The book returns us to the world of Croswald, full of magic and royalty and the evil Dark Queen. It is full of daventures, new magical characters, friends and magical wonders. They use quills instead of wands to use magic. The one person who has a clue of what the dark queen is looking for and where it might be is her families old magical advisor called a scrivenist. Ivy has her plate full in this book fighting and defeating the Dark Queen. Eager to dive into next one soon.

This is the second book in the Croswald series and I have to say it was as enjoyable as the first.

It continues the story of Ivy Lovely, who is an absolute joy of a character. She is compassionate and resourceful. It was so lovely to see her surrounded by loyal friends, a far cry from her lonely childhood as a kitchen maid.

The author has done a fantastic job of showing that although Ivy has grown up a little because of all she has been through, she remains a reckless teenager, ready to steam into dangerous adventures without a thought!

The structure of the story was similar to the first book, a slow build up to an epic battle in the final few chapters.
As in the previous book I would have liked to have seen a little more of the Dark Queen as she is a fabulous villain.

I also felt, although Ivy's time in Belzebuthe at the start if the book was interesting, I couldn't wait for her to get back to school as that is where the humour and excitement is.

I loved seeing Ivy building a group of friends and her relationship with Fyn grows even more in this book, the scene where they fish for stars on the roof on Fyns birthday was truly heartwarming.

The ending of the book bodes well for the next in the series as it appears Ivy is beginning to truly embrace her birthright and I cannot wait to read what happens to her next.

Many thanks to the publisher for providing me with a digital ARC through Netgalley for an honest review.

The Girl with a Whispering Shadow is the second book in the Crowns of Croswald series. It's a nice break to read a book for a middle grade audience and exciting to see the events that transpire after the ending of the first book (where Ivy finds out who she really is).

I love how much Ivy's character has grown from when we first meet her in the first book, I love her curiosity and kindness and getting to see those friendships develop further.

I think Rebecca has quickly become a favourite character of mine in the series though.

The ending was perfect - it left on a cliffhanger that had me needing the next book straight away. I'm curious to see where the rest of the series goes and The Girl with a Whispering Shadow is such a great sequel.

Overall, I really love D.E.Nights writing and their way of describing/world building is great. It does draw similarities to other middle grade fantasy books but does well in holding its own in being unique.

Having really enjoyed the first book in this series I had been looking forward to this one for a while. Unfortunately, I found it a bit disappointing. So much of the book was world building/scene setting, and nothing really happened to move the plot along until quite far in. While these scenes were fun I just felt like it wasn't engaging.

3.75/5 stars rounded up to 4

This is an excellent follow-up that, for me, almost meets the expectations of the first book. Almost.

Maybe it's just me, but I felt as if there were more telling in this one. "The weather clearly reflected Ivy's mood." If it clearly reflected her mood, you shouldn't have had to tell me that, at least not so directly. But maybe it's because this is for middle-grade to young adult audiences. The dialogue flowed a little less nicely, mostly due to a lack of contractions in some places, which were not to do with the character's way of speaking.

By the halfway point I started questioning if this was actually going to lead into anything. Ivy and the reader learn a lot without it feeling infodump-y or slow (usually), so you can at least tell that it's building up to something. By the 60-70% point, it starts to pick up, and up, and up! All that learning starts leading into some action being done, and I could hardly put it down.

So don't miss out on it. From the little bit of other reviews I saw, this is being praised higher than the first one. This series should definitely be read in order, but Night does a nice job of slipping in sentences and details to remind you of the first book while not spending too much time recapping. This helps keep track of recurring characters, too. I adored the world-building and the characters - who I wish we had a little more time with - but that's not surprising! The world-building alone is a big part of the pull of this series for me, and I'm glad we get to see even more of its magic in this one.

The second instalment in The Crowns of Croswald series brings more magic and adventure. This is great for middle grade readers.

This book returns us to the world of Croswald, full of magic and royalty and the evil Dark Queen. It is full of new adventures, new magical characters and friends, and new magical wonders. They use quills instead of wands to help direct their magic. And at the beginning of this book, one of the darkest, most powerful quills goes missing from the Keep where they are locked away and studied.

The second book in the series, Ivy learned several secrets last book and ended up battling the Dark Queen. The Dark Queen is after her crown, but Ivy doesn’t have a crown. The only person who has a clue of what the Dark Queen is looking for and where it might be is her families old magical advisor called a scrivenist. Of course it can’t be that easy, he also was trapped somewhere for decades, causing memory loss. Ivy has her plate full in this book, with trying to keep up with school, trying to help him recover his memories to beat the Dark Queen to what she wants so badly, fighting literal shadows that are putting everyone in danger, and practicing her magic in a scrimmage setting in a club (that is technically against the rules, but she’s got to defeat the Dark Queen somehow, and she needs to practice!)

