Ivy is back again to take you on an adventure in her magical world as she battles the Dark Queen and discovers who she is. After reading the first book and becoming acquainted with the world of magic and creatures, this book was such a fun and fast read. I felt like we got to know Ivy and her personality better and watch her relationship with her friends grow.

This book introduced more magic and mystery as well as a magical sport and so many new creatures! D.E. Night again does a great job at world building and making this book so immersive, fun, and mysterious.I loved all of the new friends Ivy made as well as the backstory you gained with some of her older friends. It helps the reader build compassion for these characters and understand their personality so much better. I also feel like the self discovery of Ivy in this book and the novels to come will be so refreshing. You can really tell Ivy is coming into her own, speaking her mind, and becoming so independent. I love that in a book for young readers and am glad this message is being delivered.

Overall, this is a wonderful series so far and it is brimming with magic and adventure. The new creatures are so fun and as Ivy’s magical skills grow, it is fun to experience the new spells she learns. I can’t wait to see where the next book takes us!

Thank you to the publisher for a free ecopy in exchange for an honest review

*3.5
In the continuation of Crowns of Croswald, we see D.E Night continue with her whimsical world-building. From a stone castle to a secret town with magical duels there’s always something new to discover. The story is a cute easy read for an older reader and a good length for a middle-grade reader.

The drawback to this story is that it takes a while to build up to the climax and then is over pretty quick. Otherwise, I have to say it’s definitely a series that seems to get better with each new book.

With more magic and mayhem, this was just as enjoyable as the first book and definitely makes me want to read the next books in the series.

Once again this was a fun read. I think it would be good for anyone of the age range that hasn't read Harry Potter.

However, this one really felt like it was summoning Harry Potter right from the pages. From a ogre-like beast they fight, a dueling type fight where something goes wrong (que Harry learning he can speak to snakes), a secret club that feels a lot like DA, to quite literally crashing into the school in a magic flying transport when she's "not supposed to be there". OH did I mention there is a girl who is being influenced by a cursed book? So while technically a different story, the similarities are quite distracting, influencing my overall enjoyment.

📖The girl with the whispering shadow |
D E Night

I had the pleasure of reading this due to a gifted e-copy from @netgalley and @storiesuntold in exchange for an honest review. I found myself instantly swept back into the magical realms from the very first page right back to where I left off from the last one! Scrivenist studies, stone pursuits and mischief alike! I liked this one better than the first!! To start, Ivy finds herself being sent to the ‘town’ - a secret place that’s always night and only for magical blood, to keep her safe and hidden from the dark queen. Studies aside, her real mission via letter is to find the second part of the Kindred stone and due to Derwin’s jumbled memories she doesn’t know where to even look! After being lured back to the halls by dark magic, she finds herself back and forth memory lane with Derwins grand glangerie plan and facing her biggest fear.. the dark queen! Whilst desperately trying to unlock Derwins forgotten memory and stay out of trouble, the clues begin to unfold and the search for the second piece of kindred stone continues. Ivy finds herself fronted by danger at every turn and is being followed by this mystery dark shadow.. This book is exactly like the last, full of imagination! It’s again, all your childhood fairytales combined yet this one has stand out uniqueness with an edge. It’s adventures within adventures.. from bearded clouds full of fear to quogo magic games gone wrong.. don’t get me started on the invisible rideable creatures! Ivy has truly blossomed from book 1 and is learning to embrace her magic for the greater good. The last part of this book was just unputdownable and I cannot wait to continue the magical ride of book 3!

*this book was given to me as an eARC by the author and publisher via NetGalley*

Another whimsical, captivating read by D.E. Night! While the first book reminded me of Alice in Wonderland x Harry Potter, this book reminded me of Peter Pan x Harry Potter. It was full of adventure from beginning to end.

We get to explore new characters in Night’s second Croswald novel, and they do not disappoint. Everyone can find a character they connect with (me personally with Derwin himself). The plot line is steady and keeps the reader’s interest peaked — wandering “what happens next?”

The only criticism I have is that it is just a little *too* much like HP. There were so many connections I made between HP and this series, so some of it feels unoriginal. Regardless, it’s still a fun read for people of all ages really, but especially Middle Grade!

In the second installment of The Crowns of Croswald series we return to a magical world that expands before our eyes. This time, Ivy continues to learn about her family and what it means to be part of the Queenly bloodline.

