This one really is a Bookstagram classic
I remember seeing this book everywhere around 2017
I read it for the second time again and I felt older....

I adored this book! This story is about a girl, Ivy Lovely, who is an orphan and works as a maid in a castle kitchen. Despite this she oddly gets accepted into a magical school where she will be taught to be a scrivener. Through out her year she gets into trouble and has amazing magical adventures, where she learns a lot about herself and her world. This story was soo good. It was kind of Harry Potter-ish but completely different. The world was more magical and fantastic, and I felt transported there. I loved the main character Ivy, but I also loved so many of the side characters too. Another one of my many favorite things in this story was unique magical vocabulary. I thought all the different names for things were so cool. If I were still homeschooling my kids this book would definitely be included in the readings, and I will be recommending they read it. I will also be talking to our local librarian and making sure they stock this. Definitely one I think kids will love!

Synopsis: “For sixteen years Ivy Lovely has been hidden behind an enchanted boundary that separates the mundane from the magical. When Ivy crosses the boarder, her powers awaken. Curiosity leads her crashing through a series of adventures at the Halls of Ivy, a school where students learn to master their magical blood and the power of Croswald’s magical gems” (from blurb).

My thoughts: The Crowns of Croswald is a whimsical middle grade read perfect for fans of imaginative books like Alice in Wonderland, Keeper of the Lost Cities, or Floors. Because the main character, Ivy, attends a magic school, I’ve been seeing comparisons to Harry Potter all over - but The Crowns of Croswald is very much its own book, not a Harry Potter copycat. Much of the magic revolves around memory and forgetting, which leads to engaging mysteries about what, exactly, the characters have forgotten without knowing it.

By far, the greatest strength of this book is its liveliness and imagination. Fantastical concepts are given fun names - for instance, nonmagical people are called “sqwinches” - and Ivy herself is a sweet and whimsical character. Croswald is a place I’d enjoy reading more books to visit.

Only a couple things drew me out of the story: Ivy is stated to be sixteen, but she feels much younger, maybe twelve or thirteen (the age I would normally expect for the protagonist of an MG book). And the dialogue often felt on the nose to me, without much subtext behind it. Maybe the dialogue style is due to the overall style of the book, but it did distract me a few times.

All told, The Crowns of Croswald is a thoroughly enjoyable read! The mystery is engaging, the magic is fun, and the school setting works as a great alternative for those who no longer want to support J.K. Rowling. I’d recommend The Crowns of Croswald to young readers looking for a light, entertaining series opener.

The Crowns of Croswald is the first book in a four-book series by D.E. Night (which I can only assume is a pen name, given there is also a character of the same name in the book). Ivy Lovely grew up as the kitchen help in a castle where dragons are used as ovens, and one morning finds herself thrown from the castle and straight into a world of magic. She is already admitted to the Halls of Ivy, where those with inner magic (training to be scrivenists with magic quills) learn alongside royal sons and daughters with magic gems in their crowns.

Ivy quickly finds that she is pretty different than some of the other teens ...and seems to have a bent toward trouble as well.

While I didn't dislike reading this novel, I felt like there were some gaps in plot I didn't quite understand. The boy I assume to be developing as Ivy's love interest randomly pops up whenever she's about to be in trouble ... but at no other times. I don't get much of a feel for the classes, teachers, or other students. The class bully only shows her face a few times. I felt like the plot could have been fleshed out a little more, and another 100 pages could easily have been added to make the story more rich.

That said, I can be incredibly picky in my middle grade and YA and often want a deeper experience when maybe younger readers want a book they can finish quickly. I may pass this one along to my middle-grade readers and see what they think, too.

Rounded up from 3.5 stars ⭐️
Initially I was a little dubious of reading this novel, mainly because the genre (Middle Grade Fantasy) really isn’t my thing. However, the premise won me over and I’m so glad I gave it a chance!

The Crowns of Croswald follows Ivy Lovely, a young maid who harnesses magic. As she leaves the slurry fields she’s grown up in she tumbles into a life she never expected. Full of mystical happenings and wonderful friends.

I really loved the world that Night created. It is similar to Harry Potter (which people are either going to love or hate). But it had some originality too which I really enjoyed (especially the porcupines!). When I was reading I could feel the magical world forming around me. I didn’t want to put the book down because I wanted to stay there!

However, the only downside for me was that I wasn’t the biggest fan of Ivy. There just wasn’t enough about her character that had me rooting for her. I could see where the book was going to take her from early on in the story and that felt a little anti-climactic for me. However, I did really enjoy Ivy’s friends (especially Rebecca and Winsome) and I can’t wait to see where Ivy’s adventure takes her next.

