Review scheduled to go up on Youtube on June 19th. See an early view of it here: https://youtu.be/eDJRNNKN1Hg

The Girl Who Kept the Castle is the epitome of cozy fantasy, especially for middle grade to young adult readers. It feels like being dropped into a Studio Ghibli movie — in fact, one of the regions of the kingdom is called Ghibli. (And the capital city is Retnec, an anagram of center. Can you guess where on the map that city might reside?) There are lots of tiny nods to other classic fantasy stories, like the works of Tolkien and Diana Wynne Jones. But even outside of the fun little Easter eggs, this is a delightful book in its own right. I stated above that it’s cozy fantasy, but it might be more fitting to call this cozy-adjacent. Because while the setting and storytelling feel very cozy, there are definite stakes to this tale.

Our story begins with Wizard West waking up dead. Faye, the twelve year-old daughter of the groundskeeper, has been selected by lot to inform him. He does not take the news well, and makes his displeasure known by halfway cursing Faye, leaving her with an extra set of (cat) ears, a tail, and golden cat eyes. And yet, even though she has every reason to resent him, Faye does everything she can to help West when a distressing side effect of his death is revealed: if he does not find a successor by the full moon, Celurdur will crumble. And should Celurdur fall, the rest of the kingdom will not be far behind. What follows is a kooky tournament, lots of accidental hijinks, and a wonderful story about a girl bucking societal expectation to do what needs to be done.

I fell in love with Faye, and with Celurdur. I have a thing for sentient houses, and this castle was a wonderful iteration of that trope. Faye and the castle, West and the rest of the supporting cast, all had so much character. I was charmed pretty immediately. I found Faye such a believable heroine. She wasn’t trying to turn society on its head. She didn’t have any kind of hero complex. Instead, she saw problems that needed to be solved, saw that no one else was going to step up, and did her best to solve those problems. She was also very kind and caring, even to those who didn’t deserve her kindness or care. She was incredibly clever and hardworking, and had such a core of goodness. But she never felt like a Mary Sue, or insufferable in any way. She was someone I would love to have in my corner.

The rest of the cast was great, as I stated above. They had a lot of personality between them. Wizard West, Prince Max, Princess Illian, and Puck the cat were the standouts. But, in my opinion, Faye was definitely the star of the show. This was her story. And I can’t wait to see where her story goes next. I’ll definitely be doing everything I can to get my hands on the sequel as soon as it’s available. If there's a sequel. I really, really hope there's a sequel!

The Girl Who Kept the Castle was nowhere on my radar before the author reached out to me. She compared the book to Nevermoor and Howl’s Moving Castle, both of which I love. And she was spot on with her comparison! I don’t always accept review requests directly from authors, as I have so much to read and feel guilty about making promises I’m not sure I can keep, but I’m so glad I made an exception for this book. It was an absolute delight. I can see myself getting my niece a copy for her birthday or Christmas!

I enjoyed The Girl Who Kept the Castle! It's a fun and whimsical fantasy story that has great growth and big stakes for the characters. Definitely getting my middle schooler to read this story for the next school year, I know he'll love it!

This is a beautiful story. Kids will love the fantasy aspect. And Faye is just a lovely character who shines right off the pages. Her willingness to help others, and to stay in the background if that is what is needed is just refreshing. I also love her outlook on those who live in the castle itself. West is just a fun and unique character who brings levity at just the right moments. The final message of this book is uplifting and just the perfect finish to this book. I can’t wait to recommend it soon.
Thank you so much to HarperCollins Children’s Books, Quill Tree Books, and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book.

What an absolutely lovely read! It 100% brought me back to my childhood, dancing between Patricia C. Wrede's Enchanted Forest Chronicles, as well as Diana Wynne Jones and Studio Ghibli as mentioned by others. I adore the magical world that has been created, and can't wait to see what is next for Faye and her friends!

Super cute prose. I loves the whimsy and think this will fit in well with middle graders who love magic.

This was DELIGHTFUL. The perfect cozy fantasy story.

It's been a minute since I read a middle-grade fantasy, but this book has made me want to pick up more! If you love Studio Ghibli and Diana Wynne Jones, this book is for you. The story was so vibrant that I felt like I was watching an animated movie!

We're following a girl named Faye, who is the daughter of the groundskeeper at Celurdur Castle. Through her eyes, we learn about the way magic works in Retnec and find out that she and the other servants are the ones basically holding everything together, while the Wizard West hasn't even realized he has died. Alas, his death could lead to even more death and destruction as there must always be a Wizard West residing at Celurdur to prevent the collapse of the kingdom.

This story has a lot of heart—you have girls who want to be more than what is expected of them, a taking cat who is more than he seems, and a magical competition—it's a fantastic time!

Such a fun story to read. There were many parts that I found funny, I can definitely see this book being a hit for younger people.

I didn’t rate it any higher because It is a children’s book so I found it hard to keep reading at some point.

