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booksandbosox's review
3.0
I was really into this when I first started reading. It was interesting and endearing, cute little made-up words and a mezcla of Spanish words thrown in. But as it went on, it became more tedious. Not as interesting or endearing and it started to feel like a chore to read. It felt at least 100 pages too long and I found myself not caring whether Flora got sucked into the abyss or not. Won't be reading the second one.
madisonb's review
5.0
I guess I've never written a review of this one, despite reading it three times! Weird!
I've absolutely loved this book for ages. I think it's a unique and vivid bit of mid-2000s fantasy, and Flora and Udo are characters that have stuck with me. This time around I'm reading it for a teen book club, and I can't wait to see what a 2020 audience has to say about it.
I've absolutely loved this book for ages. I think it's a unique and vivid bit of mid-2000s fantasy, and Flora and Udo are characters that have stuck with me. This time around I'm reading it for a teen book club, and I can't wait to see what a 2020 audience has to say about it.
jacquelynjoan's review
4.0
Four and a half stars, really. I loved it, but it is not my new favorite with Harry Potter and Cathrynne Valente's Fairyland books. I've had a hard time finding a book to draw me in lately and this one certainly cured me of that! It gave me a reason to look forward to my lunch break again! I'm going to go right away to the library for the next one (while I order it in the mail and wait for my copy to come!)
ruizium's review
3.0
Charmingly written and a very unique magic world but there were lots of stories started and not a strong thread for any of them really. Too much of a primer for a series rather than standalone book. Also not sure whether to read historical context on the fact that the two main societies are somewhat based on the Aztec empire and a slightly Spanishy place or whether those details were just borrowed from the real world with abandon to fill out the world building.
michaelstearns's review
5.0
Read and edited this one over a number of earlier drafts from 2003 to early 2005, but I then left Harcourt and Jeanette Larson took it on, transforming it into a wholly pulled-together story. Which is quite an accomplishment, as the author's head is such a fertile, febrile, prodigious thing that at times the book strains at the seams. But it never bursts. A weird and wonderful novel, as original as they come.
helensbookshelf's review
4.0
A gem of a book filled with magic, odd characters, and a house that has a mind of its own.
It’s a children’s book but it has far more intelligence than most adult books I’ve read. Should be far more popular than it is.
It’s a children’s book but it has far more intelligence than most adult books I’ve read. Should be far more popular than it is.
jillb30442's review
5.0
This has got to be one of my favorite books of all time. I am rereading it for the fourth time (listening, actually), and even though I know what happens, it's still fantastic - even more fun, in some ways, to know what's going on when Flora doesn't. Why, oh why, is there only an audio version of the first book in this series? I love the narrator, and it is such a great book to listen to.
chessakat's review
4.0
Really cute story about...well the subtitle says it all: "Being the Magickal Mishaps of a Girl of Spirit, Her Glass-Gazing Sidekick, Two Ominous Butlers (One Blue), a House with Eleven Thousand Rooms, and a Red Dog." Really cute. The author is a military historian, and it shows in a very interesting way in the backdrop of the story. I recommend this one to fans of YA. It has an inspired, jaunty feel to it while still dealing with serious themes of growing up, family, and responsibility.