An engaging and enjoyable fantasy novel! Filipino folklore meets royal intrigue for a fascinating and compelling story! Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book has a lot of high fantasy. MJ is an enjoyable character who is forced into the fairy world when her father dies under mysterious circumstances. Sadly, because she has had little to no interaction with the magical world MJ finds herself lost and relying on friendships to help her navigate already treacherous waters. Overall, in enjoyed this book. I really liked MJ, the first half of the book was amazing, but I started to drift in and out of the story towards the middle. The ending wrapped up everything nicely and will be a great launching point for the second novel. I am excited to see where MJ goes.
Thank you to Penguin Group Young Readers and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

Absolutely refreshing to read such a diverse book. It’s one I would love for others to read so they can experience something different. It read young, which was expected for a YA!

This was a fast paced fantasy, perfect for a middle years reader to sink into. I loved the Filipino lore woven throughout this world and the ending was perfect to encourage readers to continue on with the series.

MJ is a strong independent character and I the touch of romance was quite innocent. I wonder though, if after a quickly planned kiss to escape being caught, was enough for them to start seeing each other. Add some of the awkwardness and butterflies that come with a new relationship to give it depth would be my suggesstion.

Melissa de la Cruz does it again. I love her characters and stories. Cannot wait for the rest of the series. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

The Encanto’s Daughter had a lot going for it. A girl swept away to another world and learns she is a princess about to be queen. She has to use her magic to prove she is the rightful heir but yet she has not noticed any powers manifest. Beyond that she is trying to solve the murder of her father, the late king.

All of this is interesting to me but for some reason I felt bored and had trouble keeping my attention on the story.

An Asian inspired ya fantasy is great for younger readers. Enemies to lovers and academia themes. I really liked this story, but the conflict resolution was so quick after the buildup. There is an opening to a sequel.

2.5 stars rounded up. On a positive note, the mystery was somewhat intriguing, and the epilogue made me want to read the sequel. On the downside, the story read more middle school/early high school to me. There was a lot more telling than showing when it came to the details. The fast-paced beginning really drew me in but sadly did not keep the pace, and things slowed down.

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review this title*

I was overjoyed to Read this book. Melissa is one of my longtime favorite authors and I love every re-tellings she has written. She is a master at making re-tellings amazing stories. She defines her characters personalities so well and makes them come alive. You actually can believe this world and how it is rewritten. The plot and world is so well built it makes you absolutely crave more. I cannot wait to own this next book and put it with the rest of work on proudly on my shelf.

My first thought upon seeing this book was, Filipino mythology? Sign me up! I've read many books based on mythology and can't get enough of them, but I have yet to read one on Filipino mythology. I was all in from page one. MJ Rodriguez has started at yet another high school, but even before she can finish her first day, she is whisked away to Biringan, a realm where her father was the King, and now that he has passed suddenly, the world is falling into disarray. MJ, who is half human and half Encanto, is to be named Queen, but she first has to attend a school designed to teach her the ins and outs of the land, its customs, and how to act royal because she's been lax on keeping up with her royal studies while in the human world. Oh, and she has to discover what her magical ability is before her coronation in one month or she won't be able to assume the throne, and the country will fall into even more disarray and chaos.

MJ was a likeable character, very down to earth, and the friends she picked up along the course of the story were easy to relate to and develop an interest in. She's going to need every friend she can get when she discovers her father was actually murdered, and whoever did it isn't finished, yet. Will MJ be next?

The world building in this book was beyond phenomenal. It was magical and made you feel like you were right there in Biringan with the characters. The story was interesting, and I enjoyed the twists and turns it took to finally unmask the murderer in the end.

All in all, I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to reading the next book in the series.

5/5 stars.

*** I would like to thank NetGalley, Penguin Young Readers Group, and Melissa de la Cruz for the opportunity to read and review The Encanto's Daughter.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The Encanto's Daughter by Melissa de la Cruz is a first person-POV YA romantic contemporary fantasy set in the Philippines. MJ is the only heir to the recently deceased king of the Sirena Court and the leader of the other magical courts. When she returns to her father’s home for the first time in more than a decade, she also heads to an academy to learn alongside her teenage peers in the courts, only to be met with hostility due to her mother being human and not being in their world for so long. To make matters worse, MJ doesn’t have magic.

There is some Tagalog and Filipino phrases used throughout the book, helping to add to the worldbuilding while also introducing readers to languages in the Philippines. Some of them are translated after, but others rely a bit more on context or are repeated enough that the translations stop. Mambabarang, Encanto, and anting-anting are used fairly often and get explored more as the story goes on. I love it when authors use their native languages or the languages of their families in fantasy because there are such rich worlds of magic and stories all over the world and sometimes English can only provide a word that sort of fits but doesn’t encompass the full context.

