This is a well written book, with a few well conceived set pieces, decent plotting, and good pacing. That said, try as I might I found neither the characters nor the overall narrative engaging enough to arouse or hold my curiosity and attention. As a consequence, it doesn't seem fair to write much more of a review, apart from encouraging interested readers to give the book a try.

Thank you to NetGalley and Greater Path LLC for allowing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I'm happy I had the opportunity to read this.

This was a quick and enjoyable read. In Tess Pendragon & The Wand of Avalon we follow Tess, who has attended a magical boarding school for as long as she can remember. In four days she will learn the truth of her legendary ancestry and it will change everything. Tess and another girl are part of an ancient prophecy. One of them has the power to do good, the other has the power to do evil. Only one of them can take the throne and Tess needs to go on an adventure to protect the Realm from the other girl and the shadows she brings with her.

The premise isn't very original and the book isn't either. It's good that the book is already described as a combination of Harry Potter and The School For Good and Evil, because it has a lot in common with Harry Potter. I would also say this book draws heavily on Arthurian legends.

Personally, I felt this book was a bit too much like Harry Potter at times. I read J.K. Rowling's books over and over when I was a kid and there were a few scenes in this book that were a bit too similar. I hope the next parts in the series will be a bit more original, but I don't think I would've minded the similarities as much as a kid, to be honest.

All in all, I enjoyed it, although it wasn't original. I think younger readers will enjoy it more.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an ARC copy of this book for review.

I hate giving one star ratings. ESPECIALLY for ARCs and ESPECIALLY for middle grade. Because I know I am not necessarily the intended audience, and that my opinions can widely differ due to the age gap between me and the expected reader. However, I feel like even the intended reader for this book may be a bit confused or underwhelmed.

I can't help but notice the extreme similarities to Harry Potter- with Hogwarts, Diagon Alley, and Ollivander's Wand Shop as just a few examples. While I understand that there are bound to be similarities, especially if the author was influenced by those iconic books, but it just makes this book feel super unoriginal.

I had high hopes based on the description and the cover in particular, but I just don't think this book lived up to my standards. I found the story often times confusing; this didn't feel like the FIRST book in a series by any means. More like a second or so since we just went into it as if we understood the school structure, the children's friendships and relationships, and the world as a whole. Also, I think that there was a lot of action, but often times it was just glossed over and big details felt like they were just brushed upon or skipped entirely.

I can admit that I am not super familiar with King Arthur and Merlin, but after reading Legendborn last year, I find myself gravitating towards books with this theme and central plot because I find it super interesting. In this book however, I don't think the legend or anything behind the sorcerer or the king was ever really explained. I feel like these were just used as as filler, but not ever really expanded upon. I just think that there is just a lot of background and information missing in this book as a whole.

I appreciate the opportunity to read this book, and I think that maybe some will find this enjoyable and I hope that with the next book coming out, the author is better able to build upon this world and these characters because it honestly does have a lot of potential in the main story with the girls with entwined destiny's (again, SUPER Harry Potter, but that's the theme we're clearly going with here).

This book went down well in our house. You need little background on the Arthur myths to enjoy this book although it did warrant a lot of background questions from the younger members of the family. The greatest praise though is when they immediately ask if we can read it again.!

I think this book has a lot going for it. The world is rich and inviting and will be sure to grab the intended audience's attention. I think a lot of the "negative" feedback about this book is from people reviewing it who forget that this is a middle-grade book.

I do wish Tess had gone on adventures with the other kids her age and her friends as opposed to adults. I definitely get needing a guide as a child who is discovering their identity and their heritage and exactly who they are.

That being said, I really did enjoy this book, and look forward to a sequel! I love Arthurian legends and adapting them for a young audience in 2021/2022 to make them approachable and get kids excited about them. It can open up a really wide swath of books that they would probably like if they enjoyed Tess as well.

Tess Pendragon and the Wand of Avalon by KR Matthews is a delightful children’s retelling of the legend of Arthur Pendragon and the wizard Merlin. It’s a little slow to get into the action, but once it does it’s a very engaging and fun read. I’m a huge fan of stories about Arthur and Merlin so I was very excited after reading the blurb. The fact that the story features a female lead character was like the cherry on top of an ice cream sundae.

