Deep within an enchanted forest lies a castle where a set of triplets and their sorceress mother have lived for years — safe from the decades-long war for the Raven Throne that rages in the kingdom beyond. Cordelia, one of the triplets, has the power to become any animal with just a thought, and she yearns to discover more about the world outside her castle.
But one day, the world comes to her, when the eldest of the triplets becomes the newest heir to the throne. Knowing that being named heir means certain death, Cordelia’s mother hid the truth about which child is the eldest when she hid them in the forest. When her family is captured, it’s up to Cordelia to use her powers to keep her siblings hidden and discover the truth about the Raven Heir — before it’s too late.
A thrilling new fantasy full of magic, adventure, and the power of family.
A set of magical triplets, two warring dynasties, and a broken crown waiting for its rightful owner…
My Review
If you’ve been following my blog for long, you probably already know one of my favorite middle grade series lately has been The Storm Keeper’s Island by Catherine Doyle. The series finale comes out (already came out in the UK) this year, so I’ve been loving that and also dreading being without a powerful and amazing series to look forward to…
Until I read THE RAVEN HEIR.
Because WOW.
Like. Where do I even start? The setting has this beautiful, enchanted vibe to it that I love. The characters are caught in the middle of this huge political power grab, and if they have any chance of surviving it, it will have to be because they figure out how to come together and fight their way out. So it’s serious, but the writing and the characters themselves keep it really firmly anchored in middle grade age range.
The characters. I love the way each of the triplets are different from one another. The whole story is in Cordelia’s perspective, and I love her character best of all. She’s feisty and has a hard time expressing herself in words to her siblings. Her brother Giles is the poet and comedian. Rosalind is fierce and brave. They’re so great.
The plot keeps a pretty quick pace. I think I read the whole book in two sittings, so it was a quick read for me. Every time I thought I’d quit at the end of the chapter, something new kept me reading just one more! I loved it.
For me this book is right up there with my other MG faves– THE STORM KEEPER’S ISLAND and THE FIREBIRD SONG. If you liked either of those, you will absolutely want to read this one. I’m also a fan of Burgis’s earlier books, but she’s absolutely outdone herself with this one. I can’t wait to read this whole series.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.
Representation Cordelia’s older brother is described as having light brown skin.
Profanity/Crude Language Content None.
Romance/Sexual Content None.
Spiritual Content Some characters have magic. The land also has a kind of magic.
Violent Content Situations of peril. Brief battle scenes.
Drug Content A woman forces children to drink a potion that puts them to sleep.
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support running this blog. I received a free copy of THE RAVEN HEIR in exchange for my honest review.
About The Girl with the Dragon Heart
Once upon a time, in a beautiful city famous for chocolate and protected by dragons, there was a girl so fearless that she dared to try to tell the greatest story of all: the truth.
Silke has always been good at spinning the truth and storytelling. So good that just years after arriving as a penniless orphan, she has found her way up to working for the most splendid chocolate makers in the city (oh, and becoming best friends with a dragon). Now her gift for weaving words has caught the eye of the royal family, who want to use her as a spy when the mysterious and dangerous fairy royal family announce they will visit the city. But Silke has her own dark, secret reasons for not trusting fairies …
My Review
I enjoyed reading the first book in this series, The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart, so as soon as I heard about the second book, I knew I had to read it. I was even more excited to learn it’s Silke’s story. She was one of my favorite characters in the first book as Aventurine’s best friend, the creative and spunky storyteller. She reminds me of a friend, so I couldn’t help loving her from the first page.
Silke has always depended on her stories to get her out of trouble, and for the most part, they’ve worked. She’s always able to distract people or shift attention with wild tales and entertaining bits. She keeps her guard up, not allowing herself to get close to anyone or depend on anything in case she loses them the way she lost her parents. I loved how complex and tender she is.
The Girl with the Dragon Heart also has some sibling themes. Silke has some run-ins with the royal family, specifically the crown princess and her younger sister, who don’t seem to see eye to eye on anything. She rolls her eyes at their shenanigans, but watching those girls helps her begin to evaluate what went wrong in her relationship with her brother, Dieter.
Honestly, I loved this book so much. I liked the first book and thought it was a lot of fun to read, but this one absolutely leaped into my heart. The writing is peppy and smart. I think it’s my favorite of the two by Stephanie Burgis. Will there be more to this series? I hope so! I would read them for sure.
The book’s description says it’s perfect for fans of Shannon Hale and Cornelia Funke, and I say yes to that! I definitely see the comparison, and it held true for me, since I like both those other authors, too.
