"Dalya and the Magic Ink Bottle" was a fun story, aimed at middle grade kids. While visiting her Turkish auntie with her dad (Baba), Dalya encounters a mysterious cat in the creepy home of her auntie. The cat serves as the impetus for strange and magical adventures for Dalya.

This book contains elements that kids would enjoy: magic, a creepy house, time travel, cats, shape shifting. The theme of a kid being in charge also would appeal to middle schoolers. I found the beginning to be rather slow going, but the action picked up further into the story.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

"Mashallah was bigger than one word. It was a whole rainbow of feelings, and I felt every colour sparkle inside me."

This quote sums up my feelings from this book: a whole rainbow of feelings. This was a beautiful tale that warmed me inside. A little slow to get started, but once started, the story was captivating. I love tales of jinns and magic and this was no exception. Dalya and Mina were likeable and I'm a sucker for a tale with animals in anyway.

Dalya and the Magic Ink Bottle was a fun middle school read. I found the beginning a little slow. But then it turned into an unexpected journey of friendship and adventure. From the description I thought I had this book figured out and it would be predictable and there is nothing wrong with that. I really enjoyed this novel it was a fabulous adventure with an interesting unexpected group of characters.

Such a great book for middle schoolers! Anything with magic, time travel, and cute furry animals is a great read.

Magic, time travel and self discovery. A whimsical tale of one girls journey home.

This is a bit of a slow starter, and the latter half of the book is better than the first. I really wanted more from the main character, Dalya, from the start of the story. But stick with this, because it turns into such a beautiful, heart warming tale of both friendship and love for one's family.

Dayla travels with her father to the family home in Turkey. Her father promised to spent time with her, but it turns out he has work to do. When Dayla founds an ink bottle, she travels through time and goes on lots of adventures.

I adored this story. It's cute, well written and most of all filled with great adventures. The magic in the story is both literal and metaphorical. The ink bottle and other elements contain magic, but most of all the message the book contains is magical. The author teaches children about friendship, never giving up on your dreams and family.
It's a great story for children to relax after a busy day, but still learn new things about life. In some ways, it's educational due to the message it contains.
The characters are round and all represent one of those messages. Besides, they are unique and diverse in many ways. It's great to see how the author contained Turkish/Islamic elements into the story without making it all about their culture. The fact that not all characters are humans made it playful and ideal for children.
I felt like some parts could be a little more detailed. Overall it was a great story and I enjoyed it for sure!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy.

I really enjoyed this novel and found myself laughing during a few of the scenes. I am well beyond the target age for this book, but I look forward to getting a finished copy of this to read with my niece. I liked the setting, the descriptions of Istanbul, and how centered the text was on animals and friendship. The plot moved along nicely. Definitely a great book for kids.

The only thing keeping this from being 5 stars is the ending. The end was a bit overly sweet and wrapped up too nicely. I never felt any of the characters were in true danger throughout, but I also realize we need a world of happy endings for or young readers. So I didn't mind too much.

As many other reviewers, I am not able to open this document sadly. I hope to get a chance to read it anyway before the book is published!

While I received an electronic copy of this book in exchange for my review, all opinions remain my own.

All Dayla wants is to go home. Instead she's stuck with her dad (who is too busy working) in Instambul. trying to get the old family home ready for sale. What happens next is a wild adventure that Dayla didn't expect from an old ink bottle.

I loved this story. It had beautiful imagery and you could just see the pictures in your head as you were reading. I think it would be perfect for any young girl. I loved the story and was kind of sad to see it end.

This is aimed at middle-grade readers and so is not for me. Despite not warming to it myself, I tried to see how it might appeal to a younger reader, but even then it felt like it wasn't up to snuff.

For me it felt confused and cluttered, and the main character went from being put in peril here, to being put in a different peril there, and then yet another one everywhere. It felt like it was far too much, with barely time to take a breather. I know that when you want to entertain young children, there has to be danger, but this felt like it was all danger all the time with no respite, no downtime, and little humor to buoy-up the main participants.

