I'm always excited when I hear of a new Sophie Anderson book and I definitely was not disappointed! Filled with magic and adventure the Journey Olia takes in this book will engulf you. With many fantastical spirits you wish were real and some familiar stories popping up from previous novels this is again a wonderful tale from a brilliant author.

A wonderful story full of magic and folklore. I was hooked from the beginning as Olia chased her grandmother into the forest hoping to see the magic she thinks surrounds her. Later as storms rage around the castle she calls home, she learns that magic is seeping out of a hidden land, which could eventually destroy her home. As she goes on a journey to save the castle, she learns more about her family's past and makes new friends as she learns that home is more than the building where you live.
This was a beautifully woven tale filled with inspiration from Slavic folklore and mythology. I will be recommending we add a copy to the school library and pointing lots of children in it's direction!

I received an eARC from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Castle of Tangled Magic 🏰✨

A little late posting this review as I finished it a while back.

Sophie Anderson is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. She has the ability to create wonderfully magical worlds that you can’t help but get lost in.

Olia is an interesting chatacter - one you instantly like and feel a connection with. She is kind and caring, and the relationships she has with her grandmother and sister are adorable.
I loved joining Olia on her adventure to save her home.

A story about friendships, family and bravery that you will be unable to put down.

Thanks to @usborne for the free e-arc through @netgalley

4.5 Stars!

I am not a very frequent middle-grade reader, but this book won my heart! The Castle of Tangled Magic caught my attention due to its gorgeous cover and an interesting storyline, and I am so elated that I got a chance to read it.

The Castle of Tangled Magic is a beautiful and heartwarming story full of magic, love and courage. Olia is a courageous and curious child whose heart knows and believes in magic. Faced with the challenge of saving her beloved castle where she has spent all her childhood, she goes on a magical and adventurous journey. Soon she realizes that not only must she find the courage in her heart to protect her family and the castle, but also save a whole another magical world which is crumbling fast...

Full of gorgeous prose and stunning illustrations, this book was a delight to read. The premise of a magical castle full of mysteries and steeped in history, with domes which can only be reached by secret passages and windows that glow with magic was extremely alluring. The descriptions are vivid and make the scenes come alive with scents and colours. The story is richly influenced by Russian folklore and I was delighted to read about various spirits and mythical creatures. The illustrations lend life to a lot of scenes, and I could not get enough of them.

The entire ensemble of side-characters are fleshed out intricately and had interesting and unique personalities. The relationships between them are what lend life to the story, be it Olia's pure and innocent love for her younger sister or Felix's love and yearning for his wife. I adored the character of Babusya, Olia's grandmother, whose teachings motivate Olia to look at things from all angles, trust her judgement and find courage in her heart.

‘The castle of tangled magic’ has some lovely poetic descriptions that made me wonder and dream. The lovely descriptions are not only from the castle itself but also from particular details of the setting and its characters, such as Feliks, the fox like creature. Sophie Anderson uses language like a camera, you feel like you are zooming in with Olia. You are taken to a land of magic and totally immersed in it. This book offers plenty of marvellous exemples to children of what you can do with language and how you can create new worlds with the power of writing. A book to give children hope, hope to believe, to not give up and hope if you look for it, you might find magic!

Amazing book - will definitely put in the library. Loved the clever link to the house with chicken legs

What a wonderfully compelling middle grade book. As a librarian I read many, many books but the quality of the writing and exquisite story really stood out for me. I have no doubt there will be a waiting list at the library for this book. The attention to detail and the visceral experience all adds to this enchanting story. I certainly will be including it in my book club as not only will this book be a wonderful novel to curl up and read but I imagine that the children will enjoy discussing it with others.
Thank you for the early review copy.

Thank you so much to Usbourne for the Netgalley e-arc of The Castle of Tangled Magic!

The Castle of Tangled Magic follows the adventure of our young heroine, Olia, who's family has lived in Castle Mila for generations, a gorgeous ancestral family castle, holding more magic than one would first assume! As a wild wind story attacks the castle, Olia's grandmother suggests that Olia may be the only one capable of defeating the storm and saving her family's home.

I went into this book with incredibly high expectations, Sophie Anderson is one of my favourite middle-grade authors, with her prior books, The House With Chicken Legs and The Girl Who Speaks Bear, being two of the best MG books I've read. One of my favourite things to read about is Russian folklore-inspired stories, and this is something that Sophie Anderson does so well. With this being one of my most anticipated reads of the year, it's very safe to say that Anderson did not disappoint with this addition to her luscious written world, and I am thrilled to have read this absolute masterpiece.

