Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was a beautiful book which delicately and accurately portrays the struggles of anxiety and the effects it can have on a person. Kokoro experienced difficult situations at her school which caused severe anxiety and panic attacks, meaning she could not go back to school. This novel is able to position the reader so they can completely understand Kokoro's internal struggle and her conflict within herself regarding her inability to leave the house. The other children who Kokoro encounter also struggle with their own mental health problems. I think this is a book that will resonate with a lot of young adults/teenagers, as well as adults. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will be recommending it to friends.

Reading Lonely Castle in the Mirror was an amazing experience. The story centers around Kokoro Anzai, an anxious 13-year-old who just can't go to school (for reasons more complicated than one would assume). One day, while hiding out in her bedroom as she usually does, she finds that her bedroom mirror has a strange glow to it. The glass gives in to her touch and not much later she finds herself in a castle, in the middle of nowhere, with six other children her age. A girl wearing a wolf's mask reveals to them that there is a key hidden inside the castle and that the key will grant a wish to whoever finds it. They all have eight months to find the key.

What follows this setup is great character development, interesting friendship dynamics and an amazing portrayal of what it is like for a child to be bullied by their peers. Tsujimura touches on so many issues at once in this book, but she does it with incredible nuance and tact. The writing, though a bit slow at first, was also very easy on the eyes. A problem that I usually have with many Japanese translations is that the descriptions and diaogue feel very stitled, since English and Japanese are quite different in terms of grammar. I didn't have this issue with this book at all and think that the translator managed to convey the meaning of the novel in a way that is accessible to those who don't know anything about Japanese culture without having it all feel artificial.

I think this is a book that is quite easy to read and enjoyable by anyone. I will definitely keep an eye out for more translations of this author's work (preferably by this translator). The edition I read was published by Erewhon books, to my knowledge a fairly small publishing house. Needless to say, they have my attention and I look forward to reading more of their catalogue in the future.

I received an ARC from the publisher (Erewhon Books) in exchange for a review.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-arc of this title!

"Don't let them get to you," she said, her voice stern. "There are bullies like them everywhere, and there always will be."

I love to see children's and young adult books in translation being well-marketed. I believe that there is a lot of value in reading translated literature even from a young age, and this is an incredible title that will resonate with so many junior high and high schoolers (and adults).

The biggest complaint I see about this novel is that the first two-thirds are slow, but I loved them. I found Kokoro a wonderfully believable character, and I enjoyed seeing her grow (and fail to grow, sometimes!) as she interacted with the other six students in the castle. Their dynamics, mistakes, and backstories all felt so real to me. Tsujimura's writing is so evocative of the alienation and trauma that young people experience when they decide not to go to school anymore, when they find that they are not fitting in with their peers. Similarly, Tsujimura's description of how these teens grow and heal through peer-to-peer collective healing and adults who can advocate for them. The slow-going means the reveals in the last third felt like a real punch, and were so satisfying to me as a reader.

While this is technically YA, if you as an adult experienced hardship in middle or high school (and who didn't), this title will probably resonate with you, and I highly recommend it.

(Lonely Castle In The Mirror)

This book was so INCREDIBLE and all the plot developments in it are perfectly executed. I don't have the ability now to develop why it was so good but thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to receive the ARC of this perfect book.

5 stars

Thank you, NetGalley and Erewhon Books, for providing me with a digital arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

In this imaginative coming-of-age novel, readers follow main character Kokoro into her reality outside of the looking glass as well as inside of it. This was a beautiful story reflecting human struggle with mental wellbeing as well as with the self.

In all, I felt much of the story’s movement was internal. The growth and characterization of Kokoro and the other children she meets inside of the mirror’s castle were the most integral to the story. There were some MacGuffins that led to a lot of information being thrusted onto the reader at the end, but I found these worth it and necessary. This is a story about learning how to laugh and to enjoy life from the bottom of your heart.

I loved it!