I had a lot of similar thoughts reading book two as I did book one. This continues to be a quirky, whimsical world. The story had moments of good humour and I can happily report that this middle grade series remained age appropriate (which is a big tick for me)!

I thought towards the end of book one, that the story was veering away from that of Harry Potter. Unfortunately, there were some similarities to Harry Potter that felt a little too close for comfort. There was a club formed that reminded me of Dumbledore’s Army. Invisible creature that bore similarities to Thestrals. A girl who went through a possession of sorts that felt much like Ginny’s predicament in The Chamber of Secrets and a way of reliving a memory that reminded me of the pensieve.

That being said there were also some unique moments I truly enjoyed. I loved the secret town and the ‘stars’ that graced its sky. I loved the occulyst owls! The final battle was also fast paced and super engaging to read.

I would happily recommend this to parents of middle grade readers.

I enjoyed reading this more than book 1. The world building is great and so magical.. It’s great to see Ivy become more confident in herself and getting to know more friends.

I'm loving reading more adventures of Ivy Lovely! I was disappointed right along with her when she couldn't go back to school, but was happy when she did! Though I, too, was suspicious about the origins of the note. I love the academia aspects of these books! The school sounds beautiful; can never go wrong with schools in an old castle! I wished Fyn was around a bit more, but it was also fun meeting some new friends and characters. Including his mom! She seemed really nice, and it was great for Ivy to have that influence/relationship with her own parents gone. I also had a lot of fun meeting Silius! All of the creatures are so creative and I think the invisitaurs are my favorite. I was also glad to see more of the dark queen. She's a great villain! Overall, I love this series and can't wait to see more of Ivy Lovely!

The Girl with the Whispering Shadow is the second book in the The Crowns of Croswald series. Ivy Lovely has survived her first year at the Halls of Ivy, but it looks like the Dark Queen isn't done with her yet! The story takes us to the hidden Town where Ivy spends her summer with one of her closest friends. Can she figure out the location of the second piece of the mysterious Kindred Stone that is her birthright?

I liked how the book picked up right after the end of the first book. Usually sequels aren't as good as the original, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I totally want to be a member of the QQC. Ivy teaches the reader to be brave and courageous, and I really enjoy that.

I enjoyed reading this book. I adore Ivy’s friends but Fyn and Rebecca are my favorites, and this time, Rebecca won me over because she can turn into a dragon! I also loved the new creatures we meet in this one. Although this series is very simplistic, I really love the world. It’s as magical as it could be, and with every single book, it’s developed even more. I definitely recommend it.

The Girl With the Whispering Shadow is the second book in the Crowns of Croswald series.

I feel as characters everyone grew, From start to finish you honestly see each character grow at their own pace and see them evolve into wonderful roles in the series, and I love how we find out about Fyns kind of bad boy side, and his jealous side as well. The descriptions again are so detailed that I can imagine everything D.E Night describes from Quogo to the dragon.

I was sad to see the book end so fast because I wanted to keep going, but the ending was a major cliffhanger and I am excited what D.E Night will come up with next and where Ivy’s next adventure is going!

Thank you NetGalley, Stories Untold, and D.E. Knight for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Description:
Only hours after Ivy Lovely discovers that she is the fulfillment of the Moonsday promise, she is whisked away from her beloved school to Belzebuthe, a secret town for only those with magical blood.

Ivy sets out on a mission to uncover the second facet of the Kindred Stone while eluding the Dark Queen’s wrath. But even when she’s supposed to be safe, something is shadowing Ivy. She will need all her natural-born magic and more as she battles to find the rest of the Kindred Stone and return to the Halls of Ivy.

Before it’s too late...

This was a wonderful continuation from the first book. It picked up right where Ivy's story ended in the first book and it was easy to get back into the magical world of Croswald. We are following Ivy through her second year at the Halls of Ivy. Ivy spends her summer and the beginning of the school year in the Town since it has been deemed unsafe for her to return back to school for the time being. Until she is called back to school by the Selector, or so she thought. As usual Ivy gets in to trouble for various things once she returns to school, but I loved getting to "see" more outside of the school, Ravenshollow, and the slurry fields from the first book. I do feel like Ivy did mature and continue to grow as a character in this book, especially when she joins the QQC.

The Town sounds like an amazing place to live as a scrivenist. There was also the introduction of Quogo, a new magical game. Who doesn't like a good duel? I liked seeing all the main characters grow more throughout this book. Reading about them expanding their magical skills is fun and pulls you in to the story even more. I feel like the middle of the school year always seems to get skipped over a little bit in the book, but there might not be much to add from what was already written. I just feel like the meat and potatoes of the book are at the beginning and the end and I wish there was some of it in the middle. It doesn't affect the book for me at all, though. I still really enjoyed this book and will most likely continue the series. I have to know how the story ends!

Fantastic and enhancing story! This was the perfect sophomore book in the series, and held its own as a stand-alone tale.

