As the kind of girl who always has dreamt of living in a fantasy book whilst being enough of a realist to know I'd not last five minutes, this book just brought me utter joy.

Illustrated Girl is a heartwarming, fast-paced, silly and joyful tale about Holly, a girl transported into a magical world. Holly quickly realises that whilst she might be in a fairytale and a princess, not everything is exactly as she imagined.

This was such a fun read! fast paced, easy to understand, but extremely; enjoyable. I finished it in a day! If you love fairytale retellings, becoming the main character, a tad a voyeurism by living through the main characters eyes, you'll love this story. It's perfect if yo want a quick light pick me up, or are in a reading slump and want to be stimulated.

“Illustrated Girl” starts off rather slow. It does pick up, but it felt like stream-of-consciousness writing that needs revision and more editing. There are some funny scenes, but the story had trouble deciding what it wanted to riff and where it wanted to go. I don’t know. I think it got in its own way.

However, the cover is absolutely gorgeous, and I loved, loved, loved the ending. The latter bumped up my rating to a 3.5 instead of a 3.

Fair warning, there are a couple of not PG sexual references sprinkled in here, which I mention because the blurb might attract elementary school kids and middle schoolers, and the book is decidedly YA. Those references jarred me right out of the story, even though the romance itself is pretty tame. We already got that Princess Pleasant is attracted to the hottie! My two cents.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sungrazer Publishing for providing me with an eARC. I am writing this review voluntarily.

I adore this book. Our main character wanted to be whisked into a magical fairy tale world … only she neglected to read the book she picked out for herself and ends up having to be a passive witness, as Princess Pleasant, and start being an active character in her own story. It’s a book very aware of fairy tale tropes and makes use of them and deconstructs them with gleeful abandon. And it has an adorable unicorn — who ends up being my favorite character.

There’s a lot of banter and some really funny moments as well as excellent chemistry between the two main characters. Torvold the Brave, the hero of the book, is an excellent leading man, and the supporting cast of colorful characters were entertaining without being intrusive. As someone who grew up reading anything and everything with knights, this book was almost made for me, and the humor — gentle snark and self-aware jokes and characters meant to be laughed with rather than at — worked so well. One of my favorite moments was the Berating of Good Phillips the Beige.

This is an excellent YA book (and the first book in the series!), and one I really hope people give a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sungrazer Publishing for letting me read the advanced reader copy.

(Note for the publisher/author - two small errors: cantor instead of canter; knicker instead of nicker)

This clever, humorous romantasy begins with the narrator telling us that she has only 15 days to break the spell she's under. The spell? She's been turned into an illustration in a book, but alas, she has only come into the book near the end, AFTER the evil mage has taken over the world. She's spent the past 350 days hiding out at the top of a tower, because as a beautiful princess, she's just so much fodder for the bandits, ruffians, and villains of the world.

Her only way out is to have a reader fall in love with her -- she'd take a pity kiss, but sadly, nobody has even finished the book. She can't blame them, she hates books where the main character (a heroic blockhead named Torvold) gets killed off. She knows she'll die here, because, "People shoot each other in the <I>face</I> with <I>arrows</I> here. On a regular basis." The narrator needs to get out, not only because of the arrow thing, but because of the "dumbfoundinly mysogynistic" attitude of women as commodities.

So with that sassy voice established, the narrator decides to go in search of a redemption arc. Did she mention her name? Princess Pleasant, natch. After tracking down the Mother Maybe, the magic-worker who answered her wish to live in the book, the narrator slides earlier into the story, where she has the chance to save Torvold and defeat the evil mage.

I was not a fan of the author (<I>Starcrossed</I> was not to my taste), but am very glad to have picked up this novel. A rollicking self-aware story, this feels like a bit of a love-letter to all fantasy, but with a clear understanding of the genre's shortcomings (commodification of women, shallow characterizations, et cetera), as well as its charms. A pleasure from start to finish, the novel is part of a trilogy; I look forward to diving into the rest of the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sungrazer for the eARC in exchange for my unfettered opinion.

Thank you Netgalley and Sungrazer Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"Illustrated Girl" by Josephine Angelini is a delightful and unique fantasy adventure that delivers on both wit and charm, making it a perfect escape for readers in search of a lighthearted and entertaining story. This is the kind of book to read when you are stuck in a reading slump or if you’re literally stuck in bed. It’s so much fun, and I absolutely loved reading this book. It’s also pretty short, so you can easily knock this out in an afternoon. Whenever I have a read who says they can’t find anything “good” to read, I will definitely be recommending this book.

From the moment you dive into the pages of this book, you're immediately drawn into the world of Lucitopia, where Princess Pleasant finds herself with only 15 days to escape before being trapped forever. Filled with romance, humor, and an epic final battle against an evil sorcerer, the story unfolds with a perfect blend of excitement and whimsy.

One of the standout features of "Illustrated Girl" is its self-aware humor and relatable protagonist, which adds depth and charm. I absolutely loved the humor of Holly as she made quick jokes, like when she mocks the fantasy world she finds herself in while also providing social commentary on princess stories, like how it’s very rare for there to be a woman in the fantasy world who can actually read. Holly was extremely relatable with her sarcasm as well as her thoughts/perspectives of the fantasy world. She is also a flawed character, which made me relate to her even more, but you are able to see her grow as a character as she discovers her own strength and courage.

While the story is relatively short and quick-paced, it doesn't skimp on entertainment value. I did want some more lore and world building, but the promise of future books in the Chronicles of Lucitopia series leaves room for further exploration and discovery. There were also a lot of different characters introduced in this book, and I did find it difficult to keep track of them also, especially because of the fast pace and the shortness of the book.

Overall, "Illustrated Girl" is a charming and enjoyable read that offers a refreshing break from darker and heavier stories. With its light-hearted humor, endearing characters, and engaging plot, I definitely can’t wait to read more about the world of Lucitopia.

4.75 stars

Reminds me of A Spindle Splintered & A Nameless Witch - both of which are some of my favourite books.

The beginning expostion was a bit lengthy, but once the plot started moving the pacing was great.
I personally would have preferred the protganist to be 17/18 rather than 16 but that may be because I am not a teen.
The witches/book magic was a touch confusing but I don't think it needs to be thoroughly explained to enjoy the book.
I must admit I am curious as to who Asphodel was really.
But otherwise it was a fun, sweet and modern take on a classic quest story - also gave The Princess Bride vibes.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
I really liked Illustrated Girl. It was short and cute. A perfect cozy fairy tale. I liked the characters and the story was simple but interesting.

This was a good book. I really love the world building and the characters. The pacing was really good and it was an interesting story to read

I loved this funny, cozy feel good, angsty no spice, fairy tale. Devoured this book in less than 2 days and could not put it down. It’s been a while since a book has gripped me like this one. The character banter, sarcasm, and hilarious characters not to mention the handsome chivalrous knight. I can’t wait to read the next books in this series and read this author’s backlist.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced readers copy!!

4.5 stars

This was absolutely unique and charming. Such a clever, cozy fantasy.
It did take me a short minute to get into the story as the author/reader/MC found her voice.
A short, quick read.

Definitely recommend.

This was a super intriguing and interesting, but the way it was written just wasn't for me. I couldn't get into it, I think maybe it's the voice that it's written in, It's not bad, just not for me. The cover is spectacular though.