost in. the world is full of magic, scaldrons (dragons) and students going about life. If I had to compare it to a book, then I’d say Harry Potter is a good fit. There are similarities but the book itself is different with a different world.

I feel like this is a book that can be enjoyed by a child as well as an adult. I would definitely love to read more of this world and I have three more books to do so!! The only thing that bothered me a bit were the long chapters so, it was a bit difficult to just dive right into this book but, as I read more I didn’t notice the length of the chapters as much.
I would like to acknowledge and thank netgally, the author and the publisher for a DRC.

This is a very traditional fantasy book. An orphan with a bigger destiny, a magic world, a dark evil force, and a few mysteries here and there. That being said, it works perfectly.

The writing is whimsical and flowery, and things like the world-building or the magic system are perfect. The author did a great job in that regard. How the magic works, the creatures, the settings, everything is very well described. That being said, I felt that pacing was a little bit slow at the beginning, but as the story progressed it really cached up.

What really made the difference to me were the characters, pretty much all of them are interesting. Ivy as an MC it's a great POV to learn about the world and I really enjoyed how the romantic interest was handled, it felt very organic -and let's not forget most of the characters are teens so their behavior feels "age-appropriate". I wish some characters -like the Selector- had more development but I guess it's a nice starting point.

All things considered, I wished the enemy, the Dark Queen, wouldn't be present in person in the first book, because once we saw her, a part of her evil charm and dark presence disappeared.

Overall, it's a very solid first book and a great first step in a fantasy saga.

I received this book for free from the publisher (Stories Untold) in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a cute story, full of adventure and magic. Ivy gets whisked away to a magical school for royalty and aspiring scrivenists (royal scribes), learning how to use their magic and perfect their craft. We get pulled into the adventure when Ivy is in one of her classes and something goes wrong, which then opens Pandora's box and she's got to figure out why it happened and who she saw and why is this person significant to her. The end definitely leaves it open to dive into the second book and I definitely will continue this journey with Ivy and her friends!

The verbiage is a little difficult to keep up, just the different names for different objects, creatures, people with titles, ect. But definitely a great story for middle grade!

*I received a free ebook copy from the publisher for an honest review*

If you are missing the magical world of Hogwarts, this is the book for you!! Ivy Lovely is a scaldrony maid at Plum Castle, an orphan with no magical abilities, or so she thinks. Her best friend at Plum Castle is a dwarf and like all orphans is treated horribly by her superiors.

Getting kicked out of the castle having to leave her dwarf best friend behind, she travels beyond the bounds of the Slurry. Once she crosses out of the Slurry her powers awaken and she soon finds herself on her way to the magical school. At the Halls of Ivy she will learn how to be a scrivenist. A scrivenist wields magic through quills, yes, you read that right, quills!

As I read this delightful story I couldn't help but smile at her bravery, and her adventurous spirit. Ivy is trying to solve the mystery that seems to surround her. Her nightly dreams of a man trying to speak with her, why she has the powers she has and why her lessons seems to go wrong for her. Her inquisitiveness of course gets her in all heaps of trouble.

Although Ivy is sixteen, she seemed a little younger to me. This book read more like a Middle Grade read than a YA read but overall it was a great story, wish it could have been a little longer. Looking forward to the next book!

I was contacted by stories untold press on my Instagram asking if I would like to try this book for free in exchange to give my honest opinion and I jumped at the chance.

It's not my sort of go to genre of book so it was nice to try something different,I did enjoy the book it gave a sort of harry potter vibe but in its own individual/querky way which was Great. The only reason I didn't give it a five star as it did take a while for me to get into and so much was going on that I got slightly confused of where I got to and what was happening which is a bit of a shame.
It was great how detailed everything was so helped give a clear image in your imagination of how things and characters looked. Which is good in a book as I like to be able to picture everything whilst I'm reading.

Title: The Crowns of Croswald
Author: D. E. Night
Genre: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Mystery, Adventure
Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis:
The Crowns of Croswald encourages young readers to investigate themes such as embracing their own magic, exploring their true selves, and confronting evil head-on. The Crowns of Croswald series is a magical thrill ride through a fully formed world with dragons, magical quills, potions, and mythical creatures, hailed by Kirkus Reviews as "an action-packed treat [...] with a relatable heroine facing obstacles in a captivating world of magic and mystery," and called a new classic by readers.
Ivy Lovely is 16 years old and has no clue who she is or what powers she possesses. She eventually finds a whole new realm of enchantment and intrigue when she traverses a magical boundary. She learns more about her hidden past, magical blood, and the power of Croswald's mystical stones as she makes friends that will last a lifetime—and save her life. But not everything is as it seems: a tragic history and an evil Queen jeopardize all that is good.

