[ARC REVIEW] Bluebell and the Wavering Islands by P.J. Reed

 

Title:  Bluebell and the Wavering Islands

Author:  P.J. Reed

Artist: Emma Gribble

Genre: Humor / Fantasy / Adventure /

Year Published: 2024

Number of Pages: 169 pages

Date Read: 12/21/2024

Series: The Fairies of Therwen Wood #4

Publisher:   Lost Tower Publications

Source:   eARC (Author)

Content Rating:  Ages 5+ (No Objectionable Content)

Buy on:  Amazon // Goodreads

I would like to thank the author P.J. Reed for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

So, I have been really enjoying the “Bluebell” series by P.J. Reed so far and I got another book in the series called “Bluebell and the Wavering Islands” and I must say that this book is probably the most adventurous book in the entire series!

The book starts off with Bluebell and her friends going to the mysterious Wavering Islands, which is ruled by Lord Grendel, who is the ruler of the Sea Imps.  It turns out that Lord Grendel asked Blubell and her friends for a wish:  to save his magical Pegasus, Samara, from an illness called spottydottyitus.  So, Bluebell and her friends have to find a way to cure Samara or else, they will be thrown into the dungeon forever, as well as the Wavering Islands losing all of their magic and causing Mandrake Castle to fall from the sky!

Can Bluebell and her friends cure Samara in time before it is too late?

Find out in this book!

Wow!  I was quite amazed by this book!  I have been enjoying the “Bluebell” series so far and this book was definitely much more action packed and intense than the previous two books I read!  P.J. Reed did a great job at writing this book as there were many intense moments throughout this book, especially when Lord Grendel threatened to lock Bluebell and her friends in the dungeon if they do not find the cure for Samara.  I also loved the fact that Bluebell and her friends travelled to many different places in this book as it was nice seeing more of the world that Bluebell and her friends live in, as well as the magical items that Bluebell and her friends have to find to cure Samara.

Overall, “Bluebell and the Wavering Islands” is a great book that features lots of adventurous moments and anyone who is a huge fan of books about fairies, will definitely enjoy this book!  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since there is nothing objectionable in this book, unless Lord Grendel’s threats about sending Bluebell and her friends to the dungeon forever might scare younger children.

You might also like: 

• The Fairy in the Kettle by Pauline Tait

• Bluebell and the Silver Palace by P.J. Reed
• Bluebell: The Wish Fairy by P.J. Reed

[ARC REVIEW] Bluebell and the Silver Palace by P.J. Reed

 

Title:  Bluebell and the Silver Palace

Author:  P.J. Reed

Artist: Emma Gribble

Genre: Humor / Fantasy / Adventure / Mystery

Year Published: 2021

Number of Pages: 117 pages

Date Read: 11/3/2024

Series: The Fairies of Therwen Wood #2

Publisher:   Lost Tower Publications

Source:   eARC (Author)

Content Rating:  Ages 5+ (No Objectionable Content)

Buy on:  Amazon // Goodreads

I would like to thank the author P.J. Reed for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

So, after I read the first book in the “Bluebell” book series, I just had to read more books from this series and lo and behold, I was given a copy of the sequel to the first “Bluebell” book, “Bluebell and the Silver Palace” and man, was it even more exciting than the first book!

The story starts off with Bluebell, the newly appointed Wish Fairy, buying some honey from the bumblebees that make the honey, in order to make some delicious honey cakes.  But unfortunately, Bluebell ends up being arrested by Queen Caraway and it turns out that the Queen’s honey has been stolen.  So, Queen Caraway wishes for Bluebell to find out who stole her honey.

Can Bluebell solve this mystery?

Find out in this book!

So, after reading the first book in this series, I was dying to read more adventures from Bluebell the Wish Fairy and man, this sequel does not disappoint me!  P.J. Reed did a fantastic job at writing this story as the tone of this story shifts to a mystery genre, rather than be a straight up adventure genre like in the first book.  I really loved this change in genre for the second book because I always loved reading mystery books and this book does a great job at setting up the mystery of who stolen the honey from the Queen and how Bluebell and her friends try to solve the case.  I also loved the relationship that Bluebell has with both Tobin the Gnome and newcomer, Billy the bee as they both provided some interesting dynamics with Bluebell.  Tobin is as usual, usually stern with Bluebell, while Billy is much more playful towards Bluebell. Emma Gribble’s artwork is great to look at as they are simplistic yet beautiful and they greatly complement the cute and mysterious tone of this book.

