Ember Spark and the Frost Phoenix

Ember Spark’s lovely morning with Arno is thrown into disarray when the legendary, rare Frost Phoenix lands on the kitchen table. Only Frost Phoenix’s are so rare even magical beast vet Rusty Fizzbang doesn’t know everything about them. So, when the Frost Phoenix wants Ember to follow it, she’s left with a choice. Stay at home in the safety of her home or follow the Frost Phoenix uncertain whether she’s being led to treasure… or trouble…

Ember Spark and the Frost Phoenix by Abi Elphinstone is released by Simon and Schuster on 24th October.

As previously stated this week in review of fellow Simon and Schuster novel Skandar and the Skeleton Curse, the task of releasing two books within a year will always be a feat that amazes me. Therefore, I want to start off this review by congratulating Abi Elphinstone on accomplishing the release of this novel and Ember Spark and the Thunder of Dragons within six months. Yet again, Simon and Schuster have put their faith in the author correctly because Elphinstone hasn’t sacrificed quality for quantity and instead Ember Spark and the Frost Phoenix perfectly captures the beauty of its predecessor perfectly.

Ember, Arno, Rusty and Rickety-Knees are a group I absolute adore and adore the fact we return to them for this second adventure. Not only do the elder characters provide a guardianship and guidance for the younger duo, but they also add a dollop of that elderly quirkiness we all know and love. From Rickety-Knees baking goodies with fish flakes atop to Rusty wrestling a magical beast in the sky, there’s an argument to be made that this duo is as important to the series as their younger counterparts. I, for one, would love to see a prequel series of Rusty and Rickety-Knees tending to magical beast in their youth.

As an avid animal lover, this series will always pluck at my heartstrings whenever there’s the introduction of a new animal. Example A: When a frost phoenix smashes in through a kitchen window, a lot of people would find themselves saying ‘Oh no! The window!’. My head immediately went ‘Oooo cute baby phoenix!’. Yet again, Elphinstone has introduced us to new, and more of the familiar, characters and her writing and characterisation of animals will always be some of my highlights. As the heart of the novel, and embedded in the heart of the protagonist, this series would be nothing withing its magical beasts and Elphinstone has shown that we’re at the tip of the iceberg with what we can expect throughout this series.

The antagonist, Jasper Hornswoggle, is someone else I want to take a second for. Not only is he simply just a bad person, but the metaphor also he represents about the current state of the world (if someone discovers a thing of beauty in nature, it’s harvested and sold for profit) is brilliantly showcase. Without spoilers, the reveal at the end of this novel about him and his operations has got me extremely excited to see where the series goes next.

Ember Spark and the Frost Phoenix is the perfect read for young ones over the upcoming half term, and ideal for those that love animals with a strong sense of adventure. While I wait for the sequel, I’m off to Scotland to see if I can find any caves filled with magical beasts…

EMBER SPARK AND THE FROST PHOENIX is another great tale for younger MG readers full of magical creatures in the arctic!

As you'd hope from a book with "frost" in the title, it's got a snowy setting. It's the magical side of winter, with magical narwhales, northern lights, and plenty of snowy mountains. It also lets the book have a very different feel to the previous - EMBER SPARK AND THE THUNDER OF DRAGONS.

It's a really nice story about continuing to fight for what's right even when everything looks set against you. Ember has a great rallying speech to the magical creatures that helps turn the day in the big final set piece fight. The characters face so many obstacles and the problems get worse and worse, but they stick together and find new ways to continue to protect others throughout.

I also really liked how the power of stories was brought into this. It both gives some lore to the world - how do magical creatures come about and what sustains them - but also is used as a powerful tool to fight the villain. Imagination is so powerful, and I loved that Arno got to use it to help others.

Kristina Kisser illustrates again, and I really liked her drawings of the frost phoenix. Usually I associate phoenixes with fire so it was interesting to see how that would happen with ice. It felt like she'd taken inspiration from peacocks, which was pretty.

There is another book coming in Spring next year, so not long to wait until the next adventure with Ember, Arno, and the magical crew!