Whilst i absolutely loved the cover and the story sounded interesting when i headed into it, but as the story started and build up, it was missing some build up to get to know the characters properly, to get the action- feeling... I was left a little bored, plus the ending was rushed and suddenly the fight over all evil..was over... it did not feel like it should have ended so quickly.

I’m a big fan of MarcyKate Connolly. I’ve read a few of her books now so I was so excited to receive A Breath of Mischief from NetGalley.

The beginning of the book felt like I had fallen asleep and drifted off to dreamland. How lovely would it be live in clouds? I knew I was going to love this book pretty much from the first page. It is imaginative and the characters were charming.

Aria and Gwyn were the sweetest team together. I loved meeting all of the other otherlings and their animal friends.

I felt the story had great pacing. The conflict was enough to have me rooting for the good guys! Over a I don’t have anything negative to say about this book!

I enjoyed it! Love to see Aria and Bay and other otherlings joined forces in a quest. It was a lovely, full of adventure, read and perfect for adventure-MG lovers out there!

However, although I enjoyed the story and plot, I find it a little hard to like Aria. Her personality is a little flat for me as a lead. I like Bay a little bit more than Aria. Plot wise, it was great. I enjoyed it a lot. It's just I think the author could work a little bit more on characters personalities and dynamics, and it would be perfect!

(Can't post directly to Goodreads from Netgalley because ISBN didn't match? But I included a link to Goodreads review below)

In a world where elementals raise their heirs one girl is going to have to go on a quest to save hers when she goes missing. Aria has been raised by Wind, she loves their castle in the sky, floating, and her best friend Gwyn, a young gryphling. However one day Aria discovers that the wind is no longer around and that Wind is missing and theier castle has fallen to the ground. With Wind gone Aria and Gwyn have to go on an epic adventure, meet other elementals and heirs, and find a way to rescue her family before its too late. This was a magical and amazing read! Filled with magic, friendship, and family, this was such a lovely read and I would definitely recommend it for anyone who loves a good magical adventure.

*Thanks Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Kids, Sourcebooks Young Readers for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

A good middle grade read but not one that I'd return to. The quest that Aria goes on feels a bit rushed and I think I would have preferred her not to be as gullible and to have worked with the other 'lings' sooner in the quest to overcome the sinister alchemist.

**Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read an advanced e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own **

A child who loves an imaginative story about a quest might really enjoy this book, full of elemental spirits and an evil villain. However, the story lacks character depth. Aria feels flat, and though she is technically a round character, (she does learn a lesson) she still feels uninteresting. Part of the reason for that is the way that the story unfolds. The solutions to Aria and her friends' problems always seem to simply fall in their laps, rather than being the product of their own intelligence and ingenuity.

DNF.

The cover is absolutely stunning, but I stopped reading after a couple of pages. Too much infodumping. Boring beginning. It's super subjective, but I judge the book by it's first line.

Sorry.

I have to say I didn't dislike this book- I just tolerate it. The cover is gorgeous, and the plot had so much potential. For being a book with such high stakes, the tension and angst was not there. It was a quick read with a easy and fast pace. However, many aspects of the plot and characters needed to be developed more. The trials in the book were way too easily overcome. The plans worked too well. Everything just fell in place perfectly without any real setbacks. I found the writing to be alright, straightforward. The characters felt flat and very unreal. They needed more development.

Although the first few chapters are beautifully written, the rest of the book is easier and more straightforward. I can't say that I didn't enjoy this story though, maybe for an 8 year old it's a pleasant read as the adventure progresses quickly and continuously, but I did find it repetitive. I feel that this story could have been made much longer in favour of developing the world better, creating characters that were not so flat and that the trials that Aria has to go through were not so similar to each other. In the end it doesn't feel like a middle grade that can be enjoyed at any age like other middle grades, just easy middle grade book for 8's.

The use of imagery was amazing. I felt I was with Aria and Gwyn on their adventure to save clouds. Fast moving enough to keep our attention, but that does not mean the integrity of the content was affected.

This is a book that your child will want to read in one day.

Imagine a world without. A world that has been held hostage. It begins with Aria and Gwyn who wake up one morning to the first of many mysteries. They try to discover what is happening to their world. Their discovery turns into a quest and inevitably the chance to learn about he world around them. A young reader would quickly follow our duo from one task to the next. The plot moves quickly as friends band together to bring balance back to the world. We are reminded to appreciate all that this planet has to offer. Mischief, friendship, and marvel await the young reader.