Overall, “Bluebell and the Silver Palace” is a fantastic sequel to the first “Bluebell” book and if you love reading about mysteries and delicious food, then this book is definitely worth checking out!  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since there is nothing really inappropriate in this book.

You might also like: 

• The Fairy in the Kettle by Pauline Tait

• The Fairy in the Kettle Gets Magical by Pauline Tait
• Bluebell: The Wish Fairy by P.J. Reed

[ARC REVIEW] Bluebell: The Wish Fairy by P.J. Reed

 

Title:  Bluebell: The Wish Fairy

Author:  P.J. Reed

Artist: Emma Gribble

Genre: Humor / Fantasy / Adventure

Year Published: 2021

Number of Pages: 136 pages

Date Read: 10/18/2024

Series: The Fairies of Therwen Wood #1

Publisher:   Lost Tower Publications

Source:   eARC (Author)

Content Rating:  Ages 5+ (No Objectionable Content)

Buy on:  Amazon // Goodreads

I would like to thank the author P.J. Reed for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

So, I have been reading many fantasy children’s books over the years and I have read many children’s books that feature fairies in the stories.  However, I have never read a book quite like this one! “Bluebell: The Wish Fairy” is a children’s book that is written by P.J. Reed, along with illustrations by Emma Gribble and it was quite a lovely book to read through!

The story starts off with a fairy named Bluebell who becomes the new wish fairy and she is trying not to mess up on the first day of her new job.  For her first mission, Bluebell will have to travel to the human world to grant wishes of little boys and girls.  But unfortunately, since Bluebell has a tendency to be clumsy, many citizens in Therwen Wood do not believe that she has what it takes to become the wish fairy.

Can Bluebell prove everyone wrong?

Find out in this book!

So, I was quite surprised to be checking out this book since this is the first time that I have heard about this series.  So, I read the first book in the series and I really enjoyed it!  P.J. Reed did a fantastic job at writing this story as I found myself loving Bluebell as a character.  Bluebell is such a relatable character, even though she is a fairy, because she tends to make a lot of mistakes, but always pulls through in the end, just like how so many people in real life tend to do.  I also loved how the situation about the fairies trying to grant children’s wishes is being seen as a job for the fairies, which makes how everything in this world function much more interesting.  Emma Gribble’s illustrations are truly beautiful to look at as the world and the characters look realistic yet beautiful at the same time.  I especially loved the artwork for when Bluebell accidentally made a mistake by bringing in a dragon to a little boy and you can see the dragon blowing its flames towards the little boy, since it is something that I would have never expected to see in a children’s book about fairies.

Overall, “Bluebell: The Wish Fairy” is truly a fun and cute book that anyone who is a fan of fairies should definitely check out!  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since there is not much frightening content in this book.

You might also like: 

• The Fairy in the Kettle by Pauline Tait

• The Fairy in the Kettle Gets Magical by Pauline Tait
• Little Lit: Folklore and Fairy Tale Funnies edited by Art Spiegelman

[ARC REVIEW] The Fairy in the Kettle Gets Magical by Pauline Tait (@PTait_author)

Title:  The Fairy in the Kettle Gets Magical

Author:  Pauline Tait

Artist: Debbie Bellaby

Genre:  Fantasy / Adventure / Travel / Fairies

Year Published: 2019

Year Read: 2019

Publisher:  SilverWood Books

Series: The Fairy in the Kettle #3

Source:  eARC (NetGalley)

Content Rating:  Ages 4+  (Nothing Objectionable)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository

I would like to thank NetGalley and SilverWood Books for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A few years ago, I had read a book called “The Fairy in the Kettle” by Pauline Tait, along with artwork by Debbie Bellaby.  So, imagine my surprise when I found out that this book was turned into a series and I actually got my hands on the third book in the series “The Fairy in the Kettle gets Magical” and it was quite a cute read!