Recommended for Ages 12 up.
Cultural Elements
Silke has brown skin and dark curly hair. The princes have one white parent and one black parent.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.
Romance/Sexual Content
None.
Spiritual Content
Fairies use magic to attack others. A girl shapeshifts into a dragon.
Violent Content
Some instances of peril. Silke has traumatic memories of her parents being kidnapped by fairies. She finds two adults unconscious and feels responsible for what’s happened to them.
Drug Content
None.
Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
About The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart
Aventurine is the fiercest, bravest dragon there is. And she’s ready to prove it to her family by leaving the safety of their mountain cave and capturing the most dangerous prey of all: a human. But when the human she finds tricks her into drinking enchanted hot chocolate, Aventurine is transformed into a puny human girl with tiny blunt teeth, no fire, and not one single claw.
But she’s still the fiercest creature in the mountains — and now she’s found her true passion: chocolate! All she has to do is get herself an apprenticeship (whatever that is) in a chocolate house (which sounds delicious), and she’ll be conquering new territory in no time…won’t she?
My Review The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart is one of the most fun books I’ve read in a long time. I loved Aventurine’s spunky nature and her passion for chocolate. The story consistently shows her struggle with baffling human customs contrasted with her more familiar dragon ways. I loved the characters from Aventurine’s wily friend Silke to the strict chocolatier Marina.
On her journey, Aventurine discovers a love for chocolate which will certainly appeal to chocolate-loving readers, but she also learns to value humans despite how strange and different they are from dragons. When her new human friends become threatened by her dragon family, Aventurine must use all her wits and newfound understanding to bring the two sides together peacefully in the same way she’s had to make peace with her dragon and human self.
Readers who enjoyed Tuesdays at the Castle or Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George definitely need to give this book a read! Keep some chocolate handy to snack on, because you’re surely going to crave it.
Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.
Cultural Elements
Brief reference to Aventurine’s friend having brown hands. Not much in the way of race or description details given other than that.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.
Romance/Sexual Content None.
Spiritual Content The story contains dragons and some magic elements, mostly in that some humans use magic to fight dragons or affect certain tasks, like food preparation.
Violent Content Humans and dragons are enemies. Dragons eat humans (not shown in the story, but briefly discussed) and humans tried to kill dragons they encountered in the past.
Drug Content
Enchanted hot chocolate turns Aventurine into a human.
Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I’m today’s stop on the Bloomsbury Blog Tour celebrating the release of two fantastic middle grade books: The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart by Stephanie Burgis and The Frog Princess Returns by E. D. Baker. I’m so excited to share both of these books, and I’ve got excerpts to share and a chance to win both books, so read on and enjoy!
The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart
Stephanie Burgis
Bloomsbury
Published May 30, 2017
About The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart Aventurine is the fiercest, bravest dragon there is. And she’s ready to prove it to her family by leaving the safety of their mountain cave and capturing the most dangerous prey of all: a human. But when the human she finds tricks her into drinking enchanted hot chocolate, Aventurine is transformed into a puny human girl with tiny blunt teeth, no fire, and not one single claw.
But she’s still the fiercest creature in the mountains — and now she’s found her true passion: chocolate! All she has to do is get herself an apprenticeship (whatever that is) in a chocolate house (which sounds delicious), and she’ll be conquering new territory in no time…won’t she?
Excerpt from The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart
He hesitated a moment. Then he leaned down and scooped up a wooden spoon from the ground, his hand trembling. “Trust me,” he said. “You should have the full experience.”
As his face squeezed tight with concentration, he began to whisper to himself, almost chanting the words. Was he singing that stupid song again? The rhythms didn’t sound quite the same, but who needed to hear more human nonsense? Not me. I didn’t even try to make it out.
The moment he reached into his pocket, though, I grabbed his shoulder with one claw. “No swords!”
“I—I…” He stuttered to a halt. “It’s not a sword,” he finally managed. “Look.” He pulled out a bag from his pocket. “It’s just cinnamon.”
Cinnamon? I leaned down toward the bag suspiciously. If he was trying to poison me…
“I’ll eat some myself,” he said. “Look.” He reached one shaking finger into the bag and scooped out a few orangey-brown specks. Then he swallowed them. “See?”
I smelled, which was even better. The open bag smelled amazing.
“Put it in,” I ordered. I wanted to smell that combination. I could already tell that the mixture of cinnamon and chocolate would be wonderful.
He shook in a few pinches, still breathing hard.
Ohhhh, I had been right. These new smells were even better.
I was almost starting to wish that I didn’t’ have to take him home afterward for my family to eat. It would be much more satisfying to keep this human as a pet, to make hot chocolate for me any time I wanted.
