This book was an absolute delight to read! While it has been compared to Harry Potter, I found it to be more in the vein of the Schooled in Magic series. Ivy Lovely is a fun MC and I enjoyed following her adventures! She is inquisitive and smart and truly wants to make the most of the opportunity given her, even as she feels it may be too good to be true. What brought it down a star was simply how quickly everything progressed. At times I felt I was missing parts of the story, and wanted more! I hope to see more of the Dark Queen as well; I feel like there's is a lot to her story we have yet to learn! Overall, an enjoyable read, and I look forward to the sequel!!

I liked this book overall but did have a few issues. I felt like some parts were rushed. I would've liked to have seen the friendships develop more. I still have a lot of questions but I assume they will be answered in future books.

This book reminded me a lot of Harry Potter. Ivy's story is very similar to that of Harry. I'd like to see more world building in the next book. Maybe see the mythology (for lack of a better word) get more developed.

I'll definitely check out the next one, though. I want to know what's next for Ivy.

This is a delightful YA fantasy story involving a young lady with magical abilities and a magic school where she finds herself belonging. This book feels reminiscent of Harry Potter, in all the right ways.

Book Blurb:
“In Croswald, the only thing more powerful than dark magic is one secret…

For sixteen years Ivy Lovely has been hidden behind an enchanted boundary that separates the mundane from the magical. When Ivy crosses the border, her powers awaken. Curiosity leads her crashing through a series of adventures at the Halls of Ivy, a school where students learn to master their magical blood and the power of Croswald’s mysterious gems. When Ivy’s magic––and her life––is threatened by the Dark Queen, she scrambles to unearth her history and save Croswald before the truth is swept away forever.”

Young Ivy Lovely, care-taker of scaldrons (cute dragons that provide fire for cooking food for a castle) is content enough with her lot in life, though she secretly wishes for more. She shows talent for remembering her dreams, a photographic memory, and being able to perfectly sketch what she sees; all of these traits of magic-wielders called Scrivenists. When a series of events leads her and the smallest scaldron in her care to a cab floating in the sky and whisks them away to magic school, it’s more than Ivy could have ever dreamt of.

Definitely a 'young-adult' book, but it was still fun and full of wild magic and creative characters.

Ivy Lovely has grown up for the better part of her life as the scaldrony maid for the Castle Plum-- it is a dreadful job and her every spare moment is taken into the slurry fields to sketchy and meet with her friend, Rimbrick, the dwarf. On the eve of her 16th birthday (though she didn't know that was quite what it was at the time) her life takes a turn. Suddenly, though for some that date was long awaited, her life was flipped upside down and she learned that was to attend the illustrious Halls of Ivy--a prestigious school where students learn everything from how to be proper royals, the art of a scrivenist and many other magical studies.

And Ivy excels at her studies, some of which leads her to break the rules. But really, something is off in the Halls of Ivy and Ivy plans on finding out what it is. She also wants to find out why she has dreamed of the Halls of Ivy for as long as she can remember...as well as find the man that tries to reach out to her from those dreams.

This was an excellent read! The only problem that I have with getting advanced reader copies is that with the really good books you not only have to wait a long time before they are published but for anything that follows in a series it feels like it will be forever more!

I believe that lovers of the Harry Potter and Howl's Moving Castle series' will also love The Crowns of Croswald.