E-book format is never easy when you need to refer back to the various creatures who live in the pages of a book. Found the characters somewhat 2-D and the language veered to stilted, especially at the end.

Is there anything Katherine Rundell can't do? Alongside Hannah Gold, Rundell is one of the most iconic writers of her generation captivating audiences of all ages and in Impossible Creatures, she has her best gem yet!

Absolute Katherine Rundell classic through and through. Mystical, magical, full of beautiful vocabulary and an all round joy to read. Not an easy read - needs focus and thinking about as you go but most definitely one to be enjoyed by those keen readers.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for sending me a copy in exchange for a review.

This was without a doubt the best children's book I've read in a very long time - and I'm a children's bookseller. Katherine Rundell has brought this magical realm to life and with such effortless style, I absolutely adored everything about it. The found family, the creatures, the plot - there was not a single thing wrong with this book.

I love the addition of the glossary at the front, so children can learn about these mythical creatures from all over the globe before diving in.

Rundell has been compared to Tolkien and Philip Pullman with this new adventure, and it is completely justified.

This book is just so special. I've been putting off writing this review, because I cannot really fully describe its brilliance. It's everything that you would expect from Katherine Rundell and then some more. It's got the adventure, the quest, the friendship, the magic. It's also got all the feelings, it's sad, it's difficult, it's beautiful. I know it's a kid's book, but I think every adult with a heart would also enjoy it! Can't wait to buy it for friends of all ages in my life!

Impossible Creatures cements Katherine Rundell's reputation as the most exciting voice of her generation: from Super-Infinite, her biography of John Donne, to The Golden Mole, her bestiary of endangered species, to her children's books full of courage and love, her work blazes with wonder, wisdom and wit, and her latest offering is no exception.

Beginning with a map of a secret Archipelago and a 'Guardian's Bestiary' of the magical creatures who inhabit it, Rundell's novel invites us to follow Christopher, a boy from our world, into this mysterious place populated by griffins, dragons and centaurs. Together with Mal, a brave and resourceful girl from the Archipelago who can fly, he must discover what is happening to the 'Glimourie' that keeps these creatures alive and how they can stop it.

This is a thrilling fantasy adventure which is every bit as good as Narnia or His Dark Materials, but with an urgent ecological message which will resonate with young readers today. There are scenes of great peril and emotional intensity as we are forced to confront what has already been irrevocably lost, but there is also real hope and joy in Rundell's writing.

This is a great book for older primary and younger secondary readers, but there is no upper age limit on enjoying this book and it will surely come to be seen as a children's classic.

So inventive and clever, this sparky tale with magical creatures to boot will really appeal to the YA fantasy market- my only comment would be that the encyclopedia of magical creatures should be at the back because it was a delay getting to the excitement of the story.

Where do I even start with this absolutely incredible book? Probably the world building, I think, which is some of the most vivid and detailed since we were introduced to Lyra by Philip Pullman back in 1995. The duo of Christopher and Mal make this tale of adventure, friendship and doing the right thing even when you don’t want to an absolute joy. The last word has to go to the six year old I read it to, who immediately said ‘I want to read that again’. This book is an instant classic and I can’t recommend it enough.

Impossible Creatures will capture readers' imaginations with the wonders of unicorns, dragons, griffens and so much more. This would make the perfect bedtime story with both parents and children getting lost in the adventure, peril and magic.
I will share my full review on my blog soon.

Absolute perfection! A fantastic read for children and adults! I loved it

The glossary at the beginning of the book is such a great touch, I kept checking back as the creatures entered the story.

As far as children's adventure stories go... this is as good as it gets. A beautifully written tale of enchantment and bravery.

Thank you to NetGalley for proving me with an ARC.

Overall another great read from Katherine Rundell. At times it felt a little rushed, some parts of the adventure getting very little description, but there were some brilliant insightful and thought provoking sections towards the end.

This book was a beautifully written and magical experience. Pure escapism into a world we all want to believe is true. I loved being introduced to mythical creatures long forgotten alongside your more well known creatures such as Griffins, Unicorns and, of course, Dragons.

I laughed out loud (looking at you Jacques) and cried and enjoyed every single page.

I read this with my daughter and we both absolutely loved it.

The world building and characterisation is absolutely spot on, makes you fall in love with the characters and leaves you so invested in their journey. Parts of it broke my heart and then other parts warmed it.

The book is beautiful too, from the cover, to the drawings and descriptions of the creatures.

Overall an absolute joy to read.

Absolutely superb, I couldn't put this down. I would say I would have loved it as a child but to be honest I loved it just as much now. There are shadows of all sorts of classic children's books in this, from the Chronicles of Narnia to His Dark Materials, but it was still entirely it's own and didn't feel derivative at all - rather, an addition to that list of classics.

The story revolves around Christopher who, when spending time with his grandfather in a remote part of Scotland, discovers that his family are the guardians of a secret entrance to an archipelago full of mythical creatures, protected from the world by magic. Something has been happening to the magic though and the archipelago and all its creatures are under threat. A young girl, Mal, and her griffin appear through the portal and take Christopher back with them to protect Mal, who is being chased by a mysterious murderer, and save the archipelago.

