I enjoyed this book overall, but I thought that the plot was underdeveloped. It was hard to tell what was actually happening until about halfway through. Not enough explanation of the setting was given, so it was hard to get into the right headspace for reading it.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Ok, this was surprisingly good. It starts off slow, and the pacing gradually gets quicker. While i could guess where the story was going, i still loved how the author wrote it. The writing was both whimsical and magical and drew me into the world. The magic system was really interesting, and I found the concepts of royals and scrivenists really intriguing. Ivy is a great main character, she is strong, driven and had great character development. I’m definitely interested to see where the rest of the series goes, and continue the journey with Ivy!!
(*3.5)

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited when I was approached to review The Crowns of Croswald, It looked like it had positive reviews and I had seen readers describe the story as Cinderella meets Harry Potter, which had me intrigued. Unfortunately, I think I am in the minority here because I did not mostly enjoy the book. I love Harry Potter, but this book is too similiar and not in a good way. It’s so much like it, that it’s basically the exact same story line where the author just changed the names and ages of some characters. One think that bother me was the writing, there were many issues with some sentences that I had to reread because of how oddly structured they were written. I had a hard time reading this book, my interest plummeted around page 70. I tried my best to continue reading but couldn’t read more than 150 pages so I "DNF'd" it. (the book has 229 pages) I wanted to like it, as there were aspects of it that had so much potential, but I cannot, in good conscience give anything other than my honest opinion.This definitely wasn’t a book I enjoyed reading and I probably won’t check out the rest of the series.

I finally got around to reading this and I´m kicking myself for not reading it sooner. This is such a cute story. For fans of retelling-esque magical stories set in a magical school.

A fun read! A whimsical, magical story perfect for my Harry Potter loving heart. I did get a little confused by the storyline at times but overall I really enjoyed this.

Thanks for giving my an ARC in exchange of an honest review.

It was a lovely story about how a miserable girl discovers an incredible world. Then she will star studing in a magical school where she will learn more about her new reality. The worldbuilding was well-developed and very detailed, although sometimes too complex. This made me immerse myself in the story.

I think this book is perfect for people who love to read about magic and fantastical worlds.

I was immediately interested after reading the synopsis of this book. Definitely my kind of book. Thanks for giving me the chance to read it!

For sixteen years Ivy Lovely has been living the life of a lowly scaldrony maid. Until one day, tired of being shut away from the world, she tries to run away and crosses a magical boundary she didn't know existed. The moment she crosses the boundary her world begins to change. Powers within hey awaken and she is brought to the Halls of Ivy a school where students learn to master their magical blood and the power of Croswald's gems. When Ivy's magic-and her life- is threatened by the Dark Queen she must scramble to unearth the mystery of her past before it's too late.

This book captured my attention right from the start. It has a Cinderella meets Harry Potter vibe to it. The world building was excellent and pulled me in right away with its enchanting creatures and magical atmosphere.

Ivy is a character many can relate to as she is both timid about the changes in her life and brave as she sets out on this new adventure. The friends she meets along the way add intrigue and fun into the mix including a bit of a flirtatious relationship.

As a lover of middle grade fantasy I devoured this book! Its captivating storyline kept me entertained and I was sad when it was over. I can't wait to read book two!

Thank you to Netgalley and D.E. Night for the ARC!

- I think some people who are looking for a middle grades magical school series may like this, but it missed the mark for me.
- it felt like it was trying really hard to emulate a certain wizard school, and it kept taking away from the story.
- I struggled with the characters. They were 16 as first years, but they acted more like younger kids and spoke like they’re very proper adults. I didn’t feel like the motivations made sense all the time. There’s a big reveal at the end, and Ivy’s reaction just didn’t feel like it fit.
- I’ve always struggled to understand what “show, don’t tell” looks like in a book, but there was a ton of showing in this book. It definitely took me out of the book.

Picked up and put down this book so many times. Absolutely feeling guilty for how long it’s taken me but it was just so tough to get through. Theres potential but it just gets lost in its ow. World building. The magic doesn’t really obey good rules within itself (you have no idea what is or isn’t magically possible at any given time). The characters are all just a little flat and boring. It was fine but I won’t be picking up book two.

The Crowns of Croswald is a fun and whimsical adventure! D. E. Night had built a unique magical world that rivals the like of Harry Potter and Narnia! As an adult, I was easily lost in the adventure and magic so I can’t wait to recommend this my children!

The Crowns of Croswald

#middlegrade read with Harry Potter’s vibes!

Ivy was an orphan who works as a scaldrony maid (if you ever wondered what’s scaldrony was, i think it’s some kind of dragon that has a big mouth (?) to cook your food!) until suddenly she found a letter from Rimbrick and magical things start to happen! Long short story, Ivy goes to a magic school and find strange things, new friends, new adventures and discover her true identity.

What i like about this books is the world building eventho it’s similar to Harry Potter’s but it’s quite unique in its own way. Like there are some royals and some of them that called Scrivenist. Also the illustration on the beginning of each chapters are cute! Also the magical creatures that i really want to meet is the hairie and Humboldt!

I think this book is for you who loves MG reads! It’s fun and enjoyable.
#thecrownsofcroswald #NetGalley

3.5 stars

The Crowns of Croswald is the 1st in The Crowns of Croswald series by D.E. Night. This was a great middle grade fantasy.
The pacing through out was great with some fast paced action squewnces. The wrld building was nice and vivid and the story was filled with mysical, adventure and magic!