Although she is theoretically accompanied by her family's scriventist, his presence is rather rare; I would have loved to see him more present, a little beyond the decisive moments. Who does Ivy turn to? This book introduces us to new allies and friendships, characters I loved and it breaks my heart to know that they may not be as present in the next one now that they have graduated. Besides, Ivy gathers more knowledge that constantly helps on the quests.

Oh, the dynamic between the club and Ivy was one of my favorite parts and Quogo! This game of scriventists was fascinating. Instead of fighting with wands, they fight with the quills of the scriventists who have passed, bringing the scriventists with them for a bit.

Without a doubt, the magic system and the spaces we visit in this book continue to be unique, intriguing. They encourage you to keep reading. It's not dark, like my other reads, but it's not honey on top either. Truth be told, I've grown quite fond of the series.

Btw, this is a read I would totally recommend for kids aged between 9 and 14-ish, and older too, haha.


----

En la segunda entrega de la serie de The Crowns of Croswald volvemos a un mundo mágico que se expande ante nuestros ojos. Esta vez, Ivy sigue aprendiendo sobre su familia y lo que significa formar parte del linaje de la Reina.

Aunque en teoría la acompaña el scriventist de su familia, su presencia es más bien escasa; me hubiera gustado verlo más presente, un poco más allá de los momentos decisivos. ¿A quién recurre Ivy? Este libro nos presenta nuevos aliados y amistades, personajes que me encantaron y me rompe el corazón saber que quizás no estén tan presentes en el siguiente ahora que se han graduado. Además, Ivy reúne más conocimientos que ayudan constantemente en las misiones.

La dinámica entre el club e Ivy fue una de mis partes favoritas y ¡Quogo! El juego de los scriventists fue fascinante. En vez de luchar con varitas, luchan con las plumas de los scriventists que han pasado, llevando a los scriventists con ellos por un rato.

Sin duda, el sistema de magia y los espacios que visitamos en este libro siguen siendo únicos, intrigantes. Te animan a seguir leyendo. No es oscuro, como mis otras lecturas, pero tampoco es miel sobre hojuelas. La verdad es que le he cogido bastante cariño a la serie.

Por cierto, es una lectura que recomendaría totalmente para niños de entre 9 y 14 años, y mayores también, jaja.

The second installation in the Crowns of Croswald series continues the saga of Ivy Lovely. Ivy has gone to The Town to stay with Fyn for the summer holidays after the intense events at the masquerade ball. When fall arrives, Ivy must stay behind and study remotely for her own safety. Her apprenticeship at Quinton’s fills the gap until Ivy receives a summons to return to the Halls of Ivy immediately. As she works with Derwin to retrieve his memories from the glanagerie in hopes of finding the missing pieces of the Kindred Stone, a dark force is lurking at the Halls. Will Ivy discover the source of the shadow presence and keep the Halls of Ivy and The Town safe from harm?

The Girl with the Whispering Shadow is an action packed adventure with a host of dangerous ordeals. There are moments of both fun and tension as she forms deeper friendships with her classmates and becomes better acquainted with her family’s scrivenist, Derwin, who has come to teach at The Halls. Ivy becomes more accustomed to her magical powers and embraces her gifts to further the cause against the Dark Queen’s domination. Her confidence grows with every chapter as she strives to become capable of overthrowing her nemesis.

If you enjoy magical reads, this series is for you! It is easy to get lost in the imaginative and adventurous world of Croswald with a strong female lead character that both middle grade and adult readers can appreciate.

🔮Review🔮

Thank you NetGalley and Stories Untold Press for my complimentary copy.

🔮The Girl with the Whispering Shadow (Book 2 in The Croswald Series)

🔮By D.E. Knight

🔮Middle grade

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

🔮While everyone was posting their wrapup, I was scurrying to finish this fantastic read before August ended. This review may contain spoilers to book 1, The Crowns of Croswald, so please proceed with caution if you plan on reading these.

🔮Goodreads Synopsis🔮

Even a secret town cannot protect Ivy from a mysterious darkness...

Only hours after Ivy Lovely discovers that she is the fulfillment of the Moonsday promise, she is whisked away from her beloved school to Belzebuthe, a secret town for only those with magical blood.

Ivy sets out on a mission to uncover the second facet of the Kindred Stone while eluding the Dark Queen’s wrath. But even when she’s supposed to be safe, something is shadowing Ivy. She will need all her natural-born magic and more as she battles to find the rest of the Kindred Stone and return to the Halls of Ivy.