Olia is a bold and courageous young girl, always putting family first. It was refreshing to see a young sibling relationship in the book that is so wholly built on pure love. Olia's love for her family informs most of the choices she makes, however throughout the course of her journey, she learns much about herself and her family's history that encourages growth in her. Alongside our standout heroine, the cast of side characters Anderson creates is outstanding; something I have loved about Anderson's prior books is the found family aspect, the main character finding their herd, and I adored that about this book too. The characters Olia meets along the way are all so endearing, and as a reader, I cared for each of them individually, Feliks particularly, because he was just stellar!

As always, Anderson delivers a gorgeous and mystical atmosphere in her writing, amplified by the magical settings. Castle Mila is described with such curiosity, you can't help but want to explore every inch of the magical building. But alongside that, the truly magical setting develops more and more each time you turn the page, resulting in a rich and beautiful tapestry of a world.

I found The Castle of Tangled Magic to be an incredibly compelling read, the plot held my interest at every turn, the tension felt real and there was a real sense of danger and the risk-factor throughout were very high. Our characters faced a number of challenges throughout their adventure, keeping the pacing of the plot well driven throughout. It's difficult to put this book down as these characters are moving forward through their journey at such a danger fuelled tempo, you don't want to miss a minute of it.

It would be wrong of me to not also mention the illustrations, which are breathtaking. They add another level to the storytelling, allowing the reader to get a truly fairytale feel.

Overall on CAWPILE this scored 9.57/10 which is an incredibly solid 5-star rating. A Beautiful book that I encourage readers of all ages to pick up.

Olia lives in a very old castle which she feels is full of magic, especially the one dome she cannot find a way into. Then one night during a storm she finds a way into the dome and into a magical world. Olia finds that she has to save this world and the home she loves, can she do this?
I enjoyed the book I loved that Olia leant about herself during the book also the fact that I learnt more about the Russian folklore and the creatures and spirits they have.
I thought that the first few chapters of the book we a little slow but once I was in the magical land I found it hard to put the book down and wanted to know if Olia could save the land and her home.

Sophie Anderson does it again! Everything she writes is delightful and totally captivating. The Castle of Tangled Magic will grab you from the start. Sophie weaves traditional folklore into a world of wonder where friends unite together on a fantastical quest. Magic bursts from the pages and pulls you in to an adventure that will have you smiling, crying and punching the air in triumph. Highly recommended as a class read and as a book to hook children in to reading.

Another Anderson classic with wondrous worldbuilding on the level of Diana Wynne Jones. Sumptuous, spellbinding, self-believing storytelling that I couldn’t stop reading. The queen of magical middle grade; I’ve never read a book by her I haven’t loved.

O and I are big fans of Sophie Anderson's books and we've been waiting with much anticipation for her latest book so we were hugely excited to receive an e-copy of The Castle of Tangled Magic last week and, oh boy, we most certainly weren't disappointed!

Olia and her family live on the edge of the village in Castle Mila that has been in their family for 500 years. Its sprawling hallways and many towers are a huge source of enjoyment for Olia who spends much of her time exploring the hidden parts of her home, intent on discovering every last secret and hidden room, and dreams of being able to show her baby sister the castle as she grows up. However, one day, a storm erupts over the castle which damages one of the towers and Olia's investigating reveals that there is much more to this tower and indeed the entire castle than she had ever realised, and it's up to her to save her family and their home.

K's opinion:
From the very beginning, the images created within this book are enticing and vivid, enhanced by the rich and beautiful language and description that Sophie weaves through every page - the castle sounds enchanting and I was desperate to climb into the book and explore with Olia. There's a sense of anticipation that tantalises and builds as the story progresses and you are lead willingly along with Olia and her friends (I'm not going to say too much as I don't want to spoil anything but it's safe to say that the setting is truly an immersive experience).

Olia is a character that people will undoubtedly fall in love with and is a true heroine. Full of life and enthusiasm, determined to do the right thing yet not without her doubts and fears, it is the love for her family that drives her on. She is definitely somebody that readers will want to emulate. And it would be remiss of me not to mention some of the other characters, namely Babusya, Olia's grandma, who emits a sense of calm and whose belief in magic is instrumental in the story, and also Feliks who is the truest of friends.

Sophie has a way of writing timeless stories that incorporate traditional values in a way that is both appealing and relevant to the world today and The Castle of Tangled Magic is no exception: there's very much a fairytale feel to the plot yet woven into it are messages about it being ok to make mistakes and that it's important to believe in yourself; she also touches upon the fact that we shouldn't forget what our ancestors did but should learn from that - hugely poignant at the minute. Family and a sense of belonging have been strong themes in Sophie's first two books and they resonate again strongly here in The Castle of Tangled Magic: it's clear that this is something that is strong in Sophie's life and the love and attention that is paid to the writing throughout this book shows how much this means to her.