This book was so beautiful to read and I loved the stories behind each character and how they bonded. The magical elements and the inclusion of classic fairytales was very enjoyable and added to the story in a creative way. The book really excelled at its characters and their stories. The way it looked at so many different struggles that young people have and mental health was really well done and it touched a lot on the emotions. Like I said before, I really liked the magic elements, however I think that the author could have utilized them more, especially in the first half of the book. There is a big section of the story where not much happens aside from the characters getting to know each other and bonding over their experiences. I thought these moments were really important but could have also been shortened. I did really love this book but I just think it could have been shorter and had its fantasy elements included a bit more throughout the book. The last third of the book was really well done though, it looked deeper into each character and had that magic element more intrinsic to the plot so that the story became much more gripping. Overall, I really loved this book, despite having a few things I think could be worked on, it was really well done and I would definitely recommend this to anyone.

Wanted to love it but didn't.
The book was far too slow for me and nothing really happened until later on.

Thanks to netgalley for the opportunity to review but this wasn't for me

I found this book to be very intriguing and well developed. The characters had interesting dynamics towards each other and I loved seeing how everything played out chapter after chapter!

DNF @ 25%

This book was way too slow for my taste. Almost nothing interesting happened by the 25% mark, and I got so bored that I decided not to continue.

I did like Kokoro as a character, the Wolf Queen, and some of the other kids in the castle, but the plot wasn't engaging enough for me to read it entirely, and the writing style was not something that I liked either. However, the exploration of mental health was great and I enjoyed reading about that quite a bit.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

this book was a fresh breath of air, it took me thru multitudes of emotions and had me crying more than once. thank you netgalley for the opportunity to read this

This story was okay. It was a little slow. But I liked the focus on mental health. This is one of the first translated works I have read where I have felt a little lost. I will probably give it a reread sometime in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and Erewhon Books for the ARC in exchange for the honest review.

Lonely Castle in the Mirror follows seven students who are pulled into another world that offers a brief reprieve from their lives. In a castle, they are gathered at the behest of the Wolf Queen, the owner of the castle, who tells them to find a key somewhere in the castle, and whoever finds the key will be granted a wish.

Basically, I thought this was a book that was much smarter than I am. And in a really good way, of course. Initially, it felt like some mashup of Alice in Wonderland, with that creepy, but whimsical portal fantasy and the compelling villain/significant character in the Wolf Queen. I maintained that creepy, whimsical feeling right through to the end, and I loved the juxtaposition of the students' real lives and their journeys in the castle. It was all character and plot, definitely a great mix, and it was definitely a painful, interesting read to follow each of the children through their arcs. The only reason I gave this 3 stars is because I found at times the story dragged and I struggled to keep interest.

* Thanks to Erewhon Books and Netgalley for an advance copy for review purposes*

3.5 stars.

A beautiful, touching story about belonging and friendship with a dash of magic. Kokoro, a young girl in the first year of middle-school, has stopped attending school and venturing outside of her house because of bullying. While she grapples with her parents' expectations and her own feelings, one day she sees her mirror flooded with light, and enters a castle, where the Wolf Queen recruits her into a treasure hunt, along with six other children. What do they have in common and why are they in this castle?

The target audience for this book is far younger than myself, however, I quite enjoyed the read - it is a beautiful book. I was blown away by the book's main plot twist, although it would not have been a twist if the story had been told from the point of view of a different character. Part of me wants to re-read this book to notice all the little details that explain things, however, a character helpfully recaps everything at the end (I would have preferred more nuance) - I might still re-read it, though. I would have liked the other characters to be more developed, and not reduced to a couple pages at the climax of the story.. I think it also would have benefited from translator notes, explaining some things like Japanese honorifics or the Japanese school year (it is only explained in contrast to the Western systems), particularly considering its target audience.

I loved this book. Like many people I have some miserable memories of middle school and this story focuses on the lives of Japanese students struggling with the very real problems which middle school students encounter there. Truancy is a big problem in Japan for middle school students (in 2018 almost 165,000 students missed 30 or more days of school) and it is a common theme in several Japanese manga and anime. This novel is a conventional YA targeted novel (not a manga or light novel) but it puts its own interesting spin on this topic.

In The Lonely Castle in the Mirror a 7th grader named Kokoro discovers that she can, at certain times, travel through her bedroom mirror to visit a strange castle where other kids who (mostly) are not attending school also are present. I felt each of the characters in the story were well developed and believable. The reader mainly sees things from Kokoro's perspective, including the emotional turmoil she is in, brought on by terror coming from the events that have happened at her school as well as the pain she feels in disappointing her parents. The friendships she develops with the other kids who are transported to the castle eventually, and very gradually, bring a change to Kokoro's life. Several mysteries are introduced in the story which are generally resolved well and tied up both satisfactorily and in a touching way at the end.

