Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for giving me free access to the advanced copy of this book to read.

So much appeal for middle grade kids right on the cusp of YA. I love how this speaks to science and climate change but also to fantasy readers. Dynamic characters and a fun story.

The Tiltersmith by Amy Herrick; Algonquin Young Readers, 320 pages ($17.95) Ages 10 and up.

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It should be spring in Brooklyn, but winter shows no sign of letting up in this thrilling coming-of-age fantasy skillfully weaving elements of ancient folklore with the frightening contemporary realities of climate change.

Amy Herrick, a retired teacher who lives in Brooklyn, returns to the world of her excellent 2013 novel "The Time Fetch" and the four friends Edward, Feenix, Danton and Brigit, each with a particular talent that will prove vital to the adventure.

Nerdy Edward, who lives with his guardian, Aunt Kit, is growing mold in baking pans in his room, hoping to find a mold that breaks down plastic. Free-spirited Feenix wears her coat to class and inks tiny drawings on her face to annoy the principal. Thoughtful red-haired Brigit was rendered mute at the death of her infant brother and still has great difficulty speaking in class. Tall, genial Danton radiates "can-do cheerfulness" and has a crush on Brigit.

On the day of the spring equinox, Aunt Kit notes that humans have thrown off the world's delicate balance, declaring: "Spring is a meeting of the Forces That Be and the Matters That Are," a declaration that causes Edward to observe his aunt is in "high wackadoodle gear." Science teacher Mr. Ross blames climate change for the late arrival of spring. But the four friends suspect something else may be going on when the school principal disappears, and a strange fellow calling himself Superintendent Tiltersmith takes over, showing an ominous interest in the four friends and some rare objects they have obtained.

Herrick offers a thrilling tale of ancient forces battling over the future of Earth and four likable protagonists tasked with saving the Earth while dealing with the emotional realities of adolescence (friendships, a first crush, bullying). Best of all, she seems to suggest a third novel may be coming – eventually.

Science, magic, and myth clash in an intriguing tale of our environmental crisis. The Tiltersmith by Amy Herrick explores a looming question. What’s going wrong with our seasons and our eco-systems?

Great middle grade book. The characters were cute and I really enjoyed the story. I think it's cute and the young people in my life love it!

This middle grade fantasy is told from four different points of view-a varied group of kids who are friends in middle school. There is a very vivid science teacher who sends them down some interesting rabbit holes, including a very timely discussion of climate change. I missed some of the world building and character development from the first book so I found some things a little confusing (like it said that Brigit had a condition but didn't tell what it was or how it affected her or that the description of the book says it's set in Brooklyn, but it never said that in the book). I think this one needs the first one in order to make this one make sense.

This follow up to Amy Herrick's 2013 middle grade debut, The Time Fetch, is a charming, funny story starring quirky, relatable characters. It's also a timely tale that explores the serious issue of climate change while mixing in a healthy dose of magic, mystery, and whimsical fun. This book can be read as a standalone novel or as a sequel to The Time Fetch. Highly recommended for young people and adults alike.

A good adventure for any middle grade reader. Does a great job keeping the interest going and making sure that every character has their own voice.

When spring arrives in Brooklyn, NY the children are happy because winter is over. However, this year winter doesn't seem to want to leave. The science teacher Mr. Ross, believes climate change is the cause but some of the students believe there may be other works at play. Enter Superintendent Tiltersmith with his strange behavior. Edward, Feenix, Danton, and Brigit think something is going on and Tiltersmith may be involved some how. The students are soon swept up into a battle of wits and courage. The friends must protect a set of mysterious tools belonging to the Lady of Spring. If they can free her from her underground prison, winter will end. For a middle grade fantasy book, this is defiantly a slow burn. I loved all these characters, from the quartet of friends to Mr. Ross and Edward’s Aunt Kit. Plus, the author does a great job of mixing the reality of climate change with legends and myths, as well as fantastical beings. A transportive and clever story! I loved the imagery in this book.