Magic is woven into this book from the very beginning and it's the magic that draws you in. The Castle of Tangled Magic is undoubtedly Sophie's best book yet. It's a delicious journey through magical lands that will leave you with a warm glow in your heart (and, in my case, a tear in my eye!)

O's opinion:
When I was told we had access to a proof copy of The Castle of Tangled Magic, I stopped everything to read it, and I was not disappointed when I opened it! Olia is a brave character who just wants to save her home and family, and I loved how courageous she was, especially when she left her Babusya to enter the other world. Feliks is an amazing character, helping Olia along the journey, however, my favourite character has to be Babusya: she is full of wisdom and stories, and I adored her. I always like Sophie's books, and this one is her best yet. This is a must read, and I loved it.

I've read and loved all of Sophie Anderson's books so far - she has a beautiful way of writing that wraps you up in a blanket and transports you to another world. I was so excited to read The Castle of Tangled Magic and was not disappointed at all.

I was torn between wanting to read it in one sitting or slowly devour it and savour every moment spent reading this wonderfully magical book filled with mythology and folklore!

The characters feel like your friends as well as Olia's and you find yourself cheering and crying for them as you walk alongside them on their adventure to save her home and more than she ever thought she would - and could!

A book I cannot wait to share with my year 6 class when we go back to school!

Make this into a film immediately! The description is so clear I’m pretty confident I could do the set design, how hard could it be? From the very start it’s easy to picture the castle with its magical domes glittering in the sunlight, the hidden doors and staircases winding around the towers, and Olia, our unsuspecting hero, hurtling through her home trying to catch her grandmother in record time.

Sophie Anderson has, once again, created a story that will be sure to engage young and adult readers alike. We quickly begin to learn about Olia and her family and the special castle she calls home. I found myself desperate to find out more about it, wondering where the magic could be and how it might be found. Her journey begins because she wants to save her home, but along the way it becomes about much more than that, and, thanks to the excellent writing, we understand and can relate to Olia the whole way. The world we find ourselves in is a brilliant but fragile world that is in need of saving. It is full of entertaining and carefully described characters whose own stories become entwined with Olia’s.

Like the silvery threads of magic in the book, Anderson weaves in many important themes that would make excellent discussion points in a classroom and could be had several times over as the story develops. Among them are the ideas of being confident and trusting in yourself, friendship, family and, essential to the story, the importance of belief. There is also the idea of making amends for the mistakes of your ancestors - something that has rightly been an important topic recently and would also make for fascinating discussion in class.

This book is certainly going to be added to my class library, I’ll be reading it to my class and I’ll be recommending it to my colleagues too. I think children from the age of 7 or 8 (Year 3 & 4) would enjoy listening to this story and children from 9-12 upwards (Year 5, 6 and 7) could read and enjoy independently.

A great middle grade full of magic and adventure. A fantastic female main characters and some well developed side characters too.

A fast paced plot which is sure to engage the children I tutor so will be recommending this to them.

Thanks to NetGalley for this review copy.

Olia lives in Castle Mila with her parents, new baby sister and grandmother, Babusya. Olia’s family provide a source of comfort and reassurance and a strong and loving base for her on her journey, as she grows to realise it is them and not the building she lives in that make a home.

I was particularly thrilled by her mum at the end of the book, as I know others will be too (but you’ll get no spoilers here!) But it’s Olia’s Babusya who steals the show - she is everything you’d expect from a grandmother in one of Sophie’s books; shrewd and wise but spritely of spirit and Olia’s partner in magical crime. She sees the castle’s spirits and feels its magic, and Olia is desperate to one day discover it too.

That day comes in less than cheery circumstances though as a huge storm threatens to destroy the castle and Olia must accompany the castle’s domovoi (house spirit) Felicks to the Land of Forbidden Magic in order to try and save her home.

Together they journey into the unknown, with setbacks and twists round every corner (right til the very end!) and the clock is ticking! Its one of those stories where just when you think you can breathe a sigh of relief, you’re biting your nails again.

Along the way, they meet various other spirits and magical beings who can both help Olia on her quest, but need her help in return. Can they save both her home and theirs before it’s too late?

With a giant, tree spirits, flying feathered horses, a talking cat, water spirits, a maze, riddles, different, brilliantly crafted worlds, a land held together by enchanted thread, a magical sword, sinister floating cloak, a house with chicken legs (of course!), a giant head, friendships new and old, this is a truly spellbinding adventure.

There are many, many links to Russian folklore in this magical world and Sophie’s ability to create a modern spin on traditional tales and her own knowledge and love of these original stories is clear.

