I'm still a bit lost but I can honestly say I like this better than the first book! One of the things that I love about his book is that there's young love but not the explicit kind that is so common, nowadays. Readers who like discovering new magical worlds will enjoying this book series!

The Crowns of Crosswold is a series that any YA Fantasy reader can get lost in. The second book doesn't disappoint.

After Ivy's first year at her new magical school, she stays for the summer with friends in The Town - really named Belzebuthe but hidden by magic from the Dark Queen so people can practice magic freely. She's told that it's not safe for her to return to school after the Dark Queen's attack on last year's ball, but it doesn't seem that she's any safer in The Town.

Another quick and quirky middle-grade fantasy - it was great to get a more expansive look at the world of Ivy & Croswald - we see the world outside of school, meet more magical creatures, and see more of life, careers, and hobbies.

My main hangup with this second book is that there seem to be more and more very obvious parallels to the Harry Potter world - a secret student club, a possessed student, visiting memories with a teacher, invisible creatures, and a secret room of long-lost and forgotten items.

Thank you to Stories Untold Press and the author for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review!

Thankyou to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me a copy of this book. I enjoyed the first book and i hoped this would live up to my expectations and i have to say i enjoyed it more than the first installment, The world building is amazing and i loved the character development, The atmosphere was great and it was an emotional rollercoaster. such a magical world.

This is the second installment in the series and it was just as good as the first.

D. E. Night has expanded the world as we saw it in book 1 and the magical systems as well. We start where the last book left off. Ivy Lovely is leaving school and has returned to The Town that now one remembers with a secret name. We get a host of new characters as she lives there during the summer. She returns to school and is immediately swept up into danger again as the Dark Queen tries to gain access to Ivy’s royal stone. With the help of her new friends, Ivy again defeats the Dark Queen’s plans to keep the world safe for a little longer.

One of my favorite parts of this book was the Quogo matches (some of which are illegal of course!). The magical students doing tournament style duels was fantastic. I will say that at late teenage years, these students do seem to act younger than they are and I wish they would have grown a little more as their ages in the book did.

Overall, an absolutely fabulous return to a magical world! 100% would recommend this book for those who love middle grade/YA fantasies and lovers of Harry Potter.

I really liked the world and characters introduced in the first book, so I was looking forward to reading the second one. I will say this one was a bit harder to keep my attention compared to the first. I felt like the plot was not as interesting, and at the same time, it was a bit confusing.

This sequel focuses on Ivy's journey through her banishment from The Halls of Ivy, her inevitable return to the school, and her continued quest to overpower the Dark Queen and save their world.

There were even more Harry Potter influences in the second one than the first and I felt some of it was a bit too much than just an influence. There are still unique aspects of the story, characters, and worlds, but I can compare almost everything to a part of HP, with the thestral-like creatures, a possessed student, secret magic club, and so on. I hoped for a bit more from this book, but I am still interested in reading the third.

Thank you to the publisher for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you so much to Stories Untold, D.E. Night, and NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for my honest review

My rating: 4,5/5 stars

I'm really grateful that I can continue to read Ivy's journey in the 2nd book!
I ended up loving this book better than the first one! There are a lot of magical things going around in the second book, and I love it!!

Here's what I love about this book without *trying to* spoiling it:
- The Town!! It's just so magical and it's written beautifully! I want
- I really want to see Ivy's character development in book 2, and I'm so happy that the author manages to give that.
- HUMBOLDT!!
- Ivy, Fyn, and Rebecca's whole relationships! Where can I find friends like them?
- Rebecca! I love her in the first book and I love her even more in this one!! (I won't spoil it)
- Quogo!! and the club!
- Amazing spells, characters, and creatures!
- I like the Dark Queen better in this book also (lol idk why)
- Chapter eight!!

It's blowing my mind (in a good way) that the second book does justice to what the first book was.
This is such a page-turner series and I recommend it for anyone who loves fantasy middle-grade books!
I'm so looking forward to seeing more of D.E. Night work!