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc and arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: The Tiltersmith

Author: Amy Herrick

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 4/5

Diversity: Hearing aid MC, non-descript people of color MCs and characters

Recommended For...: middle grade readers, fantasy

Publication Date: April 5, 2022

Genre: MG Fantasy

Age Relevance: 12+ (climate change, violence, scary moments)

Explanation of Above: There is talk about climate change in the book. There are some small violence in the book, like fights and stuff, and some scary moments that might be a bit much for some younger kids.

Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers

Pages: 320

Synopsis: Spring has arrived in Brooklyn, New York, but winter refuses to let go. Sleet, snow, and even a tornado batter the city. Mr. Ross, the science teacher, believes climate change is the cause, but classmates Edward, Feenix, Danton, and Brigit suspect older, magical forces are at work. When a peculiar character calling himself Superintendent Tiltersmith appears with a keen interest in the foursome, their suspicions are confirmed, and they’re swept up in a battle of wits and courage.

The friends must protect a set of mysterious tools belonging to the Lady of Spring. If they can free her from her underground prison, winter will end. But if the Tiltersmith steals the tools, he will keep the Lady in his power and upset the balance of nature forever.

Review: For the most part I really liked this book. The book was a fun story ala early 2000s or 1990s books, like Animorphs. It also reminded me a lot of Captain Planet as well funny enough. The book had a lot of science and STEM stuff in it, which would be great to help get kids interested in the subjects, as well as talks about climate change. The character development was good as well as the world building. I also liked the premise of the story.

However, I felt like the book was a bit too fast paced for my liking and I wished that some things were just slowed down a bit to better explain some things. I also didn’t like the use of the switching POV in this book as it confused me for a bit with the story and I felt like the characters didn’t have different voices.

Verdict: It was good!

Loved it!! A great fun, fantasy that teaches at the same time. The characters were well developed and wonderful to know. I highly recommend to those who love Science and care about the environment. Even if you aren't a fan of books with fantasy elements, I think you'll still enjoy it!

4 stars

A fantasy for the budding environmental scientists out there. Lots of fun!

Concepts: ★★★★★
Plot/Pacing: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★

I wondered when we'd start to see climate-focused middle grade reads saturate the shelves. The Tiltersmith joins the wave of budding stories both fantastical and contemporary centered on our environment—and it managed to do that while ALSO being fun. A delicate balance to walk.

It's supposed to be spring in New York, but as March 21 rolls around the streets are still covered in ice and snow. Winter's not letting up. For four kids in the city, this stinks on multiple levels.

As I curled up with this story, it was early April, supposedly spring on the calendar—the winter vibes out my window begged to differ. The snow on my ground felt like a personal grounding to this tale.

I, like our protagonist's teacher Mr. Ross, immediately jumped to climate change as an answer for my snow woes.

But for Edward, Brigit, Feenix, and Danton, four classmates with a lot of smarts, they think something else is afoot and they're determined to prove it in their own unique ways. (Edward, the scientist covered in experiments, was a personal favorite of mine to read.)

And when someone "off" with the name Superintendent Tiltersmith shows up, the foursome are in for a wild, wild ride involving magic, science, and the planet.

Y'all, I thought this story was so precious. It's not every day that you read a tale for young readers with a distinctly environmental twist—unless there's a ton and I'm just living under a rock, which is possible—and The Tiltersmith incorporated those elements in such a blatant and yet endearing way. As an adult, I found some portions to be a bit on the nose, but I had to keep reminding myself that this was meant for younger audiences who might need the more heavy-handed approach.

A fun and engaging read to share with the young scientists and explorers in your life!

Thank you to Algonquin Books for Young Readers for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a fantastic middle-grade book! 𝙁𝙪𝙡𝙡 𝙤𝙛 𝙛𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙨𝙮, 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚!