One day, Leona the Kettle Fairy was being awakened by one of the other fairies and it was then that she knew that something was wrong.  When Leona met up with her friends and the elders, she finds out that the citizens of Fairy Glen were running out of fairy dust and they needed the fairy dust to maintain their powers.  So, Leona and her friends decided to go out of Fairy Glen and find the fairy dust to restore the fairies’ powers.

Pauline Tait has done a great job at writing this book as it was both cute and interesting to read through!  I liked the fact that this story is much more adventurous compared to the first book as the fairies have to go on a mission to save the fairies’ source of power.  I also loved the great friendship that Leona has with her friends as they go on missions together and I love how supportive they are of each other!  Debbie Bellaby’s artwork is adorable to look at as all the fairies look so cute and I loved the simplistic yet colorful look of the characters and the world that they live in.

The only problem that I had with this book was that the pacing was a bit slow at times and there was not a lot of action sequences in this book that would keep me interested.

Overall, “The Fairy in the Kettle gets Magical” is a great read for anyone who loves reading about fairies and magic in general!  I would recommend this book to children ages four and up since there is nothing inappropriate in this book.

You might also like:

• The Fairy in the Kettle by Pauline Tait

• Thumbelina by Hans Christian Andersen
• The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch

Book Depository

[BOOK REVIEW] The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

Title:  The Goose Girl

Authors:  Shannon Hale

Genre:  Fantasy

Year Published: 2003

Number of Pages: 400 pages 

Date Read: 6/30/2010 

Series: The Books of Bayern #1  

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children's   

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 12+ (Some Intense Moments)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

“The Goose Girl” is another brilliant story created by Shannon Hale, who is well known for her first graphic novel book “Rapunzel’s Revenge” and it is a much more extended retelling of the classic Brothers Grimm tale “The Goose Girl” (same title!) that tells the story of how Ani, the true crown princess of Kildenree, is betrayed by her lady-in-waiting and Ani must figure out a way to regain her true name while posing as a goose girl.  “The Goose Girl” is a truly an inspiring story that anyone who is a huge Shannon Hale fan will love for centuries.

Wow!!! When I first started reading this book, I thought that it was going to be boring because I must admit that the beginning of this book did have a slow start with little action going on with the main characters.  However, when I started reading more into the story, I just started to love this book immensely as the story got more exciting and more emotional as I read through this book.  Shannon Hale has done an excellent job at making the characters extremely memorable, especially the main character Ani, who was at first a very passive character who would do anything that anybody told her to do, especially as she easily tries to accept the responsibilities of royalty in Kildenree without thinking about the secrets of her kingdom.  However, when Ani’s life is threatened by Selia and Ungolad, Ani becomes a stronger character as the book goes on as she realizes that she is on her own and she must figure out a way to convince the king that she is the real Crown Princess without the aid of her mother.  Now, many people may think that Ani is a bit too passive as she easily will do anything that anyone tells her to do, even during her moments of bravery and I do agree to some extent that Ani can be too passive towards other characters.  However, when Ani realizes the possibility of having a manipulative person like Selia as princess, Ani goes out of her way to protect the people she love while revealing her own identity about herself that she has never known existed inside of her.  I find this revelation that Ani makes about herself extremely reassuring as many people in real life sometimes have problems trying to discover who they truly are and Ani’s character has done a great job at explaining the trials that many people would face whenever they are trying to pluck up the courage to say what is really on their minds.  What I loved the most about this book was how Shannon Hale made this book extremely dramatic and exciting at the same time as the audience can feel tension for Ani’s safety and how she is nearly captured by Selia and Ungolad many times in this book.  I must admit that there were times that I actually thought that Ungolad, Selia’s guard, would be very close in capturing Ani, even though Shannon Hale makes sure that the audience knows that Ani does everything in her power to escape her captors.

“The Goose Girl” is truly a fantastic book about the power of courage and discovering who you truly are on the inside that many people who also want to discover the courage to stand up for what they believe in, can easily enjoy for many years.

* 2003 Utah Book Award for Children / Young Adults 
* 2004 Josette Frank Award
* 2010 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award Nominee for Children's Literature

You might also like: 

• Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale

• Calamity Jack by Shannon and Dean Hale

• Cinder by Marissa Meyer