This was fantastic! I loved all the little details that reminded me of a Ghibli movie or Howl's Moving Castle, the book. It is definitely not some cheap rip-off of either one of those, though. This was sweet and inspiring and well-written. And funny! There were bits that had me smiling with glee and bits had me letting out a satisfied, "Hah!" (like whenever Puck was 'onscreen'). This books was absolutely enjoyable and I can't wait to buy it for my library. I also can't wait to read the next one, hoping there is one!

4.75 A fun read with humor magic and adventure making it an uplifting girl rising to power kinda of story entertaining. Not a portal fantasy. Wonderful magical worlds. Great fans of Diana Wynne Jones and the magic words of Studio Ghibli. Awesome. Fae is a girl caught in the middle of chaos, she even gets half-transformed into a cat.
An epic adventure story without the characters having to cross a map on a journey. Everything comes to them in the same location where all happens, trials, adventures and misadventures, magic, facing dragons, dragon pastries, meeting amazing characters, learning about them, and defeating a greater evil... All before the time expires. All of this starts with the humorous death of a wizard who doesn't realize he's dead until Fae is chosen to break the news to him.
The West now needs a new ruler and they decide to hold trials to pick a new successor, but realize their entire world needs to revisit the old rules and traditions. The ending is satisfying for 2 reasons... Those who deserve to get rewarded will be awarded, and it hints that there will be a next volume as well.

Faye is not the quiet, nondescript girl that Wizard West has overlooked for the entirety of Faye's life. She's brave, smart, and possesses a wee bit more skill with magic than is truly safe for a young girl in Celurdur. When she finds herself in a situation where her skills are needed to save her home, will she step up and do what needs to be done or will she hide behind the rules and guidelines?

I requested this title because I read Graudin's "Wolf by Wolf" and was an established fan of her writing. Plus the cover looked super cool. Graudin's writing and Faye's narration kept me opening the book any chance I had in an attempt to finish it and see where Faye's journey took her, only to be semi-devastated when I realized that there is a sequel for which I now have to wait. This title will be added to our school library and my personal library as well.

DNF at 32%. I tried but it could not hold my interest. Whimsical things happen and exist but the characters themselves fall flat.

I loved this story! I cannot wait until it comes out in June so I can immediately buy a copy. This was the perfect Howl's Moving Castle-esk book and I'm super excited that the story will continue in a book two. Faye was a fantastic MC and all of the secondary characters were just as fun. I will definitely be recommending this to everyone who wants a fun and magical tale.

This was a fun book that I will definitely recommend to lots of middle grade readers! The characters are fun to follow and Faye is well written and interesting.
I do wish the side characters, especially the princess, had a little more substance, and the book as a whole either leaned further into whimsy (a-la Magaziner’s Wizardmatch) or a character study in a magical world (like Healy’s No One Leaves the Castle) but readers who liked either title will still find lots of fun fluff here.

tl;dr
Part cozy fantasy, part magical adventure, and entirely fun.

Thoughts
Oh, this one was fun! I enjoy stories about royalty and chosen ones as much as the next reader, but I especially love a story about the workers who keep the wheels turning behind the scenes. Faye is exactly that - overworked and overlooked, she's smart, competent, and a genuine pleasure to read. Detail's about her daily life spark the imagination, with quick but clear world building, and plenty of magical creatures and plants to fill the world. It would be downright cozy if not for the kingdom-ending threat creeping around the edges of the story. And Faye knows this too, as she has to find a way to defeat the Shadow Queen sometime between gardening, cleaning, and covering up for the Wizard West's untimely death. It's a big adventure for a small girl, but she rises to the occasion. Supporting cast are all fun as well, with a talking cat being the standout for me. Oh hey, did I mention the talking cat? Because we've got one of those too, and he's great.

A lovely quirky fantasy with fun characters. The Wizard of the West not realizing he is dead was a great starting point.

The daughter of a famous wizard's groundskeeper has to help said recently deceased wizard's ghost find a new apprentice while also deal with her home crumbling under the foundation spells. Faye is the daughter of the famous Wizard West's Groundskeeper. She's been looking after the castle with her father for as long as she's known. When her father goes out to work on something Faye is left to deal with a new situation, the fact that Wizard West has passed away and now is a ghost... and he has to name his own apprentice... which means it's time for a competition to be arranged with famous princes and princesses coming to the castle. Faye has to help West arrange the competition and keep it running smoothly... but that means dealing with a whole host of newcomers and guests she was never expecting. It doesn't help that a servant of the evil Shadow Queen is bent on sabotaging the contest and Faye has to stop it before it's too late. Along the way Faye will discover that she's got more magic and courage than she ever expected... and that the perfect successor might just be here. This was a really cute and fun read with a dash of Howl's Moving Castle and a bit of Nevermoor. Faye is such a fun protagonist and the whole competition storyline was fun. I had fun with this and definitely think that this would make a great read for middle grade readers and anyone who enjoys a fun fantasy read.

*Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books, Quill Tree Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*