Maggie Blue and the White Crow is full of mystery and intriguing characters. It was great to be able to return to this well-orchestrated world with a fascinating history.

Each character had their own pros and cons and I was quite taken with Oz and wanted more scenes with him in. I contrast I found it difficult to warm to Maggie as much as I had done in the first book, Maggie Blue and the Dark World, whcih was shortlisted for the 2021 Costa Children's Book Award, the Sheffield Book Award and nominated for the Carnegie Medal Maggie has become more sullen and bitter than previously and I found her attitude to her mother’s mental illness quite unsympathetic. This may have been of design as a reflection of Maggie’s age as she reaches her teenage years.

The way we got different points of view as we travelled through the chapters giving us first-hand information of what was happening in the real world and the Dark World was well instigated. The significance of the shape shifters in the trees watching Maggie was a joy to discover. The action took a long time to pick up but there was a lot of deep character building that made you think. I never quite trusted the over-enthusiastic Jean and I reckon she has her own agenda. In fact, all the way through I got the distinct feeling I did not know who to trust and which side was actually the right side. Destroying a whole world, even if it is corrupt felt like a misguided goal.

It was evident from very early on that this book was going to leave me wanting more and end on a juicy cliff hanger. Although, I was disappointed that the novel was not a complete story I itself but rather a long introduction to Book Three.

Brilliant world building and riveting characters who make you want to read more.

What a great sequel to the first book! It is considerably darker than the first one though. As we find out about the family secrets of Maggie Blue, we get a glimpse of what lies behind the storyline. Can't wait to read the next one in the series.