The Extraordinary Curiosities of Ixworth and Maddox

The Extraordinary Curiosities of Ixworth and Maddox follows a young girl who is feeling alone because she is being ignored by her parents and her best friends. She wanders into a curiosities shop and quickly befriends the owners. When one of the owners goes missing, Chloe goes on to try and find him. This story has a lot of magic and fun adventure.

This story was good and I think kids will enjoy it! The magic was fun and the adventure was fun to follow along. I liked Chloe as a character and the shop owners were fun characters as well. The adventure took a lot of turns and I liked the magic throughout. I liked London as a setting as well.

I feel like the story took a bit to get into but once it started going it was a lot of fun and a quick read! Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

“So these realms, as you call them, keep you young, or do you all live forever?” — Chloe, The Extraordinary Curiosities of Ixworth and Maddox

Thanks netgalley for giving me an arc copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The beginning is a little slow starting, but once the mystery starts to pile up, it is absolutely worth the wait. I’m typically more of a YA girlie who loves her quick, snappy paced books but I actually found this to be a delightful read.

At first, it’s a little bit slow starting but once the ensemble is put together, all three characters meeting one another—then the intrigue starts to pile on.

I thought it was quite interesting how in this magic system, everyone is capable of choosing to accept and become magical. I thought that was really quite genius, because that’ll appeal to kiddos reading this book that they, too, can be magical—all they have to do is want it.

The way it’s written and conveyed, it reminds me a little of Alice in Wonderland (a good thing) and I found myself becoming more invested in Chloe’s journey (a great thing!)

Pros:
- whimsical atmosphere
- clean, calm reading
- easily digestible magic system
- travelling by coat rack (seriously how cool!)
- A good balance between dialogue and exposition

Cons:
- slow start
- I do wish that the disappearance had happened a little bit sooner than 31%

Chloe Ashley is lonely. Her parents are busy, her best friend is distant after changing in an inexplicable fashion, and she is not happy at school. So when she accidentally comes across the curious emporium run by Messrs Ixworth and Maddox, she is happy to be absorbed into their world.

And what a world it is! This is entertaining and creative story telling at its best. I was completely transported by the description of a magical world where really anyone can learn magic, the city of London is divided into magical realms awarded to various magicians on the basis of certain criteria, and a busyness of brownies are hard at work to produce the beautiful magical items designed by Ixworth and his friend Maddox.

When one of her new friends goes missing, Chloe is able to put her nascent magical skills to use, to assist the other one in searching for his business partner and old friend, encountering the nasty Mr Thirsk, dark magic, and a very frightening mask along the way.

This is a fantastic story, and very original in terms of its concept as well. Would unhesitatingly pick up another book by this writer. Highly recommended.

An entertaining and well plotted story that can be appreciated by adults and children. Good storytelling and world building, likeable and well rounded characters
The story is tightly knitted and well plotted
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I gave The Extraordinary Curiosities of Ixworth and Maddox 5 stars.

Chloe Ashley is feeling lonely and dejected. She's estranged from her best friend and ignored by her busy parents. One dreary afternoon, she wanders into a newly refurbished curiosities shop in the heart of London. The shop is owned by Mr. Ixworth and Mr. Maddox, two eccentric gentlemen who are in the business of magic. Real magic.

Chloe becomes a fast friend with the two magicians and discovers the wondrous merchandise the shop has to offer: a magical flying taxi, ghost spectacles, self-fluffing pillows, and crumb-less tables. In short time, Chloe is on her way to becoming a magician's apprentice.

But when Ixworth suddenly disappears, Chloe and Maddox are launched into a shadowy, sinister world of mystery and deception. In their perilous investigation to find their missing friend, the pair uncovers an age-old conspiracy of greed, inheritance, and power. Was Ixworth kidnapped? Murdered? Is he hiding? Or is there something more insidious at play, lurking beneath the streets of London, on a quest to fulfill an ancient and terrible prophecy?

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Oh, I liked this one and know I would have loved it when I was younger. It is beautifully written and has some great characters. Full with magic and adventure, I couldn't put it down and read it in one sitting. I would love to come back to this world again in another story.

J.D. Grolic brings us into the fun world of magic and unexpected friendships in “The Extraordinary Curiosities of Ixworth and Maddox.”

When Chloe Ashley stumbles into an eclectic curiosity shop on a rainy afternoon, she’s in for a major shock — seeing magical brownies (creatures she didn’t think existed) working on the business.

Meeting magicians Mr. Ixworth and Mr. Maddox, she develops friendships with the two men. But shortly after, strange things begin happening. An evil looking man begins to follow her. Another not-very-nice man visits the shop looking for unique items. And worse yet, Ixworth goes missing.