Dalya is of Turkish ancestry and when she gets a chance to travel there with her father (mom is predictably out of the picture), she jumps at the chance to 'reconnect' with him, but he proves just as unreachable there as he is at home. They stay at a largely derelict and old family mansion in Istanbul, which is badly-neglected and unsafe in many regards. Naturally, Dalya disobeys her father's strict instructions to remain on the first floor of the house because upstairs is unsafe, and in chasing a cat she espies, she discovers a bottle of magic ink hidden under a floorboard.

The ink is supplied by a djin, and grants only one wish to each user. Dalya wishes to go home, but instead ends up being sent back in time and turned into a cat - the very cat she was chasing upstairs in the first place. How this happened was never explained, given that her explicitly stated wish was to return home. The cat she becomes is apparently a magical cat, although throughout the story the cat never actually does any magic, which struck me as very curious, and a waste of a good cat to boot. Why give it all the appearance of being magical if it serves no purpose?

In order to return to her human self, and to return to her own time, Dalya must embark upon an adventure through the mythology of Istanbul in quest of the djin who owns the bottle, in order to have her wish revoked. This is all well and good, but these folk tales and animal stories don't resonate well with people who have never heard them before, and it felt like the author was trying to toss in everything but the kitchen sink (although that also appeared in the story, I believe).

I can understand that these things might well appeal to the author and be very meaningful to her, but to me they really felt like a jumble of unrelated ideas that didn't really gel together, and which left me unsatisfied and a bit lost at times, too. I felt it could have been done better. The ending was too predictable. For the intended audience, maybe that's not such a bad thing; indeed, they may well get much more out of this that I did, but I've read many middle-grade stories and really enjoyed a lot of them. This one didn't get there for me and I can't commend it as a worthy read.

I have been trying to read this book ever since it came to me but I am not able to. IT SIMPLY JUST WON'T OPEN. But still I requested this book because of its cover and the story synopsis. Even though there is a saying 'Don't judge a book by its cover', I simply can't help myself and so I have to say, the cover is awesome and I believe so is the story.

If you think you're having a bad day, I promise you it isn't nearly as bad as Dalya's day. Not only was she unexpectedly transported to the past, when she only wanted to go home, but she is also transformed into a cat. This series of events give rise to an incredible adventure.


The book took a while to really get started. I prefer quick-paced books but I am sure that for most readers it won't be an issue and it definitely shouldn't stop you from picking up this book.


I really liked the characters They are unique and interesting but the audience can really relate to them. The characters include a young girl who wants a friend, a magical cat, a magician/rat, and a pretty amazing dog.


All in all, this is a wholesome book. And it was a lot of fun to read.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

well I. guess I wont. be Reading this book it wont download for. me. and that is Sad. i had been really looking forward to Reading this book. I have heard and Read Great reviews about The book

I absolutely adore this book! It's been so many years since I read a book based on magic other than comic series or graphic novels! And I am so glad I picked this one up at the right time. And rightly so when I am an adult who gets really stressed out from all the mundane activities of daily life and work. This book worked like charm in making me believe in magic all over again!
The book narrates the story of a young girl, Dalya, who is away from her home with her dad at Istanbul to visit her aunt. She finds herself in an old house to spend the following days which she already starts dreading the moment she gets in. But life is going to change for her when she meets this unusual cat in the house. Her aunt seems to know something. Dalya feels she being watched all the time. Her dad still has work issues even though they are on a vacation. She's getting frustrated soon enough and no one can blame her.
But magic is awaiting her, will find her true friends, a story to tell about her great great grandmother, and finally fulfil her wish to be home.

I love the way the book.is written. It's pretty adventurous with a variety of character representation. It sometimes seems like a fairy tale with a bad aunt, magic performances, animal friends and acquaintances of all kinds! Wait, is there time travelling as well?

This book will work well for both cat and dog lovers as well because there are important characters representing both. And the characters are all so lively and unique that I simply rushed through all the chapters in just one sitting. It's that good.

Somehow I kept wanting for more when the book ended.

