Member Reviews

Fantastic book, would recommend right alongside any other age appropriate magical fantasy classic.

Flawlessly written, well developed characters, and the story structure keeps you driving forward.

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The world building was simply fantastic. The magical elements drew me in and I was thoroughly invested in the characters.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this copy!

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Firstly congratulations to Eric Koester and his family for a fully professional book which came out of bedtime stories during Covid. This is a fantasy tale, book one of three I think, but a fully complete book. Suitable for the more advanced young reader. The Pennymore sisters have more going on in their family than they could ever imagine. This book describes the adventures they go on, as they try to find out the truth and find their brother. Well worth a read, maybe even parent and child reading together. Thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op and NetGalley for the Arc. The views expressed are all mine freely given.

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Thoroughly enjoyed this book. A complex story that at times takes some concentration to piece it together. One my tutor group will enjoy because of the magic and adventure.

My thanks to Netgalley, publisher and author

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Parker Pennymore and her sisters set out on a quest to find their little brother after he disappears. What they find are family secrets, unexpected friends and foes, and internal strength and magic. But can they save their brother before it’s too late?

I have to admit this was a slow starter for me. I am an adult and have life distractions but these days so do middle school age children (which is the age for which I would recommend this book.) I was pretty far into the book when I finally got into the story, but once I did it was an interesting story. The sisters are relatable and the storyline is interesting.

All thoughts and opinions are my own, and I have not been by anyone.

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I really like this book. The storyline was really fun and the world-building and characters were great. The only thing I would have liked is for it to have been a bit faster-paced at the start!

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I so wanted to enjoy this book and be able to recommend it to others after the author reached out and sent a physical signed copy. Unfortunately, I cannot. I found the writing incredibly dense with way too many characters. All of these characters muddled together since they lacked distinguishing characteristics. I really could not follow the plot and had to really struggle through to finish the book and avoid a DNF.

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Absolutely loved this book! We read it as a family read aloud. I have kids ages 6-10 and we all found the story all consuming. We may have even enjoyed it more than Harry Potter! The world building and setting descriptions and details allowed us to be completely immersed in the world. The characters, siblings, each have their own personalities and each of my kids were able to relate to them in ways.
We are completely committed as a family to this series and still talk about it and reference it daily! We cannot wait for this series to continue.

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THE PENNYMORES

⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5 STARS

~ It's not the choice you make that will matter. It's what you do with the consequences of a choice ~

I got this arc a while ago but I've only just picked it up and read it. Mainly because I dont really read middle grade books but I wanted to broaden my horizons and I used to love these kinds of books when I was younger so I thought why not?
And I think it was a good place to start to get back into them.

I really enjoyed this book. It was enjoyable, it had adventure and an unbreakable love and bond between siblings. I loved that it had magic as I love anything to do with magic and I loved have Eric portrayed it within writing, ink and quills. It was different and I loved that because you don't want to keep reading about the same things all the time.
The siblings each having their own magic ability and how it reflected their personality and how it helped them in their journey was great to read. And the fact that they would go to any length to save their brother showed how much they love each other.

I guessed some things that happened in this story but there were other parts that I never would have guessed and it kept me reading. I think I would definitely read the next one when it comes out as I'm intrigued on where the story is going to go and I would love to learn more about the characters

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There are a lot of middle grade books out there but I thought this one was a cut above a lot of the recent releases I’ve read. Read it as a bedtime story with my nieces and they were always begging me to read just one more chapter! Lots to entertain an adult reader as well.

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This Book is Amazing! I love that this story’s concept, plot and the cover looks great. I also like the idea the idea of magic writers, the quills, the idea of Orders, and the libraries.

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This book was surprisingly good!

Stepping into the Pennymores world felt a lot like stepping into the world of HP, Narnia, Lord of the Rings, Fablehaven, and Eragon. The worldbuilding was fantastically well done and if this is book 1 I cannot wait to see what book 2 looks like.

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This was so much fun!!! This book is my first middle grade read ever, and I am glad to say that I LOVED IT!! The complexity, depth and uniqueness of this creatively built up world is very astonishing. The writing reminded me so much of the first books of Harry Potter. The story has so much to offer to younger reader, but could nonetheless capture the interest of adult readers.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for this amazing opportunity. I strongly recommend this book.

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I DNF'd The Pennymores at 32%. My impression is that this would probably be a better book for middlegraders, but it didn't work for me as an adult. The beginning - after the first chapter - is super slow, the worldbuilding feels is inconsistent and doesn't feel real, and I just could not get attached to Parker or the other sisters. I was pretty confused on where the plot was going or what the purpose of the story was. There's things going on in the tiny land-locked kingdom regarding literacy and magic, but Parker's also trying to escape. Some of the girls are trying to find their brother but also figure out magic. It felt like there were too many threads, and maybe they all get enough attention later, but they certainly didn't during the first third of the book. It seemed like a fun premise, but I just could not bring myself to care about The Pennymores unfortunately.