The calendar may say it’s spring in Brooklyn, but the weather clearly has a different opinion. Edward and his friends Feenix, Danton, and Brigit know something is not right. Their science teacher, Mr. Ross, feels climate change is to blame. But as the four friends discover, ancient and magical forces are at play here.

Each friend discovers a magical tool belonging to Lady Spring who has been imprisoned, thus why winter is having its way. The friends need to get her to protect these tools and help restore the balance of nature once again. But the new, suspicious and creepy Superintendent Tiltersmith has shown up at school, and it appears he is after something more than the kids’ GPAs.

I loved all these characters, from the quartet of friends to Mr. Ross and Edward’s Aunt Kit. Plus, the author does a great job of mixing the reality of climate change with legends and myths, as well as fantastical beings. A transportive and clever story!

Thank you to @algonquinyr for a spot on tour and a gifted copy.

The Tiltersmith is one of those books that hooks you from the start and sends you off on an adventure. It is set in Brooklyn, New York at springtime, where four friends must free Lady Spring from her underground prison. In order to do this, they must not let the Tiltersmith get his hands on a set of magical tools. If they fail, even though it is the season of spring, the harsh weather they are having will not end. and winter will not let go.

This fantasy adventure weaves climate change with myths and is a fun and entertaining read.

This was a wonderful Middle Grade fantasy novel, with great characters! Overall, I would definitely recommend this MG book to anyone who thinks it sounds interesting!

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher.

This was a fun exhilarating ride that brought me back to my childhood.

I think most every child dreams of crazy adventures, but I don't think they would have ever imagined something this amazing. Amy Herrick has written a wonderful tale of mystery, suspense and thrills that caters to the mind of the younger generation.

We follow a group of classmates as they are thrown into a world of mystery. Their characters are each unique, but fit well together. They're smart and cunning. They feel the urgency, but also have the mindset to err on caution. Their world, although mundane as a school can be, is still so full of wonder.

I enjoyed the ease of reading this story and the fun adventure unfolding before me. I will definitely be sharing this book with my kids.

Book: The Tiltersmith
Author: Amy Herrick
Rating: 4 Out of 5 Stars

I would like to thank the publisher, Algonquin Young Readers, for providing me with an ARC.

Once again, this is another title that I went into not knowing anything about. I think that sometimes this is the best way to go into a book. Right away, I was hooked. It gave me Percy Jackson and Harry Potter vibes-even though they really aren’t alike. I guess that what gave me these vibes was the fact that we have middle school age characters who find themselves dealing with some kind of magical force and they have to figure out how to save the day. If they can’t save the day and restore the balance, then the world as they know it will come to an end. There is something about this that gets me every time. I like the idea of having these younger characters who find themselves having to deal with magical beings placed in their everyday lives and have to figure out how to fix it. Plus, it’s always an added bonus when the adults really don’t seem to understand what is going on.

We follow four main characters, who find themselves thrown into this mess. There are storms in New York City-violent storms for that matter. It still looks and feels like winter outside. The only problem is that it’s spring. The adults quickly turn to science, which the children kind of do. However, they quickly see that there is more to it than that and find themselves suddenly seeing magical things. These characters are from different paths of life and have very different interests, which is something that I love in books. However, the weather changes and the whole magical element bring them together and they find themselves forced to figure out what is happening. They use their different interests to try to piece together whatever this thing and how to fix it.

My favourite character, though, was the Tiltersmith. Right away, we get a sense that there is something different about him. However, at first, we really can’t tell if he is going to be a good guy or a not so good guy. He shows up for what appears to be an inspection on the school and seems to have the school’s best interests at heart. However, you can tell that there is something off about him, but you aren’t sure what. Again, in the early stages, you really aren’t sure if he is someone who is good or someone who is not. It’s just really difficult to get a read on him at first. As the book goes on, you start to see the darker undertones to his character and realize that what seemed light and funny really isn’t. You see, at first, all of his games just seemed like that, a game. The more and more you get into the book, the more and more you realize that is not the case and that he is, in fact, the bad guy of the book. I really liked that. I liked the idea of not knowing for sure what side the Tiltersmith was going to be on. If I’m being honest, he reminded me a little bit of Loki, but not so much in the I’m still going to come back and save you kind of way.