He would be a hardworking pet, too, I could tell. As he stirred the hot chocolate, he kept on whispering to himself the whole time in that funny rhythmic chant, his whole body taut with concentration. I suppose I could have listened harder, to try to pick out his words, but really, when had I ever cared about anything humans said? Besides, I was far too busy enjoying the smells from his pot. If I could have, I would have wrapped myself up in those steamy tendrils of scent and rolled around in them for hours. Hot chocolate. Talk about a treasure fit for a dragon!
I’d have to look for more chocolate in his luggage when I finished here. I already knew I would have to have hot chocolate again. Lots of it.
Finally, he looked up and gave me a nervous, wavering smile. “It’s ready,” he said. “Shall I pour it into a cup, or…”
I snorted, sending a ball of smoke flying past his face. “Do you really think I could drink from one of your tiny human cups?”
“I suppose not,” he said. “You’d better drink it from the pot then.” He wrapped one soft, human hand in his outer covering for protection, and then lifted the pot by its long handle. “Look out, it’s hot.”
I gave him a contemptuous look as I reached out with one forefoot. “I’m a dragon.”
My claws curved around the little pot, cradling it like the most precious of gems. Carefully, I lifted it to my mouth. Closing my eyes, I tipped the luxuriant, hot liquid into my mouth.
Ohhhhh!
Bliss exploded through my sense. I reeled with pleasure.
Chocolate chocolate chocolate—
“Ahhh!”
And then everything exploded inside me, and the world went black.
The Frog Princess Returns
E. D. Baker
Bloomsbury
Published June 6, 2017
About The Frog Princess Returns Fans of E. D. Baker’s The Frog Princess, rejoice! Fifteen years after the original, Princess Emma, Prince Eadric, and all the beloved characters are back for another magical adventure from popular author E. D. Baker.
Two weeks after Emma’s birthday, Prince Eadric — having been turned from a frog into a human again — is still in Greater Greensward. One day, a beautiful princess named Adara arrives at the castle in Greater Greensward for a visit, claiming to be Emma’s distant cousin. But Adara has other motives that threaten Emma and Eadric’s blossoming romance.
Meanwhile, something is very wrong in Greater Greensward. Crops are dying, streams are drying up, and large sections of trees in the enchanted forest are withering — all because the Fairy Queen has disappeared. Without her, there is no peace in the magical kingdom, and dangerous foes threaten to take advantage of her absence. Only brave, tenacious Emma with her knowledge of the land can restore order . . . but first she must set out on a journey unlike any before.
Brimming with lovable characters and page-turning magic, The Frog Princess Returns will bring a whole new batch of readers to E. D. Baker’s highly acclaimed, wonderfully popular world of Frog Princess series.
Excerpt from The Frog Princess Returns
We had reached the top of the stairs when Adara announced that she wasn’t feeling well and was on her way to bed. She was walking away when a guard approached. He told me that someone was waiting to talk to me in the Great Hall. Eadric and I looked at each other, wondering who it could be at that hour. Following the guard, we entered the Hall and found a middle-aged man wearing the clothes of a farmer sitting on a bench by the door.
“I’m sorry to disturb you so late in the day, Your Highness, but I came right after I saw what had happened and it took me a while to get here,” said the farmer. “I’m Johnson. My fields are next to the enchanted forest. I planted my crops there because of the fairies. They take good care of the forest, and the dust they use runs off into the fields around it, making them healthy, too. I’ve had some of my best harvests ever since I started planting those fields. I would have had a great harvest this year if this hadn’t happened. It’s my wheat, you see. Someone gave it the blight.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, but I don’t know what I can do about it,” I told the man. “Haven’t you ever dealt with the blight before?”
Johnson nodded. “Back before I planted near the forest, it happened every few years, but it was never like this. It’s not the blight itself, you see. It’s the way it hit my wheat. Some wheat has it and some doesn’t. It’s made a pattern like a big circle. Darndest thing I ever saw.”
“Really?” I said. “You think someone might have infected your crop with the blight deliberately?
“I can’t think of any other reason it would look like that. Who would do such a thing to a man’s wheat?”
“I don’t know, but I’m going to find out,” I replied. “I’ll come look at it tomorrow.”
First Maple and Water Lily, now Farmer Johnson. Something must be really wrong.
Visit the Other Stops on the Blog Tour
Check out some of the other great blogs participating in this tour. There are guest posts and interviews with the authors as well as some other fun tidbits– not to mention you might want to add a few of these blogs to your own reading list.