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This was such a fun read! It was rather long, so I didn’t give it a full five stars….but it’s close. A magical world but with quills instead of wands. They have their own game with quills the magical people/animals play. Hidden communities where they can live in peace. The villain is a good one and the story unravels perfectly. I can honestly say I never guessed what would be next, and I tried.

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Thank you so much Netgalley and Love Book Tours for the digital copy!

It was absolutely magical! The world building, the bonds between the siblings - their bravery, intelligence and humour, all of it kept me hooked from the very first page. It is a long book and sometimes tends to get confusing but these tiny drawbacks are ignorable compared to the plot. Imagine a world where 'writing' can both be powerful and dangerous and has the ability to unwrite people! The sisters have unique personalities and the struggles they had to overcome were relatable. If you are a fan of books with impressive, daring female leads, there's a good chance you would like it. There are scattered illustrations throughout the book which were cute. I can't wait to read the rest of the series ❤️

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Alas, I have just spent the majority of my Tuesday in the land of Fonde with The Pennymore siblings and all of their friends. What a ride it has been. To tell you that I was entranced by the world that was created by Koester and his daughters would be putting it mildly. So when I say that I spent time in Fonde, I’m telling you that I truly felt like I was transported into another realm of reality.

The message the book hopes to portray is that all writing is magic and it does this in every way imaginable. The quills hold the power in the fictional world we come to love and feel part of in The Pennymores. Obviously, if quills hold power, writing has to be magical.

I will have to urge you all to get a copy of this book and allow yourselves to be immersed in this astonishing tale! I am excited to share it with my middle schoolers next school year!Thank you to Love Books Tours, New Degree Press, NetGalley, and Eric Koester for this gifted review copy, and I am leaving this review voluntarily!

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What started out as a bedtime story is now a magical story.

This story has magic, adventure, secrets and everything kids want in their book.

At times it felt like there was a lot going on, but overall I enjoyed it. The magic library, magic quills, just everything about this was wonderful. The graphics throughout the story added another element to the story. Bringing it more to life.There is a map in the back of the book.

I adored the sisters in this story and imagine each is a reflection of the real life girls who wrote them. They are smart, strong and daring. Ready to take on whatever challenges come their way as they work to uncover secrets after their brother's disappearance.

I've been reading the Bookwanders series with our kids and this felt similar to those stories, which we love. Magic through the pages of books and writing. The written word is powerful.

This is a wonderful book to add to your child's summer reading list!

Thank you Love Books Tour and Eric Koester for the opportunity to read this book.

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This is a middle grade book about three sisters who live in a magical world. There are magic writers who can create magic but they are banned. As things don't go right, the sisters must take risks. It is a great book for middle schoolers who love books about magic and family and overcoming trouble. The book includes a few pictures and it adds a lot to the story. One of the best things about this book is it was written by a father and his two daughters. It has the imagination of children that can you really see in the book.

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Quills, Evil, & Kids needed to revive the magic of writing!

The Pennymores & the Curse of the Invisible Quill by Eric Koester is the first in The Pennymores Series and is a delicate, fun, thought provoking story. With writing being forbidden, Parker, Quinn, and Aven go on an adventure to find out what happened to their brother. All while finding out about the true nature of writing, it’s magic, and evils that come along with it.

I love that this story’s concept came from the experiences of Malala Yousafzai, a teen who became an activist for girls in Pakistan. Bringing deep societal issues into stories that become so simplified that people of all ages can understand, is where reading meets growth and development. With the magic mixed with themes of limiting knowledge, readers can see themselves in the story. Then, by making the decision to go against it, this story gave a way for children to begin to think about things that may have previously given them limits. But not anymore, their minds and imaginations have the chance to experience being limitless.

Knowledge is power!

There are illustrations sprinkled in which are a great addition to the story. Giving that visual expands the imagination for the readers. Some are in black and white while others are in color. It felt like the ones in color tended to want to present more emphasis. Although the black and white illustrations were more detailed, the ones in color brought a whole different feel to the reader.

This is totally for elementary grade kids. Middle grade all levels, 8-12 years old. With some assistance, early readers would enjoy this story too! Why not make it a family reading day or night.

The Pennymores book two, here I come…actually, I’ll be excitedly awaiting your return.

*This was an honest review for a complimentary copy of The Pennymores & the Curse of the Invisible Quill from Eric Koester via NetGalley

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