I’d definitely recommend this book to anyone that loves stories about magic! I’m really grateful to the author, Netgalley and the publishers, for allowing me to read this book and give my honest opinion. It was a great journey to go on!

This is a truly magical story that will delight middle grade readers, full of deliciously fantastical imagery, and an immensely detailed world. Scrivener is possibly the best name for a job ever! Fans of Harry Potter will no doubt enjoy this as it is very Potter-esque in parts, but with its own spin. The positive message for readers to find their own magic and be confident in their abilities is really empowering, and Ivy is a lovable, inspiring heroine with traits we can all relate to. The world Night creates is really intricate in parts, so the youngest of readers might need a bit of help to navigate - but it's a wonderful story to share together and become completely immersed in.

Whenever I start a new fantasy fiction novel, I always wonder how they are going to make it different for the hundreds and thousands of other novels out there. The Crowns of Croswald is truly unique.
Slightly similar to a certain wizarding world franchise at the beginning, orphan girl living a hellish life until she finds out she is magical and is whisked off to a fantastic school.
However, that’s where the similarities end.
Every single character is unique, the weird and wonderful names, the different creatures, the fact that the school teaches ‘royals’ and ‘scrivenists’ (the truly magical ones IMO). All of it is just so incredibly clever.
It’s taken me just over two days to devour this book.
I’m now desperate for the second novel!

I’m not sure on the age of audience this is particularly aimed at, but I will say that it is quite ‘wordy’, so anyone under 14 may find it a bit tiresome (I myself did skip over a few parts that were mainly describing lessons or objects within the magical world), but it certainly doesn’t take away from how incredible it is.
I honestly can see this becoming a well-received, highly popular and successful movie (if done right).

Thank you to Netgalley, Stories Untold Press & Daniela at Stories Untold Press for gifting me this eARC and introducing me to the wonderful world of Ivy Lovely.

The Crowns of Croswald is a magical story of Ivy Lovely, a girl who grew up at a castle as a scaldrony maid and finds herself at Croswald for magic school to become a Scrivenist. Strange events start happening, and Ivy is determined to get to the bottom of it... threat of evil queen or not. This was a fabulous story full of magic, creatures and exciting adventures! It had the magical school vibe and the child who grew up not knowing who they truly are, just like Harry Potter. Definitely a fun read for younger children who are at the middle grade level, and I can’t wait to share it with my niece!

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

I'll be honest, when I first started this book I didnt have high hopes.
I saw it going down the typical route of 'young person realises their magic, goes to a magic school, makes 2 close friends and discovers a prophecy' ... but it quickly became so much more than that!
Ivy Lovely is very well named. She's charming and sweet and I love her character. Fyn and Rebecca are the perfect mix of characters to be around her too and they both bring out the best in her. I loved their interactions with eachother a lot.
I can honestly also say that this is one of the first middle grade books I've read where I didnt immediately figure everything out, I didn't know why things were happening and I wanted to find out! The mystery behind the things happening in Croswald and surrounding Ivy was written very well and it kept me hooked on the plot.
I loved all of the characters, the world was beautiful (although I would have loved more world building, I'm hoping that comes in book 2!) and the different magic systems involved were really interesting,
The ending left me wanting more and with so many questions.
A definite page turner and a quick and fun read.
Magical, adventurous, suspenseful at times and just enjoyable!
Very close to a 5 star read for me and I can't wait to read book two!

This review has also been posted on my Goodreads and my Amazon accounts which I have added links to below! I will also be uploading a review to my Instagram page shortly.

The Crowns of Croswald by D.E. Night is a wonderfully imagined story that follows a young girl on a mystical and magical journey. Unbeknownst to her she will soon discover just how important she is and learn to be proud of herself along the way.
This is a great book for middle-grade readers who love to escape into magical worlds! Younger readers would love it!!!

Night brings the reader on a beautifully crafted and whimsical journey learning all about the magical world with Ivy and her friends. This magical world is brought to life through the words on the page and it makes you feel like you’re in Croswald right there with all of the characters. Following the ups and downs of her discoveries, you come to really want Ivy to get a solid win!
I think this book is a wonderful middle-grade fantasy book for people who can’t wait to dive into a whole new world and join Ivy’s journey!

Thank you to the author D.E. Night, the publisher Stories Untold and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Solid 4 stars. A bit clipped between transitions and hard to keep track of narrative events, but otherwise pretty awesome and whimsical. Perfect for upper-elementary and early middle-schoolers. 7th-8th grade may be a bit too old, depending on preference.