Before it’s too late...

🔮This story is mystical and magical. I loved everything about this Harry Potter esque story. I do however wish that there was a little more between Ivy and Fyn. I do understand that this is middle grade, but it's pretty obvious they like each other. Either way, I'm looking forward to the third book and have told my Harry Potter loving 10 year old daughter about these. She's very excited to start these.

After finishing, The Crowns of Croswald, I couldn’t wait to read book two of this four part series. The Girl with the Whispering Shadow explores further the realm of Croswald and its’ many hidden secrets. Ivy a girl, who until recently, has found out that she is the rightful heir to the kingdom of Croswald. She is on a quest to find the remaining pieces of the Kindred Stone and stop the Dark Queen. Her family scrivenist, Derwin, has sent her to the town, to search for clues that would lead them to the stone pieces. While there Ivy stays with Fyn’s family and learns about the sport Quogo. A sport that captivates her and expands her friend group. As Ivy explores the town, she has a feeling that something or someone is watching her. Her concern grows as unexplainable events occur when she returns to school. She knows that there is something evil lurking in the shadows waiting to do harm to her and her kingdom. She is also frustrated because she still hasn’t figured out where the last two pieces of the stone are hidden. The story has a slow progression at the beginning as new characters are introduced and more details about Cromwell are built. The second half of the book is intriguing and draws the reader into rooting for Ivy and her friends as they fight the evil around them.. D.E. Night has done a masterful job writing about such a magical place. I can’t wait to read book three of this series. Thank you NetGalley

After reading the first book, I was really excited to read the second and this one did not disappoint. I enjoyed the first but this one is my favorite out of the two. It is action packed and had everything that I love in a fantasy. On top of that, I'm not going to lie I found it to be just a tad bit scary. For me, anything like shadows or even reflections freak me out, but, I was still invested. I loved how in this one Ivy is more comfortable and coming to terms with who she truly is. Overall, this was really great and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

I am so happy to say that this second book in The Crowns of Croswald Series was just as intriguing and captivating as the first!

The first chapter I found myself immediately swept back into the enchantingly magical world that our main girl Ivy lives in. This new book brought with it an adventure to new exciting places, fascinating new characters and magical creatures, and more adventure than I could have ever hoped for.

I would also like to note how much growth and development our characters go through in this next instalment in the series. Ivy has struggled to find her place within her world, and D.E. Knight perfectly explores the feelings of inadequacy and highlights the importance of finding one’s self worth. Such an important message to be sending to the target audience, and it is executed perfectly.

Overall, The Girl with the Whispering Shadow was beautiful written, and carries incredible messages of loyalty, friendship, and the journey of finding confidence in yourself. It was just as magical as the first book, with the perfect balance between witty banter and serious plot thickening events. I was captivated from the very first page, and loved being whisked away on yet another magical adventure with Ivy and her friends.

Thank you to NetGalley and Stories Untold Press for gifting me a copy of The Girl with the Whispering Shadow.

(A big thank you to StoriesUntold and NetGalley for supplying a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!)

This book is the second in the "The Crowns of Croswald" series, and I have to say, I enjoyed it even more than the first. The author seemed to develop their writing style and the story itself was more complex, yet included helpful explanatory information.

This story follows the adventures of Ivy Lovely as she begins her second year at a magical school. She attends classes with her quirky friends, all while trying to escape the wrath of the Dark Queen.

I particularly noticed and loved:

- Ivy's character development: Her personality and actions were more fitting for her age in this novel. I connected more with her this time around.
- Explanation of magic: The author gives a more detailed explanation of magic and a scrivenist's role in the world.
- More relationship building: Ivy's friendships and interactions with others felt natural, and I felt I saw more the characters' personalities shine through in this book compared to the first.
- Creative ideas: I loved the concept of fishing for stars, "soggy jogs," and melted milkshakes (a treat that builds off actual melted milkshakes). These highly original concepts are what kept me reading.

Like the first book in the series, "The Girl with the Whispering Shadow" is extremely reminiscent of the Harry Potter books in some ways. I enjoyed the Harry Potter books way back when, but I would have preferred less similarities, simply due to being "Harry Potter-ed out." Young readers (the intended audience) may not notice (or care) as much, but I have no doubt most adult readers will immediately be struck with this comparison.