Ivy was a great main chater to follow thid story with.

For fans of
- Harry potter
- Percy Jackson
- Tangled
- Magic boarding school
- Lost princesses

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. Thank you NetGalley and D.E. Night for this gifted copy.

Actual rating: 3.5 / 5

Thank you to the publishers for an e-arc. All opinions remain 100% my own.

This is a title I should I picked up yonks ago! That's my bad, but I'm here to review it now.

This was a fun middle grade fantasy, focusing on the chosen one and from rags to riches trope.

Our MC, Ivy, was a a loveable narrative to have and I enjoyed how humble she was from start to finish.

I liked the different kind of magics available depending on if you were destined to be a scrivenist or a royal.

It was a run of the mill middle grade, but it was wholesome, fun, entertaining and had heart.

The Crowns of Croswald

“Today you are safe, but things are changing in Croswald. You need to be ready.”

📚 BOOK REVIEW 📚

✨Magical powers, ancient curses, and a battle for reign collide in this brilliant, fast paced, and spellbinding middle grades fantasy.

✨Orphan Ivy Lovely is a teenaged scaldrony maid who lives in a town surrounded by magic-blocking slurry fields, with few possessions, and a single friend, Rembrick. She frequently has vivid dreams of a strange man in a castle and enjoys sketching her nightly visions. After a catastrophic series of events results in Ivy literally being chased from her job and out of her village, she treks across the border of her town and is suddenly caught up in a whirlwind of magical events. She is ultimately whisked away to the castle-turned-boarding-school that she has been dreaming of for years. Here she learns she has the magical powers of a Scrivenist with an eidetic memory to record events perfectly with her magical quill. While trying to adjust to her new surroundings, friends, and classes, Ivy continues to find herself thrown into strange scenarios and new adventures involving mystical creatures, lost treasures, missing people and unusual locales. She is sure these occurrences are linked to her dreams of the castle and the unknown man inside. With the help of her new friends, Ivy must piece together the uncanny events to uncover the truth about her past and master her magical skills before she, her friends, and the entire school suffer at the hands of the powerful Dark Queen.

Well-written, imaginative, visually descriptive, and whimsical, this is an exciting story to read. Ivy is a likable, if quirky, character who is maybe a bit behind the reader in sorting out all the pieces of her puzzling past, however, her daily struggles and adventures are both relatable and entertaining. A thrilling final magical duel sequence and the cliffhanger ending leave the reader wanting more. This is a great reading choice for a fantasy fan who is looking for a more powerful female main character in a new wonderland rich with enchantment and mystery. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

I was thrilled to receive an e galley of The Crowns of Croswald and hoped to connect immediately with the plot and characters. However; I quickly lost interest with this story and was unable to continue thirty percent in.

Not my typical read but one I really liked! Well-constructed world, fluid writing, and characters that we wish were real. A great read for all ages!

Plot | 4⭐
Characters | 5⭐
Ease of Read | 4⭐
Quality of Writing | 4⭐

Overall | 4.25⭐

Ivy Lovely has a miserable life as a maid in the Castle Plum, though she has always dreamt of and drawn another mysterious castle. When she loses her job (and gains a small pet dragon which was so cute), she leaves the slurry fields surrounding the Castle Plum and begins her adventures taking her to a magical school where she learns more about her own magical abilities while making friends and enemies.

The world of Croswald is a fascinating one. The book is crammed full of details of creatures, magical spells and artefacts, snippets of mysterious history. Often these only get a brief mention in this book but it makes the whole world feel very well-established and, as this is the first in a series, I look forward to learning more about the world in future books.

The story rattles along at breakneck speed, so much happens and I read it very quickly as it was really engaging. Some elements are quite familiar to readers of middle grade fantasy (an orphan with mysterious powers and an unknown origin, we know where this story is going) but that is not a criticism at all. This is a genre I love and I really enjoyed this book. I will say that Ivy is supposed to be 16, which seems a little old for a middle grade main character though on the whole she pretty much acts like a much younger child. I didn’t really care about the romance subplot but that’s just my own personal preference. The mystery of the opening prologue is not really resolved by the end of the book, Ivy has only just been reunited with a key character so presumably the rest of the series will explore and explain what is going on in Croswald and Ivy’s part in putting it right. I will definitely be reading the rest of this series to see what awaits Ivy next and look forward to learning more about its magic.

Thank you to Netgalley, D.E. Night and Stories Untold for a review copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This story starts with Ivy, an orphan living as a scullery maid. The story is a bit slow to start but quickly picks up once Ivy leaves the castle.

Ivy Lovely ends up at school, much life Hogswart, and deals with royal bullies who think they are better than her. She goes on to find her destiny, who she really is, and her true powers. I love the magic of all the creatures, the Scribners and the magic!

This book is fun and has good flow. I would hight recommend and very excited for book 2!

For me this book was slow-moving. I didn't know where it was headed (which would normally be a good thing because it builds suspense), but unfortunately, it left me reluctant to continue reading. I am, however, glad that I did finish reading because the last few chapters held a nice balance of information and mystery. The type of ending is what earned the book 3 stars in my opinion.

The character of Ivy was developed slowly and created more questions than answers. The author did a nice job of answering some of those questions near the end.