Plot and pacing:
I thought the book was a little bit slow at the beginning, but as I read more the pacing also catches up with the turns and twists in regards to the plot. The mysterious, whimsical, and addictive themes are well-developed and entertaining. The hidden pasts and unanswered questions lingered long enough to build up my curiosity over this book. Personally, this is my second time reading a middle-grade book, and I actually love the plot so much I keep on reading it every day. Because this is a middle-grade novel, it touches on many real-world issues without being harsh for the younger crowd, which include grief, bullying, racism, prejudice, and abandonment. As an adult reader, I could see the profound meaning behind the cleverly crafted world in this book.

Writing and setting:
The writing is mellifluous and flowery, which is quite a hit or a miss for young readers. I, as an adult reader, find this book to be quite verbose which is taxing my experience. However, I understand that new vocabulary is a great practice for me to improve my reading. However, the setting makes up for it. It was full of illustrative and picturesque world-building that left me in awe. The author did a great job in describing the things that need to be imagined by the readers. Some might find it a bit difficult in the beginning, but after a while, the writing and setting are quite easy to navigate through.

Characters:
Ivy is a protagonist who appeals to me because she is inquisitive and whimsical, as well as shy and valiant. She went through a roller-coaster of adventurous rides ever since she was a scaldrony maid. She was barred against doing what she loves the most; to read and draw. However, Ivy aspires to attend the Halls of Ivy, a school where royals learn to control the magical stones in their crowns and sqwinches train to become scrivenists. I also love a dragon that she brought with her after being fired from her scaldrony maid job, Humboldt. He’s just super adorable and always there for her. Ivy also has some friends which are Fyn, the guy who helps her and went through a wind whirl of adventures, and Rebecca, a loyal friend who is from a royal family.

Overall:
The Crowns of Croswald is a middle-grade novel, a gripping adventure emboldened enchantment and charming imaginary world, suitable with readers of Harry Potter, Narnia, and Alice in Wonderland who relish in a magical world full of the wondrous fixture.

3.75/5 stars
*NetGalley and Stories Untold provided me with the ebook in exchange for an honest review*
-
Our story follows 16 year old Ivy Lovely who doesn’t quite know who she is yet. When she ends up crossing the magic border, she’s whisked away into a world of more magic and mystery than she can ever imagine. She makes friends, foes, and learns magic along the way. Ivy soon realized not everything is as good as it seems, as the Dark Queen is threatening all that’s well.

I’ll just start by saying that I did truly enjoy this book. I’m not quite the target audience for this story as it’s more of a middle-grade book, but I just know that younger me would absolutely adore this. That being said, you can tell this book takes heavy inspiration from other fantasy stories, which I didn’t mind, and I think it’s nice for a younger audience as it can incorporate some of their favourite stories. You could tell the author took major inspiration from School for Good and Evil, Narnia, and Harry Potter. I also got a Barbie Princess Charm School Vibes which I honestly loved.

Characters - I loved the “main trio” if that’s what you’d call it. Fyn was definitely my favourite. I loved to see the relationship between the three, it was so much fun all around.

I also thought it was so fun for the author to include their own name on the book. It’s such a cool name too, so why not include it?

I had a few criticisms for this book, resulting in the 3.75 rating. The main one being the story line. I did really enjoy it, but I found myself so fused at times and it was kind of choppy. We’d switch from one thing to another chapter to chapter.
The second criticism is that I didn’t find myself connecting to Ivy that much. I liked the main trio together, but Ivy as an individual was slightly lacking. I wish we saw more character depth within her, but ultimately, these two criticisms weren’t “bad” enough for me to dislike the book, just small things that I would’ve liked the author to build upon. I definitely recommend you pick this up if you’re into middle grade fantastical, magical, and mysterious stories.

Thanks again NetGalley, Stories Untold and the author for providing me with this ebook. I truly enjoyed it!

The Crowns of Croswald ~ D.E. Night
Published 7/21/2017
Read to 2/21-2/25/22

🅾🆅🅴🆁🅰🅻🅻 🆁🅰🆃🅸🅽🅶
⭐⭐⭐.5 stars

👩🏻👨🏼‍🦰Characters = 7/10
🗺🎪Setting/Atmosphere = 7/10
✍🏼🧬Style/Structure = 5/10
🎞🔮Plot = 7/10
💡💌Themes = 7/10
🎯🔎Purpose/Focus = 7/10
🧠🫀Internal Response = 6/10
👍🏻👎🏻Enjoyment/Satisfaction = 7/10
🗣💬Recommend to Others = 7/10
👄🎧Narration = N/A

Thank you to Stories Untold and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts & opinions shared are my own.

This book brought me back to my days of reading Harry Potter and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe with the chosen one and unknown power tropes. I adored following Ivy on her journey of discovering and perfecting her magical abilities. The author developed a good magical system, an atmospheric setting at/around Halls of Ivy, and interesting magical creatures.