These similarities include the name of the students' favorite game ("Quogo" here, compared to Quidditch, although Quogo is an entirely different game), some crossover in plot points (overarching themes, characters' place in the story, etc.), and the glanageries' role (used to access memories just as the Pensieve was in the Harry Potter stories). I wouldn't let the Harry Potter influence turn you off the story, as there are large sections of the story that truly feel like the author has created an entirely new world.

The book was fun to read and created that perfect "cozy autumn ambience" that I love in fantasy stories. I will definitely keep an eye out for further books by this author!

This series is so whimsical and the world is so fun to be a part of. All of the creatures and world building is what really makes these a fun magical escape book. I do think I enjoyed this one even more than the first book. My only issue is that the characters act quite young despite the fact that they are supposed to be in their late teens. As this is targeted toward a more middle grade audience, I do think that the characters ages should have reflected that a little better, however, I will definitely be sharing these ones with my Grade 8's this year if any of them want a fun magical series and have already read the other big ones.

Thank you to D E Night, Stories untold press and Netgalley for a review copy.

This is book two of the Croswald series so I will try not to be spoilery about how book one ended.

After the events in book one, The Crowns of Croswald Ivy Lovely is hiding out in the secret town of Belzebuthe for her own protection. The residents of the town are all practitioners of magic and Ivy SHOULD be completely safe there as it is hidden from the outside world by a veil of magic which makes it always night time in the town. On the upside there are magical low hung stars and you can even fish for them and make wishes come true if you manage to snag one.

This book features magical shops, magical duels, social interactions with new friends and old. A sort of dragon and some really scary magical weather.

Things get pretty dramatic towards the end and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next....

The main character is I think 17? Now and at least one other major character is 19 but this series does feel decidedly middle grade rather then young adult.

Despite not loving this one as much as the first one, I still loved this book! We continue to watch Ivy on her new path with her friends, on this beautifully written magical world. I loved seeing how her character evolved from the first book, after knowing that she has royal blood, and how her relationships with others developed as well! Some new characters were introduced, who are as lovable as the previous ones introduced and I enjoyed seeing more of D.E.Night (the character) in this installment. The world-building is still very strong and I loved all the new locations. One thing that brought my rating a little bit down was the fact that I got confused at times, plot-wise, so I had to reread some paragraphs, but nothing major. Overall, I really liked this book and I can´t wait to see what the author has in store for us on the next novels!

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for sending me a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review✨

I was glad to see the world take on a unique spin of it's own, I found I compared it less to other well known school based magic stories this time around. It was nice to see Ivy start to mature and embrace her magic more. The pacing of the book was good too, it kept me reading and nothing felt rushed or forced.

Overall - 4 stars⭐

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Okay the first book was amazing but this was even more so, it keeps getting better! Absolutely did not see those plot twists coming, I loved how the author just surprised us! The magic felt so real and beautiful. I am loving this series so much! As said in my previous review I loved the plot!👌
4.75 stars!🌟

"Ma says that the most wondrous things, the most impossible of things, are often just ordinary things doing what they are best at.”

The Girl with the Whispering Shadow is book 2 in The Crowns of Croswald series and it picks up right where we left on book 1: The aftermath of the Ball, with Ivy wondering where she should head next. She decides to go to Belzebuthe, a secret Town that is a safe haven for scrivenists and bearers of magical blood, not only to keep her own safety far from the Dark Queen’s reach, but to keep looking for the missing pieces of the Kindred Stone, as advised by Derwin E. Night, her family’s scrivenist. Even at Belzebuthe, strange things start happening, like dangerous quills set loose from the Quill Keep and menacing shadows breaking through the town’s magical barriers.
As Ivy is summoned to return to the Halls of Ivy, she keeps on collecting more pieces of the puzzle from her past and shaping her future.

I loved returning to Croswald and finding even more about Ivy, Fyn, Rebecca and also new characters.
The introduction of Belzebuthe and the Quogo adds more layers to the main story, the former being a fascinating place and the latter such a great magical match.
D.E.Night is creating a wonderful book world, with great detail and cohesiveness.
I also love the writing style and that’s one of the features that, from my perspective, takes this middle grade series into a whole different level.
I can’t recommend this series enough and I believe that it captures both younger and older Fantasy readers. I’m looking forward to reading The Words of the Wondering, book 3 in the series.

As great as the overall theme and concept of this book is, but it isn't very engaging. It's too predictable and the feel that ties you to the book is missing.
My rating 2 stars.
Thank you Publisher and Netgalley for a copy.