Derivative yet highly imaginative, The Crowns of Croswald is perfect for fans of magical schools and imaginative worlds full of quirky characters and odd other-worldy goings-on that bear no resemblance to the starkly contrasted real world around them.

Scriveners—like wizards—perform magic with quills, not wands. They are usually paired with royals, who draw their power from magical stones. The book follows one to-be scrivenist, Ivy Lovely, who turns out to be more than even she thought was possible. With the help of some friendly students, she goes on a search for a mysterious author and winds up facing more than she bargained for.

I received this ARC from the publicist via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and social media support of the author. My review contains my own opinions.

Uh.. I have to say it has all the igredients od fairy tales. I never read a fantasy book before. But I guess a fantasy book must be like this. We have dragons, queens, princess, prince, magic and drama and comedy .. everything mixed together amd nobody knows what is true or what is just a fantasy. I couldn't help not have in mind Harry Potter all the time. You can not avoid.. school and magic. I would reccomend to the entusiats of fantasy. I could not enjoyed complitely. But I am glade I try something new.

I received a copy on Netgalley.com in exchange for a honest review.

“The Crowns of Croswald” by D.E. Night
⭐️⭐️⭐️

Night has written a tale for middle schoolers that is heavily reminiscent of “Harry Potter”. It has weird creatures, a school of magic, and a protagonist who is unaware of the magical powers she possesses and of her mysterious past. Most kids in the intended audience, however, won’t know about Potter (probably) so they can get on with enjoying the story.

I found “Crowns” to be very fast paced. Considering the attention span of today’s children, that makes sense. The story does not suffer from the speed at which things move, though. There are sufficient comedic scenes to amuse the average preteen and enough drama to create a little tension, but not too much.

Overall this scores a 3 for tween me. I liked it okay, about average.

This book was a Netgalley gift from the publisher, Stories Untold. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and I received no compensation in exchange for them.

“𝙰 𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚌𝚊𝚜𝚝𝚕𝚎? 𝚆𝚑𝚘 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚕𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚜𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚊 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝?”

What a fun and exciting read. When I was approached to read this and give an honest review I was a bit nervous but mostly excited to explore a new magical world! And did D.E. Night deliver! At first slow, I found myself still wanting to get to know these characters and the school more. It’s heavily influenced by the Harry Potter world, which isn’t a bad thing, much like how Harry Potter has influences of Macbeth and even Narnia!

Ivy’s a great protagonist with a big heart and has her whits about her. I enjoyed this book mostly because it wasn’t so clean cut, Ivy made mistakes and needed help fixing them. I enjoyed her friends, Fyn especially, and think there’s a lot to be said about how the dynamic of the group changes over the course of the story, but how they’re there for one another when needed. I also really enjoyed that the time line is one school year, again similar to HP on that sense, but it gives the reader a more definitive time line that’s easy to follow.

Certainly aimed at a younger crowd, I do believe YA readers can have some fun with it. I did feel like some things were obvious that didn’t need stating but were anyway. And the writing style is simple and easy to follow.

Overall, it’s a fun read, a nice escape into a new whimsical world! There are two more book released in the series so if you find yourself hooked you can continue on.

I was hooked on Ivy Lovely in the first chapter and by chapter four I couldn't put the book down!  I think if you liked Harry Potter or even the Percy Jackson series you will find this book captivating! I love when fantasy stories bridge the ordinary with the extraordinary in their characters and that is exactly what D.E. Night does here with Croswald. 

Ivy is sweet and a main character you will immediately find endearing.  I loved all the detail Night gave to the magical creatures and the town.  I found myself getting lost in imagination and I am certain any young adult would find this story enchanting (or really any age reader if you are like me and love fantasy/magic/mythical creatures and the like). 

I really look forward to reading more about Ivy and her magical adventures in book 2 of this series! 
Thank you to Stories Untold and NetGalley for providing me with this free copy in exchange for an honest review.

📚📚📚Book Review📚📚📚
The Crowns of Croswald by D.E. Night
First I would like to thank the author and NetGalley for my free digital copy of this book for my honest review! I love reading new books and discovering new authors! Fantasy fiction has quickly become my new favorite genre! This book did NOT disappoint!!! When I read a book I want to imagine the characters, the places and the events. Author D. E. Night did an amazing job with this! I felt what Ivy was feeling. I was easly placed right in this story. I look forward to finding out what happens next with Ivy and her friends.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars Fantasy fiction lovers, this book is for you! This book is for everyone! It is fast paced and will keep you on the edge of your seat!