I like the author's work a lot and I will be looking forward to every book written by her.

And yes, I would love to watch this one as a movie adaptation! It's that vivid while I was reading the book!

Totally recommended 👍

Dang it. The storyline for this looked good. Sadly my tablet isnt letting it load at all. The cover isnt bad at all.

"Mashallah has many special meanings," he said. "Usually, you say it when you notice something wonderful or beautiful about someone you love. It's a way of asking for protection. That good luck charm necklace is also meant to protect you."
"From what?"
"Jealousy. envy. We call it the Evil Eye," he said. "Saying mashallah reminds us that everything good in this world is exactly as God willed it. You say it when you feel thankful for the goodness your loved ones have been given and you want to keep them safe from anyone who would take it away, but it only works if you say it with your whole heart."

This book is precious! It brings me sense of belongingness, brings me to exciting adventures, brings meaning to friendship, bravery, kindness, and love. Such a beautiful book for children to read.

I am shock at first because this is 200 pages long. I thought it includes illustrations but it is just like a real long book for children. The story reminds me a lot of Coraline. They went to visit an old house, the place looks creepy, there's a little girl and a cat, then she is brought to a different place she didn't know. The difference is that Dalya is the cat in this story.

The book has a lot of stirring twists. She went back to the past, she tried her best to go home and understand why Zehra Hala told her she is the family's secret and she met great friends. It's grand! I love the friendship with Mina, Boz, Azman and Dalya. Though it was only a short time that they were together, I find their friendship charming and sweet.

I love Dalya's characteristic. Though still a child, she is definitely wise enough to assess her situation and weigh her options on the things she needs to do. She chose friendship over anything else. Even when things get so messed up, she still knows what she wants to do.

I also adore Mina. She also prioritize friendship over anything. She is loyal and she will do anything for her friends. She stands up for them and protect them. She is a sweet person. The end shows how she values her friends when she willingly let Dalya go because she wants her to be happy. Truly selfless!

The end is surprising. I never expected it will turn out to be like that. Dalya's adventures and story is peculiar and noteworthy. I love this so much.

Conclusion:
Definitely recommended to anyone who love Children's Fiction. If you love Coraline, you will certainly adore this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Capstone for this ARC.

Earc from netgalley.

this was an interesting spin on the ''person goes back in time to save something in their family or town'' idea, and I actually did enjoy getting to read it. If it interests you, pick it up.

I received this book in exchange of an honest review

So far this year, Dalya and the Magic Ink Bottle is my favourite read of 2020. I loved this amazing book so much. It has everything I love in a book, magic, time travel, animals and even better - talking animals!

A girl who finds a magic ink bottle who gets turned into a cat and sent back to 1907, she then meets a girl and a talking rat! They go on to have many adventures. 5 star read

Delightful story of a girl named Dalya who, on vacation with her Dad in Istanbul, is mistakenly transformed into a cat, and transported back in time.

As we read through the story, we learn that Dalya goes back in time to "set things right." Little do we know what that means until the end of the story. You have to read it to find out.

A fabulous children's/middle grade book. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

A girl, a rat, and a cat. Those are the main characters of this novel set in 1900s Istanbul. Oh, and later a dog joins them. And there are menacing squirrels. And oh, yes, there is a magic ink bottle with a jinn that only grants one wish.

It is a crazy, rip roaring ride. Dalya makes a wish to go home, because, well, she figures any place is better than her father’s childhood home in Istanbul where he is ignoring her. But, the way that magic works, as is always true, is that you don’t always get what you think you want.

At first I was a bit annoyed at the novel, because fI felt it was throwing stuff at us that had no connections, and by the end, I felt that it mostly all came together.

It is a good message that home is what you make it. And it was cool that actions have consequences. And that time travel does make a difference. I feared that it wouldn’t, and it would be a “oh, I had a strange dream,” sort of story. I was glad that it was not that sort.

A little slow in the beginning, and then once the craziness starts, it never lets up.

Good middle grade book. I think kids in that age group will enjoy it, and perhaps want to find out more about Istanbul.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.