After reading the book 1 last year I couldn't wait to dive into Ivy Lovely's world again. Massive thanks to Netgalley, D. E. Night and Stories Untold Publishers for this ARC copy. I was hyper when my request was accepted. 📚

The 1st book is actually one of my favorite Fantasies and I couldn't wait to see what this one is all about. 🙌

It's an instant continuation from book 1, so i didn't have trouble understanding it. Ivy Lovely in this book is more matured, strong, now that she knows she has queenly blood and dedicated more than ever to save her country because she is their only salvation. 👑

There is an amazing world building here, the characters pretty much the same but with more secrets to unfold. Here we see Derwin Night in the flesh! He's back at the Halls as a professor and we even get to see a glimpse of him in a major trip back to when he was a child. 💜

The chapters moved steadily, there was more action and definitely more magic. Like the 1st book, it gave me major Harry Potter-ish vibes, which is simply incredible! I love Fantasies about students investigating mysteries about their school. 😍

Each chapter is carefully written, with precise details of everything. It was like watching a movie! An incredible fantasy movie, that is. ✨

Some of my fav characters were Fyn, who is going into his final year, the sassy Rebecca and goofy Glistle, who are all part of the Quill Club members who play an important part in the book, and humor us with their hilarious dialogues.🌟

The mysterious Belzabuthe only added more intrigue into the setting. Many questions filled my mind about it. Where is it? How did it become invisible? Soon enough, all my questions were answered. I love the view of the city, so magical and calm.

I could live there forever!

And let's not forget the Dark Queen. Woah. She's a real villain. A mastermind with an evil heart. Capable of creating unimaginable things including shadows just to mess with other people's brains. Just thinking of her makes me shudder.

I was sorta hoping the selector would be a hypocrite and actually be on the Dark Queen's side for real. Especially after the Gretta saga. But apparently, she's legit. Just doing her job. And besides, I think the Dark Queen is still alive, probably nursing her wounds somewhere. Far away, I hope. I also wanted Fyn and Ivy to be official! They're so cute together and totally deserve each other. Lastly, I hoped dearly for some drama to occur at the end of the book, where Ivy dumped the stones in the forgotten room.

Well, after going through this emotional roller coaster ride, I sincerely hope Author D. E. Night surprises us with another book in this series. It cannot be over. Pleasssse!

Book 2 of the Crowns of Croswald. Book 2 follows As with the first book, this world is interesting and continues to build upon itself. It was amazing to go indepth into the town and meet new characters. Like book one it does suck you into Ivy's experiences and struggles. In all i thoroughly enjoyed this book like the first one and cannot wait to read the last book in the series and see how everything comes togther.
If you're looking for all things magical, adventure and a great escape for reality. Then this is your book.

"What magic remains of a beloved heart is safe guarded by the double moon. The only thing that offers hope to this world lies within its box: a stone pure and bright. A fraction of the powerful queenly power reverberates in this crystal form." ~ D. E. Night (The Girl With the Whispering Shadow)

Another fun adventure with Ivy Lovely and her troop of friends. The second book of this series takes readers further into the magical world. I enjoyed the descriptions of the shops and streets, and starry skies, of The Town. This YA read is light and magical. I can't wait until the littles in my life are old enough to appreciate these books. I will buy the whole set so we can adventure within the Hall's of Ivy and across all of Croswald!

The second installment in this series is just as good as the first. I loved Ivy's growth in this book. While the first book gives you vibes of other magical schools, this one sets it apart. And I am excited to see relationship between Ivy and Fyn grow stronger as they closer in this book. But my favorite part was the town! In Belzebuthe, it is always night and you can literally “fish” for wishing stars.

If you enjoy fantasy, I recommend this book AND the authors entire series. This is perfect for middle grade readers or anyone who was a magical adventure.