MJ and Lucas’ romance doesn’t quite reach an enemies-to-lovers but is more them getting off on the wrong foot. I originally thought the set-up was going to be enemies-to-lovers because Lucas is the knight of a young lady, Amador, who greatly dislikes MJ pokes at MJ’s heritage where she can. MJ also makes a mistake and runs her mouth in class, hurting Lucas’ feelings even though she didn’t know she would hurt him. However, Lucas is a lot more forgiving and it becomes clear that he never actually thought of her as an enemy whereas MJ was more associating him with Amador, so he was guilty by association. It’s more of a classic romance set-up and I was here for it, especially because Lucas does recognize that MJ is trying her best to handle her newfound role.

This is quite fast paced and pretty voice driven. I can tell that Melissa de la Cruz has been writing YA for a while because she knows exactly when to slow down and when to speed up and how to balance the voice with the story that is on the page. I never felt that we were going too fast and I was able to understand what was on the page without getting lost within the voice, which does sometimes happen for me.

I would recommend this to fans of YA romantic fantasy exploring mythology of our world, readers looking for a contemporary YA fantasy set in the Philippines with a story romance, and those looking for a YA fantasy with a murder mystery element.

I enjoyed this book for the most part! MJ is a half human girl from a magical realm who gets called back to become queen after her father’s death. The beginning of the book throws you in head first and I was definitely a little confused. As the book progresses we get to meet a fantastic cast of characters in a beautiful world. The only part of this book that I wasn’t fond of was the very end. The twist feels like an easy set up for the next book instead of a unique plot. Will I read the second one? Absolutely!

The The Encanto's Daughter is a enchanting novel mixed with Filipino Mythology, mystery and drama. An overal enjoyable coming-of-age story, about discovering your true self and unlocking the power within on a journey of self-awareness, courage, and transformation. I’m excited to read the next chapter in MJ’s new found role and see how her story continues to unfold.

The Encanto's Daughter by Melissa de la Cruz is a masterpiece. 5 stars read from me. Lovely story. Lovely plot. I loved everything about this book.

I wasn’t a fan of fantasy books until last year, but everything changed after I started exploring the genre. One thing I particularly love about fantasy books is their incredible covers, which is exactly what first drew me to 'The Encanto’s Daughter' by Melissa de la Cruz.

Set in the enchanting fairy realm of Biringan, this book beautifully portrays Filipino mythology, culture, and food. It was my first fantasy novel featuring Asian culture combined with a murder mystery—another favorite genre of mine. Written in lovely language, with a fast-paced plot and well-developed characters, the story had me hooked halfway through. The magical realm of Biringan was vividly crafted - another thing I loved about this book.

Although I found the murder mystery intriguing, it didn’t feel particularly suspenseful. The cliffhanger ending was also a bit disappointing and predictable, and I felt that the book leaned a little young for me; I’d say it’s perfect for a teenage audience.

Overall, The Encanto’s Daughter was an enjoyable read, filled with magic, witches, court intrigue, and a touch of mystery..

The Encanto's Daughter uses Filipino Mythology in a unique and interesting way. I appreciated being introduced to this aspect of the culture that I didn't know existed. Unfortunately, I found the writing very choppy. There were many chapters that ended at the height of tension only to pick up at the start of the next chapter the next day instead of adequately resolving the situation. It made for abrupt transitions. The story overall was fun, and I can see the beginnings of world-building and character development, but it never quite gets there. There is tons of teen angst, magic, a murder mystery, and the start of an enemies-to-lovers romance. I would love to read the next to see where this series is headed in the future. Solid 3 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers - G.P. Puntam's Sons for this ARC!

Cute book based on the Filipino mythology and culture. It was like taking a short vacation to a far away place and learning about some of their fairy tales, food , clothing styles all the while enjoying a mystery. Would be a great beginning to a series

Well constructed kingdom adjacent to ours with magical creatures and a delicately balanced hierarchy. I appreciated that this was not the typical trope of suddenly finding you are heir to the throne of a kingdom you didn't know anything about upon the death of the ruler. MJ was raised knowing who and what her parents were, and knowing the future expectations for her. I did not like her as a person at first. She was about to have so much responsibility, yet she blew off learning of the land, the history and culture, yet had confidence that the role was hers without question. But she faced adversity in her studies, her relationships, and her ascension to the throne, and this just hardened the steel that makes her a great leader. The treachery is sad, but the time from MJ's notification of her Father's death to her accepting the crown was emotional as she becomes the Princess denoted by her title. This story drew me in and I finished it in one sitting. Although the cliffhanger at the end was not a surprise to me, I do look forward to seeing how this twist resolves.

This book was a really fun read, especially since I’m half Filipina! The attention given to all of the folklore and phrases in the language was amazing. It might’ve felt a bit like she was younger than the age she was meant to be at times, but she also spent a lot of her life on the run, unable to become accustomed to a usual childhood. I can’t wait to read further into this series!! (Though I will say this grossed me out at points with all the beetles haha clearly not an outdoorsy gal)