The lands and people they encounter are truly magical and drawn from all kinds of mythology - centaurs, sphinxes, mermaids, unicorns - and the adventure is unpredictable and exciting. It's wonderful to see such well written and engrossing new stories for children and I can't wait for the next installment!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the copy in return for an honest review.

#ImpossibleCreatures #NetGalley

A wonderful fantasy adventure story with heart. I love that this book includes such a variety of mythical creatures. Alongside your usual dragons, griffins, centaurs and mermaids there are Al-miraj from Arabic mythology, Avanc from Welsh mythology, the adorable sounding Borometz from Tartar mythology just to name the first few. It does mean that there were some unfamiliar species but the book begins with a very helpful illustrated bestiary extract which brings them to life and readers can turn back to if a reminder is needed. I can definitely see this book inspiring readers to go off and learn more about these creatures and their origins.

Alongside the ‘Impossible Creatures’ of the title we get to meet a group of individuals who readers will wish they could spend more time with. There is Christopher, a boy with a natural affinity with animals, who enables the reader to discover the Archipelago through his eye’s as an outsider. Mal is a young orphan who has just lost her guardian, Great-Aunt Leonor, who died protecting her from a murderer. Later on we meet Nighthand, a Berserker now running a somewhat shady shipping business, and Irian, a scholar trying to draw attention to the plight of the creatures of the Archipelago.

The story did not play out how I expected: Katherine Rundell is not afraid to tug on a reader’s heartstrings. Christopher and Mal discuss the tough realtities of what their choices will result in. The ending is also not your typical happily-ever-after and instead leaves the reader with something to ponder.

I really enjoyed this book and I would have loved it even more if I was of the target age group. This book would be suitable for upper primary age children onwards, including adults who love to immerse themselves in worlds where magical creatures can still be found.

Thank you to the author, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review.

I was delighted to read this book such a change from crime thrillers which seem to be so readily available. This story strikes a happy balance of fantasy and reality of a dual world referred to as the Archipelago where amazing creatures exist supported by a very special tree called the Gilmouri tree, what we would describe as the tree of life. Something has happened to the tree and these creatures are starting to die as a consequence. The two heroes Christopher from the real world and Mal from the archipelago have to find out what is wrong. A gripping story that is so enjoyable. A must read.

This is a fast paced, fantastical adventure that kids are sure to love!

Magical creatures used to roam the earth until they were hunted to near extinction. The Archipelago was hidden from the rest of the world to protect and home these creatures, and Christopher finds himself following a strange girl through a rift to reach it. Here they discover that the magic is failing and set out on a quest to find out why.

This one had lovable characters and I adored the different creatures, with brilliant explanations of them all. I’d heard of some but others were new to me! There was a fair amount of danger here too, which keeps you hooked though I did think that some of the action seems a bit rushed. I had to remember a few times that this is intended for a younger audience which is likely why!

Overall, I see this one being a popular read!

I will share a review on my Instagram account @_thats_what_she_read in the week preceding the release.

This book was absolutely fantastic. The characters were loveable, the writing was as one would expect from Katherine Rundell, it had moments of humour and lightheartedness but still made the stakes of the adventure known. I think a lot of readers will love this book, I genuinely cried at one point, and i love the hopeful note the ending left on.

If you love fantastical creatures, then this is the fantasy series for you. Inspired by an unfinished poem written by John Donne, Katherine Rundell combines unicorns with griffins with dragons and a plethora of other incredible creatures and whisks us away to a hidden realm: the Archipelago...

When Christopher goes to Scotland to stay with his grandfather, he is startled to see a thunder of mythical creatures tearing down the hill towards the house, leaving his grandfather no choice but to reveal the truth: he is a guardian of a portal between the human world and the Archipelago, a place where creatures of myth are protected.

But the magical protection is weakening and when he encounters a strange, flying girl called Mal who is in desperate need of help, Christopher accompanies her back to the Archipelago where a dangerous quest awaits them...

This is a fast-paced adventure that moves at the speed of a dragon on a mission. The world-building is dazzling, the characters instantly loveable - Mal and Nighthand being firm favourites - and Gelifen, well, will steal your heart. There's sphinxes and manticores and karkadanns to reckon with as well as well as dark human power.

As with other recent fantasies, one of the most prominent themes of the novel is the human destruction of the planet and the creatures within it. There's also an interesting exploration of the theme of power including, of course, the power of friendship. This first novel covers more ground than I initially thought it would, leaving it open for the next instalment to go in an unknown and exciting direction. There's certainly lots more places to explore and lots more creatures to meet.

This is a different genre to Katherine Rundell's other fantastic novels: Rooftoppers, Girl Savage, The Explorer and The Good Thieves (Wolf Wilder being the one we haven't read) but the magical element is truly magic. I always enjoy Rundell's characters, including the adult ones she weaves into her stories, but this time it's the creatures that will make your heart soar, make your heart break and fill you with the wonder of imagination.

A big thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for allowing me a review copy. Impossible Creatures is available to pre-order and is release