The Wizards of Once Review

Titles: The Wizards of Once
Author: Cressida Cowell
Series: The Wizards of Once #1
Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
Publication Date: 19 September 2017
Source: Pan Macmillan South Africa
Format: Paperback
Pages: 384
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Reading Timeline: 15 October 2017










Goodreads Synopsis:

This is the story of a young boy Wizard and a young girl Warrior who have been taught to hate either like poison; and the thrilling tale of what happens when their two worlds collide.

Once there was Magic, and the Magic lived in the dark forests.

Wizard boy, Xar, should have come in to his magic by now, but he hasn't, so he wants to find a witch and steals its magic for himself. But if he's got any chance of finding one, he will have to travel into the forbidden Badwoods.

Xar doesn't realise he is about to capture an entirely different kind of enemy. A Warrior girls called Wish.

And inside this book, at this very moment, two worlds collide and the fate of the land is changed forever.

Xar and Wish must visit the dungeons at Warrior fort, and face the evil Queen.

But something that has been sleeping for hundreds of years is stirring...

Book Review:
Pre-reading Thoughts:

I am so excited to get into this book. Not only because it is written by the author of the How to Dragon series but also because it sounds absolutely captivating! This book is littered with interesting and fun illustrations that just urge me to pick this book up. I am ready for this adventure!

Thank you so much to Pan Macmillan South Africa for sending me a copy of this book! Just a small disclaimer for those reading this review. I have received this book in exchange for an honest review. Please note that this does not affect my opinion in any way. All thoughts are my own.

Writing Thoughts:

The writing in this book was very middle grade in the sense that it was simple and easy to read. The reason as to why I loved the writing in this book so much was because it was so humorous. I loved everything about it. The dialogue was constantly entertaining and the illustrations that littered the pages was just incredible. 

Plot Thoughts:

This was such a fun book to read. The plot was constantly filled with action. We go from a plot that is slow but then after about a chapter or so we are flying through this book head-first. I loved how this felt like a real adventure. It felt like I was constantly there with Wish and Xar. I absolutely loved the how everything unfolded. I also loved how we learnt about the magic in the world along with Wish. It felt like a personal invitation into the world.

Character Thoughts:

The only thing that I didn't like about this book was Xar. I know he is set up to be an unlikable character from the beginning and then you are supposed to start liking him. But he just never warmed up to me. I strongly disliked him. He was spoiled and rude and Wish was just a sweet little cupcake. They were such great contrasting characters though! I also loved all of the other characters in this book. They were all special and adorable!

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I adored this middle grade. Usually if a book is very middle grade, I don't like it as much as I thought I would. But with this book I found myself loving it from the beginning. The writing was fun and enjoyable. The illustrations were gorgeous and the dialogue was light and fluffy, with some humour tucked away inside it. The plot was packed with events that just made you want to join the story even though it is a bit scary. The characters were absolutely spectacular! They each had their own little quirks. I ended up loving Wish and really disliking Xar. At the end of the day, I highly recommend this book! Thank you so much to Pan Macmillan South Africa for providing me with a copy of this book!

Yours in Reading,

Melleny

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