There are some scenes that may be triggering for sensitive readers, notably scenes of bullying and one of attempted sexual assault, but I felt that they were not gratuitous and were well handled.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC!

3.5 stars

The were quite a few things that drove down the rating for me: some of the pacing felt off, especially in the first half. A lot of the emotional moments also didn’t connect with me as they should have had, and the plot didn’t always flow naturally.

That said, I still enjoyed this book quite a lot! The characters all felt genuine and I loved seeing the bond between evolve. While I did guess most of the plot twist early, the book still managed to surprise me all the way to the very end.

So if you’re already a fan of light fantasy with a heavy dose of contemporary, then I’d definitely recommend Lonely Castle in the Mirror. If not, then I don’t think you’re majorly missing out.

(a little fun fact for ya - Rion’s sister and I share the same first name)

I was convinced to read Lonely Castle in the Mirror after a YouTuber I follow read it and got a tattoo based on it. Though I was at first cautious because I’ve had a bit of bad luck in Japanese translated novels in the past, I was optimistic about this one. While I don’t see myself getting a tattoo based on this novel in the future, I did rather enjoy myself with it. I liked following a more modern portal fantasy story, and seeing all the ways that the characters were affected by the fantasy. Like the boys that were brought to the castle bringing in their video game console. How Mizuki Tsujimura handles the nuanced topic of school bullying in Japan is where this book really shines. The Wolf Queen brings these seemingly random group of students to the castle and over the course of the year they get to know each other and grow. Seeing how each student was able to grow a bit more comfortable being around others their age was wholesome.

OH MY GOD! Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura, translated by Philip Gabriel, is an absolute gem of a book and I'm so disappointed that I didn't discover it earlier. The story follows 7 children who are all avoiding going to school due to various reasons. The kids then discover that they can enter mirrors and end up in a castle, with specific rules to be followed, of course.

The book follows the Japanese technique of writing, which is very straightforward and to the point, but which appeared a bit off-putting due to the translation. The writing follows a lyrical fashion and conveys the character's grief, thoughts and feelings so beautifully. I rarely cry but oh my god this book had the feels.

The character development was top notch and as a reader, you couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic as you near the end. The journey of the kids through grief and friendship losses only to end up with new friends and loving themselves just hits so hard to me.

After a lot of research, I found out the author wrote this beauty because of the lack of mental health representation in Japanese literature. The book tackles with heavy themes such as depression, anxiety, child abuse etc. so be sure to check out the content warnings (CW) before picking this up.

THIS WAS SUCH A GOOD BOOK, LIKE SUCH A GOOD BOOK. KUDOS TO THE AUTHOR FOR WRITING THIS MASTERPIECE AND MAKING ME CRY. 5/5.

I give this 3.5 stars. This was not like anything I've read before. It's a translated Japanese fantasy like novel that explores mental health and adolescence in a way I haven't seen before. The writing style can seem a bit clunky and the grammar awkward, but I believe that's just from the translation. I really enjoyed this story.

It does an amazing job showcasing how mental health differs in some cultures. Japan being a major country where it hasn't been as normalized to open up or talk about your feelings. The progression of the kids opening up to each other in the end was really beautiful.

I have to say, I wasn't expecting it to play out how it did. What a wonderful way to wrap the story up though.

Thank you so much to @netgalley and @erewhonbooks for an earc copy in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

Very interesting concept/plot of a group of students being transported to a magical castle. WIthin the castle, the students need to find a key, with the help of some clues, that will grant any wish.

However, the students have a hard stop daily or they will die.....and the key must be found by school's end.

The translated novel had beautiful descriptions, and and enticing story. An enjoyable read.

I really liked the cover and figured I’d check this book out. The premise seemed interesting but it sort of begins slow and although the world is interesting I’m sure there is something being lost in the translation. The dialogue feels off and it’s hard to get a feel for the characters. The story is difficult to get into but is a decent read. I’d recommend others check it out but it was just ok for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.