The book started off slow for me, was predictable in some places, and was confusing in other places, but it all came together later in the book.

I’d recommend this book to middle grade readers who love magic, adventure, and a strong female main character.

The book was great, but I did not feel it was time for this type of fiction. I'll be continuing reading it in another period of time and for sure I'll love it!

I was contacted by Stories Untold on behalf of the author with a request that I read and review this book. I was happy to do so. However, the book was not for me and I did not finish it.

I think there are aspects of the world and the story that middle school readers would enjoy. It’s very whimsical. Unfortunately, this whole book is just a Harry Potter rip-off, right down to the gratuitous fatphobia. I also don’t think I’ve encountered this many shades of purple in any other book, and that’s not a good thing.

Overall, I try not to be too hard on indie books, but this one would have really benefitted from better editing and a little more sensitivity.

I have some mixed feelings about this book. Yes, I would definitely say this is more middle grade, so someone a lot younger than I am would probably enjoy this book a lot more.

First off, I had a really hard time getting into this book. Like it took me about 65% of the way through it to finally enjoy reading it. It wasn't that it was bad or anything, it was just hard for me to get into the world. During my normal times that I would typically be reading, I would try to come up with something else to do so I wouldn't be reading this book. That kind of tells you something. There are two reasons why I think this was the case. 1) I just wasn't interested in reading fantasy right now. 2) I thought the world building could have been a little better.

So, the world building... It took some time. This was a fairly fast paced book. It occurred over the course of a school year. There were A LOT of different creatures and new things that didn't really make sense. It definitely took some time to really understand the world and what it was about. I still don't fully understand what Ivy was going to school for. The whole prologue made no sense when I first read it, but as the book got closer to the end, it made WAY more sense to the point where I almost reread it just to make sure I understood it.

The characters were good. I enjoyed Ivy and Fin. This was told in third-person, but followed Ivy. Even though I wasn't really invested in this book, the plot was interesting. I think this would have been a great book to listen to instead of read, mainly because it is middle grade.

Overall, I feel like this first book was a good introduction into the series. I'm not sure if I will be continuing it or not at the moment. Maybe I will see if my library has a audiobook I can play. I would recommend this book to kids who enjoyed The Impossible Quest series or Narnia. Probably Harry Potter too, but I never read those books. It's definitely a lot of magic.

Before reading this book, I'd read a few spoiler free reviews, many of which had mixed feelings. But I still had high hopes, as I love fantasy novels.

Unfortunately, The Crowns of Croswald did not grasp me, at all, and left me with a frustrating feeling of being unable to be fully immersed in the story. This was worse in the beginning of the book, and did get a little better at the end. While the novel itself is expressive, it yoyoed between so much detail and information that to invision the world I'd have to reread sentences because they don't quite flow together well and it breaks that connection with the world, the words and the characters. 

On to the characters. Overall, I found the characters to be a bit flat, and I disliked a few so much. Woodley Butterlove. Yes, his last name really is Butterlove. Can you guess what he loves more than anything? That's right, butter. I love characters with their fair share of silliness, cravings, and the like. But I didn't like not one thing about this character, perhaps because I'm an adult and the idea of a teenager who's deepest love is butter, is just not appealing to me.

Overall, I think it was the writing style that most kept me from enjoying the book. If I were to recommend this to anyone, it would be to the younger crowd just getting into fantasy novels.

I cannot thank the author/publisher enough for the opportunity to review the book, I wish I could have given a much more positive review.

This book sounds like it would be right up my alley! Unfortunately, despite several attempts at getting into it, I am unable to complete it. I wasn’t hooked in by the story and had great difficulty getting past the prologue.

A big thank you to Daniela from Stories Untold for sharing this story with me on behalf of D.E Night.

I think it's a fantastic read that lots of people can enjoy. Thank you for letting me read this book. I really felt captivated by this plot and story. It's a great and completely interesting read.

*Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book in The Crowns Of Croswald series and I want to read the next ones. Reading this story was a very fun and entertaining experience that immerses you in a fantastic magical world and I adored the beautiful illustrations at start of each chapter.

The construction of the world was amazing and complex. The author pays great attention to detail and has constructed a world that is easy to get lost in. The setting was what I liked the most, it's a combination of things that I love like castles, magic and dragons.

Ivy Lovely is a strong female lead, inspiring readers to stand up for what they believe in. I really liked this character and her evolution.

There were a lot of secondary characters. Rebeca is very funny and Fyn is cute, I'm glad that Ivy found friends to share adventures with. The Dark Queen is very mysterious I hope to get to know her better in the next books.

In conclusion, I've really enjoyed reading this book. I think middle grade readers will enjoy this book!