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

"Her thirst for knowledge and love of reading- everyone else at the castle seemed dull and muted, uninterested in anything beyond their work and the latest servant gossip."

We follow Ivy, a sixteen year old orphan working as a kitchen maid. She spends her free time reading books gifted by her friend Rimbrick. A kitchen mishap causes her to leave the castle, where she gets invited to attend a magical school, The Hall of Ivy. There she learns to harness her powers and discovers her past. I really enjoyed Ivy as a character; she exhibited brave and I loved her motivation. I adored Fyn and Ivy's cute relationship! Rebecca, Ivy's roommate was there to help her out of any situation. The book was filled with magic and adventure. The Crowns of Croswald, although an enjoyable read, I identified passages and scenes similar to Harry Potter. When writing about a middle grade magic only so many tropes can be recycled before it becomes repetitive. An innovative twist on the magic school trope would have made the book stronger. The powerful ending scene bumped my rating up because it demonstrated the growth Ivy experienced throughout the book. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a middle grade fantasy that revolves around magic!

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

When first approached about reading The Crowns of Croswald, I was a bit unsure because it’s a middle grade book. Though I am a big YA fan, I can’t remember the last time I picked up a middle grade fantasy book. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this, mostly because of the imaginative story and creativity of this author. I ‘m so glad I took a chance on a middle grade book like this. It brought me back to being a kid and really using my imagination and seeing the fun and excitement within this book’s pages.

Summary:

Ivy Lovely is a kitchen maid who dreams of being a scrivenist. When a dear friend leaves her a pile of books and a curious note about her background, she is surprised at her invitation to study at the Halls of Ivy among royals and squinches. Throughout her first year, Ivy continuously comes across the name Derwin Edgar Night, the same author of the books her dear friend had left her. However, this person has been erased from memory - forgotten by everyone but her. Could he hold the key to Ivy’s true identity?

Review:

This book is a wonderful mix of Harry Potter and similar type books. It has a little something for every fantasy lover - dragons, magical creatures, magic spells, and adventure. I also thought it was witty for the author to include themselves as a character in the book. This story also has the typical characters of many fantasy books: the heroine, the sidekick, the love interest, the villain, the mean girl, and someone needing rescue. Overall I thought this was an enjoyable quick read. My only complaint is the storyline was more fluffy than what I’m used to. Details were a little bare when it came to characters, but I think that’s also the norm of the middle grade genre.

This story is faced paced and full of magic. You really dive into the world of Croswald headfirst and you are never bored. Ivy was a really fun protagonist as she was either always on an adventure or getting herself into trouble. I really enjoyed Ivy’s friendships especially with Rebecca and her pet dragon/scaldron Humboldt. The mystery running throughout the novel was done well. It kept me intrigued and weaved into the rest of the story nicely. The magic is always present in every part of the story, particularly once we get to the school and brings to life the magical atmosphere you want from a book like this. I did not in general like the treatment of characters such as Helga and the Butterlove’s. Or that we had some really involved scenes with some characters who we then never really see again – although its likely these will pop in the later books in the series. Nevertheless, I would recommend this book. It is exciting, funny, has eccentric characters and is full of magic. Overall if you want a bit of pure magical fantasy and escapism then this is for you.

Ivy Lovely, 16-year-old former scullery maid, is having dreams and visions that aren’t quite making sense to her. When she is thrown out of the Plum castle, she is terrified, as she has no family and nowhere to go. Just then, she is magically whisked away to the Halls of Ivy, school of magic, where she begins a whole new life and embarks on numerous magical adventures.

This book, intended for middle grade children, is cute and fanciful. D.E. Night is creative and her writing is fairly good. She has the imagination, creativity, and talent to become a wonderful fantasy writer. I won’t pretend that the The Crowns of Croswald isn’t Harry Potter fan fiction, because it is. I like that it has a female protagonist, as well as a female villain. I love the romance between Ivy and Fyn - super adorable. Did I know Ivy’s story within the first ten minutes? Yes. Was the double moon disappearing a real mystery? No. But, I’m not a 12-year-old kid. If Night is trying to write a book that is intended for kids, but loved by adults, this book is a start. It is excellent practice, as long as we acknowledge it for what it is. Harry Potter with some tweaks. I’m confident that Night has plenty of her own ideas and creativity to share with us in the future and I will definitely look forward to reading that work in the future.

Thanks to D.E. Night, Stories Untold, and Netgalley for the ARC in return for my honest review.