The magic and the worldbuilding of the story was quirky and fun. I loved seeing all sorts of creatures like trolls and goblins and pegasus. The dynamic of how the magic works and the wands was innovative and cool too. And, of course, dragons always make a story better. In addition to the fantastical elements and the references to Arthurian legend, I appreciated how the author touched on issues like belonging and class disparity.

Unfortunately, I struggled to connect to the characters in the book. It completely makes sense that with Tess’ age, she would gravitate toward asking adults and those who are more experienced for help. However, with her heritage, I would have loved to see her take more initiative and demonstrate more leadership qualities. A quest featuring those her age (akin to Percy Jackson) would have been more exciting than Tess traveling with adults. I was intrigued by Tess’ connection with the antagonist of the story, but again I was more connected to the story aspect of it than the characters themselves.

Overall, the book is a quick adventure filled read. I would compare it to series like Harry Potter and the Chronicles of Narnia. I would recommend the book to those looking for a new middle grade fantasy. The plot might be a bit hectic for older readers, but younger readers should enjoy it with little to no issue. For those who have Kindle Unlimited, this book was available to members at the time this review was written (January 2022).

Thank you to the author, NetGalley and the publisher Greater Path LLC for allowing me to read an early copy of the book! I appreciate the opportunity immensely. Please note - I voluntarily read and reviewed Tess Pendragon and the Wand of Avalon. All opinions are my own and not influenced in any way.

Apologies for finishing and reviewing this book late.

I will be honest, with the story, more often than not, you were being transported from one scene to another without the sort of build up... or preparation..

First, when Tess said in 3 days time, they will leave the cottage, but Mr. Picklestein said Revealing Day is in 4 days. Sadly in the middle of reading this, I was suddenly in a slump.. then when I continued its still dragging BUT became interesting once the Scales entered Avalon.. and then the real adventure begins! This is a story about magic, family, friendship and more adventures! I am now waiting for the next book.

Four days. That’s all that stands between eleven-year-old sorceress Tess and knowing the truth of her legendary ancestry. For as long as she can remember, Tess has lived at a secret magical boarding school, shrouded in mystery. By now, she’s had enough of snobby blonde witches, nagging magical pets, and brewing lessons that require handling spotted bat poop. There’s something far greater for her outside The Brumhopper School of Magic, she’s sure of it.

But when shadowy visions begin stirring inside of Tess, a dark prophecy is revealed that will alter her life forever… An ancient evil has been awakened, and its shadowy powers reside in another young girl, whose destiny is to hunt and destroy Tess.

And it seems that she has found her.

In a whirlwind adventure, Tess must escape the secret school to journey through troll-owned estates, dodgy pubs with singing moose heads, underground jousting pits, and even a haunted dragon tomb, all to retrieve the Wand of Avalon—A wand that belonged to Merlin himself—which can unite the realm and save her friends from the evil that threatens to destroy them.

Will Tess accept the truth of her family name and her role in the greater battle to come? Or will the Realm be cursed into the shadows forever?

I LOVED THIS! Matthews managed to create a world filled with magic, friendship, family, loyalty steeped in history. Her protagonist Tess was courageous, witty and enigmatic and I was rooting for her right from the start.

I loved the characters from both the world of Avalon and the King’s Underground and enjoyed the way Matthews touched on topics of belonging, monarchy and class/poverty in her story.

Full of adventure, humour, suspense and magic I was hooked from start to end. I just hope the next book comes out asap.

#bookreviewsbymrsc #tesspendragonandthewandofavalon #krmatthews #middlegradefantasy #middlegradebooks #bookreviews #bookstagram #instabooks #books #reading #tesspendragon

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.

A fresh new, exciting look at the Arthurian legends and a great book to start older children and hound teens on their fantasy reading journey.

This story is about Tess who goes to a small school closed off from the outside of world by a barrier. She and her classmates are just getting ready for their revealing where there family house and parents are revealed to them. However, Tess is having strange dreams and strange things start to occur when she performs magic. On revealing day, Tess is announced as a pendragon (not spoiler, in the title) and disaster struck where she has to run away. This leads to an epic adventure, meeting very interesting characters who she has to decide whether they are friends or foe, battle dark magic and her evil ‘twin’ Le Fay. All in order to claim her rightful place in Avalon… the throne in New Camelot.

Intially I wasn’t sure if this was for me, but I quickly changed my mind. A unique look at the legend which is very well thought out, has interesting characters and an ending that will leave you desperately waiting for the sequel!

This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review. But I wasn't able to finish it because the plot didn't go well with me.