As the second book in the series, The Girl with the Whispering Shadow picks up where book 1 left off and is just as fast-paced, action-packed, and descriptive as the first. The worldbuilding is creative and amazing. I love how the title goes along with a plot in the book. I loved Quogo, the QQC friends, and the creatures.
I'm so torn on the Selector and if she's good or not haha.
Again, there are plot devices that brought to mind another fantasy book's plot devices, but it's with enough of a twist that makes this book its own.
That last page! 'The Words of the Wandering'! I HAVE to know what's in there! Can't wait for the next book!

This book was just OKAY. I was asked to read for free and then leave an honest review, so here it is. This series is GREAT for kids. Perfect even. If you feel like your kid isn't ready for Harry Potter, then this series is for you. As an adult, this series has no jazz, nor appeal, especially if you grew up with reading watching Harry Potter. The first 2 books kind of feel like a rip-off of the Harry Potter books. The similarities are there. The little Quogo group they formed was very similar to Dumbledore's Army. And also, the story line was similar to that of the Chamber of Secrets. I feel like the author came up with enough unique ideas on their own, but then also used Harry Potter for the not so unique ideas. Overall, I managed to make it through this second book and it's not terrible so I give it 3 stars.

A thank you to the publishers and netgalley for an arc in exchange of a review.

I have to say that I did not request this book, as I did not enjoy the first book and therefore I had no interest in providing a review for this book and feel it would not be appropriate for me to review this.

I have throughly enjoyed following Ivy on her magical journey. The detail these books are written in is captivating. Each book has gotten more whimsical, I enjoy the fantasy genre for this reason. Can’t wait to read more of Ivys journey.

I just reviewed The Girl with the Whispering Shadow by D.E. Night. #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

As with the first book, this world is interesting and continues to build upon itself. It was wonderful to get to see the Town and the stars, to meet new and old characters, and to experience new aspects of the world, like Quogo, alongside Ivy. I particularly loved the little sweets that Ivy gets in the Town that holds specific fortunes - such a cool (and terrifying) idea!

This book does very well in getting a reader immersed as Ivy experiences and struggles, but I do sometimes forget that these characters are as old as they are. This may just be a fault of awareness or cultural expectations of age, probably directly influenced by books like Harry Potter, but the way Ivy acts makes her seem younger than 16. Having to adjust or remember the age pulled me out from the fantasy from time to time but I wouldn't say that would be distracting to demographic readers.

Regardless, this series has great potential to become a world so diverse and wide, that it pulls in people of all ages. This series takes you on a visual journey and you can't help but picture places, people and items with every page, plus I loved to learn about Ivy, Derwin's past memories, Fyn, and more!

In exchange for an honest review, I was given this book for free from the publisher, Stories Untold.

This was such a good sequel to the first installment and a huge improvement in both narration and plot development.
The book was fun, exciting, magical and I very enjoyed reading this second book to this series!
For magic, adventure, and a great escape I would recommend this book!

They just talk about Quogo and Quill way to many. I feel like I've been missing the mystery, action and magic. I really wanted to give this a shot but it was a DNF for me at 72%

I really loved the story line of this book. It was very well written and kept me interested til the end! Loved it.

The second installment in ‘The Crowns of Croswald’ series is just as enchanting as the first. The descriptive writing and vivid imagery throughout made this a treat to read! The world-building and character development is fantastic. Everything I admire about the first book is true for the second too. Croswald is an enthralling, whimsical world. The unbreakable bond between Ivy, Rebecca, and Fyn is heartwarming. Ivy is such a strong, determined protagonist. A great role model for younger readers.

I think this series is perfect for middle-grade readers. However, given that I am 22 years old, I found the story to be a tad predictable at times and saw remnants of other fantasy series I have read, in this one. That has less to do with the book, and more to do with the fact I am an adult who lived and breathed fantasy when growing up.

The reason I love the Croswald series so much is because of how well written it is. The dialogue, description, world-building, and character arcs….it is simply superb.
Highly recommend this series to anyone looking to read more fantasy. It is the perfect introduction