Praise for The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone:* "[A] highly entertaining and brilliantly plotted fantasy... With its storytelling aplomb, humor, imagination, and many twists and turns, this novel places Moriarty... firmly in Diana Wynne Jones territory. Readers will want to begin rereading this spellbinder just as soon as they finish it, to find all the clues and connections and coincidences Moriarty drops and weaves and reconciles throughout." — The Horn Book Magazine, starred review"Her eventful story, seemingly as delicate as gossamer, yet strong as silk, is well structured and entertaining. An episodic, high-spirited tale of adventure and magic." — Booklist"Imaginative." — Kirkus Reviews"This quirky and endearing adventure set in a captivating, off-beat world is an excellent purchase wherever fantasy circulates well." — School Library Journal"[A] delightful book... The author does a wonderful job crafting this fantasy story to make it believable with word play, figurative language, and imagery. Readers will be drawn in with likeable, unforgettable characters and nonstop action... This title would make a great addition to any school or classroom library and would be a great read aloud." — School Library ConnectionPraise for A Tangle of Gold:* "A grand finale to a grand adventure, complete with truly startling revelations...Deeply satisfying, perfectly ended." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review* "A breathless and exhilarating race to the finish... with a variety of unexpected revelations and marvelous surprises, and with [Moriarty's] usual perfect timing." — Horn Book, starred review* "The magic continues to be refreshingly inventive, and the world-building is so precise... This final installment will garner even more followers." — School Library Journal, starred review* "Startling and clever... A breathtaking climax... An eminently satisfying conclusion." — Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred reviewPraise for The Cracks in the Kingdom:* "Madcap, whimsical, smart and even heartbreaking... Even better than the first." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review* "Full of clever invention and intrigue, excellent surprises... and all the sophisticated wit Moriarty's fans expect." — Horn Book, starred review* "Readers will be clamoring for the next title after the thrilling yet satisfying conclusion." — School Library Journal, starred reviewPraise for A Corner of White:A Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor BookA Kirkus Best Book of the YearA School Library Journal Best Book of the YearA Horn Book Fanfare Book"Jaclyn Moriarty makes me laugh, hysterically — and cry, unexpectedly... Startlingly original fantasy." — E. Lockhart, New York Times bestselling author ofWe Were Liars"A marvelous novel — in every sense of the word... A Corner of White slipsthrough a previously unnoticed crack in the reader's heart and changes everything." — Deborah Harkness, New York Times bestselling author of A Discovery of Witches* "Quirky, charming, funny, sad: another winner from this always-surprising author." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review* "Irresistible characters help readers navigate a tantalizingly complex plot that will leave them eagerly awaiting the next book." — Horn Book, starred review* "In this lovely fantasy... mysteries abound." — School Library Journal, starred review* "[A] genre-blending feat of stylistic energy... The plotting is as innovative andriveting as the world-making." — Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review
11/05/2018
At age 10, Bronte Mettlestone receives a telegram stating that her parents have been killed by pirates. She doesn’t remember them, however, having been raised by her loving Aunt Isabelle and the butler. In her parents’ will (bound by “faery cross-stitch”) is the stipulation that she travel alone and deliver gifts to her 10 aunts. If she fails, her hometown will be in trouble. Despite the danger of running into dark mages, she begins her quest, which reads like a string of dreams. While visiting Aunt Sue, Bronte is awarded the Elvish Medal for Bravery for rescuing a baby from the river. She then saves wrongly accused Aunt Emma (who’s been imprisoned for stealing a water sprite’s pepper grinder), rides dragons with Aunt Sophy, and the list goes on. Bronte’s voice is more chatty than charming, and readers may feel frustrated that Moriarty (A Tangle of Gold) reveals details of Bronte’s history and powers only toward the end, when it feels like an afterthought. Still, the back-to-back adventures make for a speedy plot that will keep readers turning the pages. Ages 8–12. (Oct.)
09/01/2018
Gr 4–6—For 10 years, Bronte Mettlestone has led a perfectly happy life under the care of her Aunt Isabella and her butler while her parents, whom Bronte has never met, have been off on fabulous adventures. Until, that is, the day a telegram arrives announcing their untimely death at the hands of marauding pirates. In their will, Bronte's parents leave her a highly detailed set of instructions, sending her on a rollicking journey by herself across the Empires and Kingdoms to deliver very specific gifts to her father's 10 other sisters at very specific times. What's worse, the will has been enforced with faery cross-stitch, meaning Bronte must follow the instructions to the letter or risk her hometown of Gainsleigh being destroyed. As Bronte sets off, savvy readers will suspect that there may be more going on than she realizes. Along with a litany of (mostly) delightful aunts, Bronte encounters everything from water sprites to dragons to dark mages, culminating in revelations about her true family history. Bronte's world and the people inhabiting it sport a charming anachronism and poignant insight that are sure to delight fans of fantasy adventures like Catherynne Valente's The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making and Trenton Stewart's The Mysterious Benedict Society, while the story's clipping pace and well-constructed mysteries, which will leave readers guessing until the very end, make this an excellent recommendation for any fantasy fan. VERDICT This quirky and endearing adventure set in a captivating, off-beat world is an excellent purchase wherever fantasy circulates well.—Darla Salva Cruz, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport, NY
2018-07-16
The stipulations of her parents' will send Bronte Mettlestone on a quest throughout Kingdoms and Empires.When Bronte is just 10, her aunt Isabelle, with whom she lives, receives word that her parents—off gallivanting since Bronte's birth—have been killed by pirates. Their will, bound with magic Faery cross-stitch, compels Bronte to deliver, in person, a gift to each of her other 10 aunts, spending at least three days with each one. She begins with Aunt Sue, who takes her to the elves' Festival of Matchstick, where Bronte saves a baby from drowning and wins the Elvish Medal of Bravery. Next, Bronte frees Aunt Emma from wrongful imprisonment regarding the theft of a water sprite's pepper grinder and saves the water sprite from death by drying. As her adventures go on, and on, Bronte learns more about the Whisperers, who spread Dark Magic from their kingdom, and the Spellbinders, who stopped it—and that she may have a closer relationship to all this magic than she knew. This is Moriarty's first foray into middle-grade fiction, and it turns out to be about five aunt adventures too many—the never-ending whimsy becomes cloying, and the story stalls. Readers struggle to keep so many characters straight, let alone care about any of them, and without emotional connection there's not enough incentive to keep reading. Most of the characters are described as light-skinned.Imaginative but not fully realized. (Fantasy. 8-12)