3⭐

When it comes to world-building and plot twists, the second novel met my expectations. I had some thoughts on how the story would progress, and I was so sure that I was right, only to find out my assumptions weren’t as correct as I thought, which was a beautiful surprise.

However, Ivy’s character lacked development an depth, which I wanted to see so badly. She’s the same annoying girl, despite the fact that she has potential, she makes a mistake over and over again, without learning from it, so the plot becomes repetitive. This was much more important than the twists and the world-building for me.

Besides this, at times, the similarities with the Harry Potter were simply absurd. Damaris Dodley is our secondary antagonist, and if the name sounds a bit familiar is because in the HP universe we have Draco and Dudley Dursley. At least, the game, Quogo, was completely different from Quidditch, being based on another idea. It involves a battle between two advanced scrivenists who use someone else’s quill and thus, the person the quill used to belong to takes a chimerical form, helping the player fight.

I went back to Croswald for the second book of the series, and let me tell you, I loved the journey! 💫

I think what I absolutely love about The Crowns of Croswald is how it showcases a different kind of magic. It’s a totally new and creative universe. The plot is intricate, yet it’s fairly easy to understand.

I loved the first book, but the reason I adored The Girl with the Whispering Shadow is BELZEBUTHE! What a treat to be introduced to the Town! Of course, since we’re already acquainted with the characters, we dive right into it!

Fyn is such a sweetheart. I really enjoyed how we’re focused on the main storyline, but we get little hints of romance from him and Ivy.

If you’re looking for a magical read, look no further 🧚🏼‍♀️

Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Girl with the Whispering Shadow is the second book in the Crowns of Croswald series. After the events of the first book, Ivy must find the pieces of the Kindred stone and learn to embrace her powers so that she can defeat the Dark Queen.

This book was far more adventurous and exciting than the first one. It builds upon the magical concepts introduced in the previous book. I loved the introduction of The Quality Quills Club and Quogo - a game in which players utilize their magical quills to win.

I also found myself warming to Ivy. I felt her character was explored in more depth in this book, enabling us to fully understand and sympathize with her struggles. Her character became more real rather than merely fulfilling the role of the chosen one. I also loved reading about her relationships with Fyn and Rebecca. They added so much light-heartedness and joy to the story!

I did think the pacing was awkward in some places with it moving very fast during some scenes and dragging in others. However, I do not think this takes away from how wonderful this story is! This book definitely surpassed my expectations and outshined the first book in so many ways!

I highly recommend this series to those who are looking for a fun, magical fantasy story, particularly younger readers. Fans of Harry Potter and Nevermoor would love this!

The second book takes place right after where we left off in the first book. Ivy finds herself in a secret town, warned not to return to her school for her own safety, and tasked by her protector to find a rare heirloom. Of course, nothing ever goes as planned!

Suddenly summoned back to the Hall of Ivy, Ivy finds out only too late that the Dark Queen was behind it all. How the Queen was able to find Ivy outside of school and come after her inside the school are mysteries Ivy needs to solve, while ensuring she’s still alive to fight the darkness and keep Croswald safe.

I’ll say it outright that I enjoyed this book more than the first one! I guess this was because by now I already know the characters and care about what happens to them. Also, being familiar with the world building, it was easier to understand how the magic system works in this book. That is not to say there was nothing new here. Rather, exploring this world with Ivy as she discovers more and more about the world surrounding her and her own magical abilities was one of my favourite parts of this book.

We also meet a host of new characters and creatures, and it was fun to read about Ivy making new friends with both man and beast.

My favourite part in this book though, was the introduction of the magical game of Quogo! I think I loved all the scenes with the Quogo matches, whether played by the professionals or our young group of heroes. The ideas and the vivid descriptions of this game were both intriguing and entertaining to read about.

Without giving away any spoilers, I’ll say the ending was really satisfying because while Ivy was able to hold back the Dark Queen for now, but the victory came with a price! Even though for middle grade readers, I do appreciate when we read about adventure stories where there are consequences to actions.

This series will draw comparisons to other middle grade fantasy books, but I’m happy to say that I enjoyed this series immensely and definitely recommend to book lovers who are looking for a fun and adventurous series!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨/5

the second part really just made me fall in love with it all over again💕

The adventure continues in this one too and Ivy is getting better and stronger to fulfil her destiny.⚡️

There’s magic 🪄 laughter✨, fun 😬 and lots of new friendships along the way🫶🏼

It was a bit difficult for me (personally) to imagine a few of the elements that are discussed in the book.. although thats more of my issue with fantasy and hard fantasies..

Like there is this secret town that’s hidden away because of which its always dark and start studded.. that was a bit hard to imagine for me..

But Ivy and Fyn kept me going 🥰

It ends with a cliffhanger that has left me wanting to know more about the adventures ahead!