The Wishing Spell (Land of Stories, #1)

by Chris Colfer

Alex and Conner Bailey's world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairytales. The Land of Stories tells the tale of twins Alex and Conner. Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, they leave their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic where they come face-to-face with the fairy tale characters they grew up reading about. But after a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.

• ISBN10: 0316201561
• ISBN13: 9780316201568
• Publish Date: 2 July 2013 (first published 1 January 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Little, Brown & Company
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 464
• Language: English

Reviews

[writehollydavis]

3.5/5 Although the plot picked up and I got more invested in the story as it went along, I still felt pulled away and couldn't quite enjoy the story as much as I wanted to due to the telling vs. showing and omniscient vs. deep POV. I prefer the latter and have read many middle grades with that closer perspective to make me feel connected to the characters, which was lacking in this story. Although the plot was exciting, because I'm more of a character-driven reader and looking for a bit more refined prose, I won't be moving forward with the rest of the series.

[tweetybugshouse]

I am reading this series out loud with my 12 year old son who not a huge fan of reading but i think i am slowly turning him. This book has all kinds of things to lure in a non reader. Theirs clues they can pick up from the cover, the map is a great part of the story and then you get the little clues as you go through the story. Darrel said that by the time we got to the last chapter his brain hurt from all the plot twists and mind blowing awesomeness. He is hooked for sure and had to pull out the next book to compare the map to the previous book. He looked over the cover trying to make his own theories about where the story is going. If you have a kiddo read this out loud to them or along with them you be in for a thrill ride as their eyes light up as they discover all the fun to be had in this series.