This is yet another marvellously magical book from Sophie Anderson, with folk tales, friendship and family at its heart. With a cast of incredibly varied characters and both a castle and a magic world steeped in imagination, not to mention a quest which seems almost impossible, this is an exciting and immersive adventure that existing fans and new will love!

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

For me, this book is perfection! Having read and enjoyed her previous two books, I was pretty sure I was going to love this book too, but it even surpassed those expectations. Sophie Anderson has quickly become one of my favourite authors and one that I will buy anything she releases because I know I will love it.

This book follows the story of Olia, a girl who lives in a castle with her father, mother, grandmother and baby sister. Olia loves exploring and has found secret doorways into some of the castle's shimmering domes. One doorway lead her into a strange land in which she meets many interesting and magical characters. Olia must go on a quest to try to save her home and the Land of Forbidden Magic.

This book read like a folktale or legend of old. It would be the perfect read aloud for a class of children, or a bedtime read. The mixing of Russian/Slavic folklore and the world Anderson has created herself is seemless. Everything feels wonderous and magical but total fits in the story.

The characters are each unique and the interactions between them feel genuine. There were so many characters that I loved but Olia shines above them all. She is so kind-hearted, determined and brave - a wonderful role model for middlegrade readers.

The adventure follows a traditional quest format which to me is very comforting as I love these types of stories, but don't worry there are plenty of twists and turns so the story is far from predictable. Along with the adventure, this book has strong messages about family, forgiveness and what it truly means to be brave. I love the fact that there are books like this out there for children (and adults) to read as these messages are so important for everyone to hear. When I read a book, I will highlight meaningful quotes and extracts that I love. In most of the books I enjoy, there tend to highlight 4 or 5 quotes. In this book, I highlighted 21 separate quotes!

Whilst this book is a standalone novel, I would definitely recommend reading the author's first book, The House with Chicken Legs first. I think for independent reading, this book would be suitable for most readers aged 9+ and it could be read aloud to younger children and they would enjoy it as well.

Sophie Anderson's newest novel, The Castle of Tangled Magic, is a beautiful story about love, family and knowing that where you've come from doesn't always need to dictate what comes next.

Olia, a young girl who lives with her family at Castle Mila, is tasked with saving the castle (her family's home for generations) from certain destruction. Along with some feisty otherworld spirits, a wizard and a giant, Olia must race against the clock to undo the actions of her ancestors to ensure everyone's safety and happiness. Olia's story is full of magic, both literally and figuratively, and the imagery created by Anderson (and the gorgeous illustrations by Saara Soderlund) is top notch. There is constant adventure and Olia makes for a very likeable narrator, one you root for consistently throughout the story. Sophie Anderson is repeatedly recommended for her wonderful storytelling, and Tangled Magic lives up to the hype in every way.

Wow... what a journey! I was utterly hooked from the very beginning.
The unique way Sophie Anderson exposes readers to different and unique cultures throughout her books is incredible and is one of the many reasons I’m drawn to and hooked on her books. Coupled with the fact as a Welsh primary school teacher working in a Welsh school I am always on the lookout for books by Welsh authors to promote to my class to highlight Welsh talent and show them that you can be whatever you want to be.
The journey of self discovery that Olia goes on in this book is incredible and there are many life lessons to be learnt from it.
I also love how the yaga house sneaks its way in there to make an appearance! As with all of Sophie Anderson’s books, I would highly recommend.

A truly wonderful tale of self-discovery, loyalty and friendship, and the magic that happens when you trust your judgement and believe in yourself. I loved the protagonist, and her relationships - aligned with the idea of youthful hope versus adult pragmatism, and their dual roles in growing up. Young people reading could not fail but be inspired by Olia and her bravery.

The allegory of the domes as a metaphor, with their mysteries representing, to me, the process of growing up, and the realisations that young people have to have in order to accept disappointment, and the letting go of childish things was so wonderfully rendered through imagery - a real strength of this story I feel. This, coupled with a story emphasising the importance of resilience, was subtly woven through the plot, and I particularly liked the way that Olia is guided by the wisdom of Babusya but that she also has the freedom of self-discovery.

Although it was not written as such, I feel very strongly that young readers, coming to terms with a new world of pandemic and lockdown, isolation and worry, would be strengthened by Olia's journey and discoveries; the parallel themes of hope, grit, bravery and determination, whilst keeping loved ones safe, seem to be so relevant. The idea of a guardian 'angel' to guide Olia was heartwarming; Feliks as a character is gorgeous, and his quiet, gentle bravery makes him a character which many children would love.

The final chapters are so beautifully crafted, and so emotional too. This is a triumph of story-telling at its finest.