Beautifully written novel which layers different perspectives of the same event. Ending was subtly hinted at throughout but still pulled on the heartstrings when it was reached.

This is an emotional book for readers aged 10+. On the surface the story is aimed at much younger children with imaginings of knights, castles and dinosaurs. However, There Maybe A Castle has many layers and the journey that Mouse and Violet go on throughout the book is beautifully described.

A strange and lovely tale, with a heartbreaking climax. This took me a little while to get into, but OH MY GOSH the payoff. A beautifully written story with power.

There May Be a Castle by Piers Torday
Hachette Children's Group
Quercus Children's Books.
As an adult I thought it would be more suitable if my resident 9 year old Daughter read this book and gave an honest opinion. She has enjoyed The last Wild and The Dark wild, and is not afraid to voice her distaste if she doesnt like a book. In this case she couldn't put the book down. She gave it 8 out of 10.

The story begins with a daydreaming 11year old nicknamed named Mouse who, along with his Mother and siblings set off in a blizzard on their journey through the moors to their Grandparents house on Christmas eve. His mother loses control of the car in the treacherous conditions and they crash with Mouse being thrown through the windscreen into the snow.
When Mouse wakes up in unfamiliar forest his favourite toy Nonky has become lifesized and so the adventure begins and with the help of his toys he sets of to see if there may be a castle. In alternating chapters, we are told his sister Violet's perspective as she struggles to free herself, her sister and Mother from their overturned car and find Mouse.
This is a wonderful read, beautifully written, is full of humour and adventure, it will make you smile and cry.

This was a lovely, sensitive and at times sad, book about Mouse – a little boy who hates Christmas.

Mouse is travelling to his grandparent’s house with his mother and two sisters when he’s involved in a car crash. When he awakes he discovers he’s not in his world anymore. In this strange new world there are wizards and monsters, and a sarcastic horse. And a castle that may or may not actually be the ultimate goal to escape back into reality.

This book was really odd. But in a good way. The subject matter for this is handled so sensitively and delicately. We learn, through Mouse, how we can develop a sense of understanding in an otherwise confusing situation, and how we deal with death and loss. Mouse is a great hero, full of imagination and emotional depth that you don’t normally see in a typical middle-grade protagonist.

The sudden change in writing style when Mouse first enters the ‘other world’ is a bit jarring at first, but this can be explained away by saying this is how Mouse first feels too. The alternating narrative between Mouse and his sister Violet is also quite disorientating at times, as the worlds become blurred. This is so subtly done, yet serves as a great way to explain that, in actual fact, the worlds really are blending together. It really gives some emotional depth and complexity to the novel, and it’s hard to believe that this is advertised as a children’s novel.

I rated this 4/5, if only because it was so bittersweet, and sad. I went into this knowing that not everything can end as a fairy tale, but it still left a little hole in my heart.