Review: How to Save a Queendom

Title: How to Save a Queendom
Author: Jessica Lawson
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Canada
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: April 20, 2021
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

From critically acclaimed author Jessica Lawson comes a whimsical fantasy about an orphaned twelve-year-old girl who is called upon to save her queendom when she finds a tiny wizard in her pocket.

Life’s never been kind to twelve-year-old Stub. Orphaned and left in the care of the cruel Matron Tratte, Stub’s learned that the best way to keep the peace is to do as she’s told. No matter that she’s bullied and that her only friend is her pet chicken, Peck, Stub’s accepted the fact that her life just isn’t made for adventure. Then she finds a tiny wizard in her pocket.

Orlen, the royal wizard to Maradon’s queen, is magically bound to Stub. And it’s up to her to ferry Orlen back to Maradon Cross, the country’s capital, or else the delicate peace of the queendom will crumble under the power of an evil wizard queen. Suddenly Stub’s unexciting life is chock-full of adventure. But how can one orphan girl possibly save the entire queendom?

Review:

Stub is an orphan, who is an apprentice at a tavern. She is kept outside and lives with her only friend, her scrawny pet chicken, Peck. Then one day, while she’s in the woods, she discovers a tiny wizard who can fit in her palm. The wizard, Orlen, comes from the Queendom, but has been magically bound to Stub. Along with her new friend Beaman, Stub has to return Orlen to the capital city to save the Queendom from an evil queen.

This was a fun adventure story. Stub started out the story as an orphan who didn’t have any control over her life. She was bullied and threatened by the woman she lived with and worked for. She didn’t have a choice but to stay there. Once she met Orlen, she had a reason to sneak away and escape the evil woman she worked for. She was finally able to take control of her life.

The story was also fast paced. The characters passed through different parts of the land, from the small town to a forest to a swamp and ultimately the capital city. It was fun to see all of these different places in the fantasy world. The ending was action packed with magical deception.

How to Save a Queendom is a fun middle grade fantasy.

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

Have you read How to Save a Queendom? What did you think of it?