The writing and the overall story had been hooked pretty early. The book is very fast moving and we get right to the point. It’s the kind of the book and story that you can’t put down because you have to know what is going to happen next. Now, it is middle grade and it does read that way. I just want you to go in knowing that. If you are looking for a quick, light fantasy, this may be the book for you.

This book comes out on April 5, 2022.

Youtube: https://youtu.be/nUI6R03Uzs0

Spring has arrived in Brooklyn, New York, but winter refuses to let go. Sleet, snow, and even a tornado batter the city. Mr. Ross, the science teacher, believes climate change is the cause, but classmates Edward, Feenix, Danton, and Brigit suspect older, magical forces are at work. When a peculiar character calling himself Superintendent Tiltersmith appears with a keen interest in the foursome, their suspicions are confirmed, and they’re swept up in a battle of wits and courage.

The friends must protect a set of mysterious tools belonging to the Lady of Spring. If they can free her from her underground prison, winter will end. But if the Tiltersmith steals the tools, he will keep the Lady in his power and upset the balance of nature forever.

This book was definitely a slow burner for me but for a middle grade fantasy, adventure novel it wasn’t too bad.

Herrick has created an eclectic mix of protagonists that any teenager could relate to and thrown them into a race against the evil Tiltersmith (as a junior high teacher myself the humour wasn’t lost on me that he was disguised as a school inspector haha).

Cue a range of varying monsters, fantasy characters, action and danger and you pretty much have Herrick’s story wrapped up in a nut shell. I liked the underlying message about global warming and weather though - nice touch.

What worked:
The book immediately draws interest, as the characters question if winter will ever end. Edward’s aunt produces pancakes for breakfast by ringing a bell at the moment of the spring solstice, so an element of magic is introduced. Edward and Feenix are the first characters to notice something is off, as they constantly forget objects they’ve found. Edward collects a cigar-shaped cocoon but doesn’t remember putting it in a terrarium on his top bookshelf. Feenix finds two ball-shaped objects in the park but doesn’t recall them or the strange boy with green hair. Memories pop up at times, but then Edward and Feenix can’t remember them later. Two other friends also have the huge problem of unexplained forgetfulness.
The backdrop of the plot is global warming and climate change. The science teacher is forced to discuss the causes when Feenix continually asks what will happen if spring never arrives. He shares information about the earth’s tilting axis and how pollution is putting holes in the polar vortexes. However, it’s clear the causes go beyond scientific explanations, and the group of four friends will need to do something about them. The story speaks to how humans need to change their ways if we ever hope to save the planet.
The Tiltersmith is the antagonist, and the author makes his character secretive and mystical. He seems pleasant enough, but he obviously has some kind of hidden agenda. He pops up at the most inopportune times, and the four main characters realize he’s spying on them. He wants something from them, but their lapses in memory complicate the situation. Feenix can’t remember what she did with the balls, and the kids forget the Tiltersmith’s strange “attacks” moments after they’ve occurred. The end result is readers will root for the students while not fully understanding the Tiltersmith’s plans. The only clear thing is he has something to do with the lingering winter season.
What didn’t work as well:
Magical and mysterious things are happening, but it’s not clear how or why they’re happening. The objects have special powers, but is there a reason why these four kids were chosen to find them? Why does the green-haired boy say the girls will remember better if they kiss him, and then they turn him down? Edward has a theory about his aunt’s identity, but it’s never confirmed. The questions don’t have an impact on the story, but they’re a little annoying.
The Final Verdict:
A twist on the myth of Persephone. The author crafts an intriguing tale of our environmental crisis by blending science, storytelling, and engaging characters. The book shares an important message regarding our future, and I recommend you give it a shot.