Spelled (Storymakers, #1)

by Betsy Schow

[Angie]

I received an ARC through NetGalley.

Spelled sounded like it was going to be a really fun twist on The Wizard of Oz. In some ways it was, but for the most part the humor wasn't my thing which made it hard for me to enjoy it. Princess Dorthea just wants out of her castle prison. Because of a curse placed on her family, none of the women have been allowed into the outside world. According to the terms of the curse, a princess of Emerald will burn everything down. But no one knows which princess it's going to be, so every heiress is kept locked away and no flames allowed in the palace! At least until Dorthea's wish to escape goes awry.

The description of Spelled is a bit misleading. Dorthea is not searching for the Wizard of the Oz, and I'm pretty sure it was never mentioned where her parents were sent when her wish backfired. We just know they're somewhere. And Dorthea was told to find some magical spring at the end of a rainbow, not a wizard. Not that it really matters, since she does have to find something in order to undo what she accidentally did, and it's not going to be easy. Magic has gone completely chaotic, so Dorthea, Kato, and Rexi can't rely on it to help them, since they never know if it'll work or do the exact opposite of what they want. I did enjoy that part a lot, but it did lead to some repetitive jokes.

The humor of Spelled is what really kept me at a distance from the story. It's completely overrun with fairy tales puns. They were cute the first time, but after about thirty, I was waiting for something else. Some of the jokes also felt very juvenile and obvious, which is not my taste at all. I'm sure it'll work for a lot of readers, but I'm not one of them. It was all a bit slapstick for me, which had me more annoyed than amused.

I'm assuming Spelled is the first in a series, although it's not listed that way at the time I read it. Dorthea defeats one wicked witch, but magic still isn't working correctly by the end, she has no idea where her parents are, and there's still two baddies on the loose. I doubt I care enough to find out what happens next.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.