A beautiful cover and story that gives Ghibli vibes. From having a castle in the sky to elementals, this book starts with an interesting premise of a girl (windling) who wants to save her parent “The Wind” that has been captured. Though there are some things about the book that are really enjoyable, at times things felt a little too easy. The tension didn’t seem to build as high as it could’ve and the relationships with the various characters that she meets could’ve been deeper/more developed.

MarcyKate Connolly's <i>A Breath of Mischief</i> is an adventure fantasy geared toward middle-grade readers. In the world of the novel, each of the four elements (Wind, Water, Earth, and Fire) have elemental rulers, who have their own kingdoms and children called, collectively, "otherlings"-- not-quite-human kiddos magically imbued with some of the powers of their parent element. Our main character, Aria, a "windling," has a pretty great life when the story begins. She lives in a castle in the clouds, flies around the skies with her gryphling (young gryphon) pal, Gwyn, entertains all manner of airborne creatures (including the occasional dragon), and falls asleep to the music of chimes while the Wind rustles her hair. One morning, Aria and Gwyn are alarmed to discover that the Wind is gone--and so are Aria's associated powers. The pair soon realize that the Wind is being held captive by an alchemist Worton, who agrees to release the Wind if Aria is able to retrieve three magical objects, hidden across the world. During their quest, Aria and Gwyn meet their fellow otherlings-- a waterling named Bay, an earthling named Terran, and a fireling named Brigid. It turns out that the stakes are even higher than Aria and Gwyn imagined, and it's going to take the otherlings and all manner of magical creatures to save the day.

This was a cute and enjoyable read. My favorite part of the book was the world-building that Connolly did-- it was a delight to read about this world full of magical creatures and living nature. I guessed all of the twists, but am also an adult, so maybe that is to be expected. I read one review that said the book didn't have much "bite," and I would agree with that. There were times throughout the book that we the reader were told "oh man, this could be really bad," but there was never really any suspense or worry that anything bad was actually going to happen. Still, the world Connolly creates is fun, and this was a fun way to kill a couple of hours.

3.5 stars, rounded to 4. Recommend for those interested in reading light middle grade without super high stakes.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for an honest review! This one releases in April 2023.

A by-the-numbers fairy tale

When you open A Breath of Mischief what you find inside is what it says on the label: an upbeat fairy tale about a little girl, Aria, who is (more-or-less -- genetic relationships are never entirely clear) the daughter of the Wind, and whose best friend is Gwyn, a griffling (young gryphon, I gather), on whose back she flies about. One day the Wind vanishes, and Aria and Gwyn go off on a quest to bring them back. She finds that the Wind is being held captive by a sinister alchemist named Worton, who sends her off to find three treasures. (BTW, that's all from the publisher's blurb, so no spoilers.) Thus we have a standard fairy tale quest. On her quest Aria makes new friends. There's an entirely predictable plot twist, etc.

I was less than thrilled by A Breath of Mischief for two reasons: (1) It was predictable, and (2) It had no bite. What I mean by "predictable" is obvious, but what do I mean by "no bite"?

Some books I remember from when I was a 6-12-year-old kid are The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Secret Garden, The Wind in the Willows, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlotte's Web, A Wrinkle in Time, Harriet the Spy, and so on. These books don't have much in common, but there is this: they have bite. I knew as I read them that what happened mattered. Bad things could happen, and did!

A Breath of Mischief doesn't have bite. Although there is a threat that bad things could happen, it never feels credible. The overall tone is one of such sweetness and light that you never believe, deep in your feels, that anything on the scale of Harriet's being abandoned by her friends is truly in the offing. I suspect that this was an intentional choice by Connolly to spare kids strong and possibly painful emotions. But it also has the effect of sparing the kids strong and possibly joyful emotions. Nothing really matters -- everything is very nice.

Well, the marketing for A Breath of Mischief pretty clearly indicates that "very nice" is what's on offer here. For that it gets three stars: it meets expectations.

I thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks kids for an advance reader's copy. Book to be released 4-Apr-2023.

ARC Copy...Another fantastic fantasy read from Connolly. This felt abit on the short side in terms of book length and more straight forward approach in terms of world building regarding the four classical elements and how they affect + maintain their world. Enjoyable to read.

I had enjoyed Shadow Weaver and Twin Daggers from MarcyKate Connolly, so I was excited to read this book from Ms. Connolly. It was a beautifully done children's novel with interesting characters and a great world. I was invested in what was going on, and I love the way MarcyKate Connolly writes.

"It takes us a full day to reach Worton’s domain. Gwyn’s endurance is pushed to the limits as we keep to the sky as much as possible and only pause for food and rest when absolutely necessary. It is the only way to make it there before the moon disappears."