As Chloe joins forces with Maddox to find their friend, Chloe must learn to dig deep into herself and find the strength, courage and even a little bit of magic that she possesses.

Grolic develops a fun story filled with mystery, funny moments and suspense, as well as great characters like the feisty Chloe and the enigmatic Maddox and Ixworth. He also fills “The Extraordinary Curiosities of Ixworth and Maddox” with some good themes, like dealing with the struggle to fit in; having unusual friendships and what we can learn from them; and don’t ever give up and always believe in yourself.

Fans of books like “The International House of Dereliction” by Jacqueline Davies and “The Sinister Secrets of Singe” by Sean Ferrell will love this story.

Five stars out of five.

thissmallplace provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.

One thing's for sure — J.D. Grolic, the author, certainly knows how to impress. Seriously! If he doesn't, he wouldn't have come up with his genius The Extraordinary Curiosities of Ixworth and Maddox.

In this magically compelling middle-grade masterpiece, readers are absolutely taken in the most naturally curious, fascinatingly mysterious, yet undeniably atmospheric english ride to ever exist!

For a children's book, this definitely has some spectacularly dark themes that I did not expect coming out from it. Another thing, although by plot-wise it is whimsical and lovely — the pacing, on the other hand, seems a little slow. In the end, this was still a very satisfying read.

Thus was such a pleasure to read. I devoured it in one day. The characters were wonderful and the story flowed nicely. Magical! Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. This was a fun read and reminded me of “The Spiderwick Chronicles” and “FableHaven” with the brownies and of course, the magic.

This was a fun, entertaining story aimed at younger readers. I liked the idea of a little shop full of curiosities, and there were some quirky, eccentric characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for a free copy to review.

*I was given an ARC in return for a fair and honest review.

Okay, this one was fun! A young girl with emotionally absent parents wanders into a store and finds magic. Magicians, brownies, spells, an underground river...what's not to love? The author is great at sprinkling (really funny) humor throughout the story. I'll be reading this one to my students. Marked down from 5 to 4 stars due solely to the complexity of the resolve. It was a bit hard to understand and I already am prepared to have to do a lot of explaining to the kids when I read it.

A romp through mystery with an air that definitely reminds me of "The Mysterious Benedict Society". Add to that a bit of whimsy and the appearance of magic, and you've got a nice set-up for a mystery!

The best fantasy book of the year! I can imagine this cosy magical shop of curiosities by Ixworth and Maddox (two bestfriends who run this bussiness magic shop). I love how Chloe make friends with two magicians. Chloe supposed to be going home after school. But, she going to the bookshop and rain is coming over. She’s trying to find somewhere to hiding and discover the wondrous merchandise the magic shop has offer. In short time, Chloe becoming a magician’s apprentice. Surely, you will never regret reading this book.

Oh, this was a fun read! I liked the story very much. I loved how the MC found this little shop of curiosities and instantly took a liking to it. Even more so, I liked how the shop owners instantly took the girl in and teached her all kinds of magical stuff. Further in the book, problems start to appear and the MC needs to really get into her own powers and I loved how the writer took you on this journey.

I think this is a wonderful book for children and as an adult I liked it too. I wonder if there will be another book, because I would love to read some more of these adventures!

A great middle grade read filled with humor!

This is such a warm recommendation if you're on the lookout for a cozy mystery with magical elements and a humourous side that will capture the attention of children and adults alike! The fmc is so likeable, her companions so peculiar and loveable I was simply obsessed! It's a really short book too so it's perfect for new readers, and the mystery is actually complex which I truly appreciated!

Chloe Ashley is feeling lonely and dejected. She's estranged from her best friend and ignored by her busy parents. One dreary afternoon, she wanders into a newly refurbished curiosities shop in the heart of London. The shop is owned by Mr. Ixworth and Mr. Maddox, two eccentric gentlemen who are in the business of magic. Real magic.

This was such a fun middle-grade fantasy! Lovely atmosphere and a plucky heroine!

JD Grolic shares a magical and enjoyable story, and a fine addition to middle grades fiction. I would gladly add this book to my classroom shelf.

I absolutely enjoyed this story! It was so sweet with quirky characters and fun magic that it was such a pleasure to read.

I found the main character, the young girl Chloe, a very likable protagonist. She mostly acted her age which can be frustrating at times, with authors, in their hope of giving the main character a solid personality, forget that they’re essentially writing about a child. But Chloe was sympathetic and adventurous, and I liked her friendship with the two magicians, the owners of the curiosity shop, Ixworth and Maddox.

I highly recommend this story to all the children who love magic, and all the adults who’re children at heart.