Tess Pendragon and The Wand of Avalon is a thrilling book, full of magic. Tess is princess of magic, but for many years she had been hidden in an old cottage, her true identity hidden. What happens when the world knows who she is?

This book is full of plot twists, and overall it is a fantastic book. Five stars!

The premise and the cover looked AMAZING (still do of course).
The plot is... kind of messy. I didn't feel anything special about it. Like I wasn't rooting for Tess much or anything. It went too fast at some points, and I didn't understand a lot of things, sadly. It's set in this Arthurian, Chamelout world and Tess is basically a descendant of the wizard Merlin. And she's also the princess of the whole Realm. I dunno why, but I wanted Tess to go to the dark side and stuff. Her riding a dragon, but also being a dragon herself confused me. So did the voices she heard. Her friendship with Kate and Tristan felt weird. It has magic, with these magic wands. I may read the other book in the series not sure. It just was OK, to be honest, not that great, but not bad either. It has potential, if only it was in first person and that it was written more with the flow and be kind of slow sometimes, not to just dump us info at points, and at some others make us confused not knowing what's going on. But as I said, I think it has the potential to be a hit fantasy series for middle graders!

Fun and easy read of a female teen wizard with plenty of familiar fantasy elements (magic, fantastical creatures) alongside great YA themes (friendship, bravery, finding identity) to keep readers hooked. An intriguing start to a series, as this sets up for the next book with plenty of menacing villains and high stakes. I am excited to see what happens to Tess and her friends next and will be recommending to YA readers looking for the next magical fix post Harry Potter!

What a fantastic story!
It's full of magic, dragons, enemies and friendships. The missing princess, a mystery cottage with children who were hidden for years, and the world changing.

I felt like when I was discovering Harry Potter for the first time. I loved it. I couldn't stop reading!

I'm delighted that it's just the first book in the series and the adventure doesn't end on this one story. I'll definitely want to read the next ones. I hope that the author will appear on Twitter so I could follow them and not miss the publication of book 2.

I'm sure that Tess pendragon & The Wand of Avalon is perfect not only for children, but also for adults. I can't wait to read more by KR Matthews!

The writing style of this book kind of bored me a little. There’s just a lot of information and world building which was a bit difficult for me to follow, so I ended up mostly skimming the second half of the book. This book is basically a mix between Harry Potter and King Arthur. There were some lines in the book and situations, like the wand shop, that sounded so similar to the Harry Potter universe and that ended up distracting me a little because I kept finding little similarities here and there between the two stories. Overall I was just really overwhelmed and confused by what was happening in the story especially with what was happening in the different worlds like the King’s Underground and Avalon and the Old Realm. I think kids would enjoy this story though because of all the magical elements and fantasy. I think they would like the characters, especially Mr. and Mrs. Robinson and the talking lamp. I also really want to try a Pegasus roll too. The food in this book sounded yummy!

Merlins last Prophecy is about to be fulfilled and Tess is right in the middle of it, I really liked the idea and the setting but i had trouble getting into it. I was in a reading slump and wasn´t paying to much attention to the book. So that was part of it I guess. I had to rerread a lot of scenes. All in all it was a nice read but not enough to get me out of my slump. Still would give the second book a chance.

The narrative is too slow and winding, stuffed with details that don't matter (or perhaps don't matter in this book specifically?). The plot isn't exactly complex either, which makes the unnecessary details and detours extra frustrating. It also feels unpolished, a bit like a fan fiction work. There's talent there, but an editor is needed.

First I’d like to say thank you to net galley on the publisher for allowing me a copy of this book as I was so happy to read this tomorrow younger brother.

I would like to say this was an easy read and it was quick to go through and I think this is great if you’re reading to young girl generations especially boys and girls I enjoy reading stories to my brother and this is great as it has an overarching theme the characters are nice and easy to understand there is no complications. Overall I would rate 3 out of five stars as I think this is I liked it

Tess, a quiet and somewhat reserved 11 year old sorceress awaits revealing day at her secret magical boarding school to find out who her parents really are. what her future holds. Will her best friend Kate attend the same Academy? While Tess awaits her fate she is haunted by dreams of dragons and dark magic as a dark prophecy is revealed that may change her life forever. Tess Pendragon and the Wand of Avalon was captivating and action packed a must for fans of Harry Potter.

This was a quick read and I enjoyed it. The characters were relatable and I think the kids will like to go on this adventure.