Spelled (Storymakers, #1)

by Betsy Schow

[bookishzelda]

I’m not a huge Wizard of Oz fan but Spelled kept catching my interest. Maybe it was the sparkly shoes on the cover, I don’t know but I’m glad it did. This was a cute and funny read that kept me hooked.

It’s no secret I love a good adventure story. One that takes our characters across all kinds of lands and all bunch of crazy places. That’s exactly what Spelled does and even though it’s a retelling of Oz, there are plenty of other fairy tales mixed in as well. The world building had to be fast because the characters are always moving, giving the reader samplings of each area. I loved the way there was a mix of modern real world and fairytale land too. An ebook is an Enchanted Reader or Dorthea’s Designer Gilda dresses. The subtle and comical references to Oz make the story enchanting.

Dorthea is a spoiled brat and even though she accidently screws up the land of story and has to try to save it. She still is a spoiled brat. I liked that she didn’t just magically become good off the bat. We see her change as she spends the book running for her life and figuring out how to fix the mistake she made. Which includes finally admitting she is the one who made the mistake. There is definitely character growth with her.

The character growth with Rexi and Kato wasn’t as strong but honestly as annoying as Rexi was at times. I didn’t really want her to change. I did want to smack her upside the head every once in a while.

I have to say that Hydra turned out to be one of my favorite characters. I hope to see more of her as well and her always changing shops.

The ending wraps up this part of the tale but still leaves more to be done. I will be curious to see how things go in the next book. I’m looking forward to reading it.