Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! Unfortunately, as this book has already been published, I will not share my review on Netgalley at this time.

What a grand adventure!

I did not know going in that this was part of a series, and now I have to get my hands on the others because this book was amazing and left me with so many questions.

Fans of books like The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, or The Phantom Tollbooth will find this adventurous, humorous tale to one they want to share with not only the young readers in their lives, but also any reader who just needs to be reminded that reading can be fun.

I read this to my son and we both enjoyed it. We did get a little lady since this book is a part of a series, but otherwise, a fun story, that maybe we need to start from the beginning. Thank you to Netgalley.com for this ARC and the opportunity to read it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book, as this book has already been published, I will not share my review on Netgalley at this time.

The Astonishing Chronicles of Oscar from Elsewhere takes us on a thrilling journey as Oscar, a regular Australian boy, discovers a magical world of Kingdoms and Empires. Joined by familiar faces like Bronte, Alessandro, and Esther, along with the new additions of Imogen and Astrid, the dynamics between the characters add depth to this enchanting adventure. Moriarty's world-building skillfully introduces elements of good and bad magic, fairies, elves, and witches, accompanied by a cast of charming and exasperating adults.

While the quest to find nine keys became slightly repetitive, the exploration of themes surrounding parental abandonment resonates profoundly. Moriarty's ability to express this shared experience through Oscar and Imogen is commendable, making this book an enjoyable read despite its minor flaws.

This is my 2nd experience with Moriarty's work and one of the elements that I love about this particular series is how each installment can be read on its own. I have never read books 1 and 2 in the Kingdom and Empires series but I have read book 3. Having not read books 1 and 2, I am testament that it does not in fact ruin the overall experience, any characters that have come from the earlier books are given just enough information of that I don't feel like I need to go back and read the earlier installments. Every character fits in the story nice and cozy and with each book focusing on a whole and completed story you never feel like you missed out on vital information.

Oscar from Elsewhere is absolutely brimming with adventure from start to finish. Oscar is transported to another world where magic exists and meets all the lovely characters from the earlier books,and promptly gets wrapped up in going on an adventure to save an elf kingdom. Its dual point of view and I still love how in the point of views the characters talk to the reader, since its technically them writing a report to their teacher about where they have been for the last week. Its such a fun and silly way to keep the reader engaged with the on going tale.

As the story went on there started to be a focus on themes of different types of parent abandonment, anxiety, and ignorance to learning behaviors (meaning Oscars teacher ignored the fact that he had a concentration problem and kept writing him off as a bad kid) Moriarty handles these topics really well and does a spectacular job at showing them from a child's' perspective. The kids had moments where they got along and where they did not, but eventually learned that its okay to talk about their problems and that they dont need to keep everything bottled up to themselves.

Its all around a fast paced high adventure story with a great cast of characters!

I read this trying to anticipate what my younger cousins would like. I was a bit heavier than I was looking for, but still a solid book. The formating of it on the digital preview made it a bit hard to follow. I'm not sure if the formating just got messed up when sent to kindle, or if there are typesetting changes that did not transfer well to a digital form. Solid 3-stars.

A good plot line with strong characters and alright world building, it was an enjoyable read. I might recommend it to a friend.

A fun new entry into Jaclyn Moriarty's series that began with Bronte Mettlestone. This time a boy from Australia is swept up in the world of the many Mettlestone cousins and embarks on a quest to save an Elven city. It is silly and colorful and truly delightful. The great thing about this series is you can drop in at anytime and still follow the plot. This would be a high interest read for middle grade readers of all ages.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-galley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I cannot believe I did not know this was book 4 in a series! I am obsessed and cannot wait to read the rest and THEN get them in the hands of my students. (Maybe I'll let my students read them first, but not guaranteed!) The blurb sounded a bit chaotic for me at the beginning, but wow, did the author deliver a delightful story that I couldn't put down!

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

Oscar from elsewhere reads like a modern version of the Wizard of Oz, in the best way possible.
There's witches and fairies, magic and a quest, children looking for their purpose. Parents who try but do not try enough to care for their family.

The narrative style with two POVs helps immerse into the world in which Ocar is transported and stranger to, as the other POV is of an inhabitant of this world.

The small hints towards questioning whether technology is really necessary to survive, the importance of being true to yourself and how to deal with prejudice made this an incredible read.

Six children, a troublemaker elf, a treacherous quest. A race against time, tripped over by magic.

Can they free the Elven city before it gets crushed by a mountain of silver? Will Oscar ever return to his world? This fast-paced adventure will make you hold your breath on more than one occasion.

At first, I thought this story was the Astonishing Chronicles of Anyone BUT Oscar from Elsewhere because his being part of the group seems irrelevant most of the time. But in the second part, I was proven wrong and hit by my ignorance. Especially chapter 76 had me sobbing, and the end made me see how wrong I was and that even a 6-year-old elf is wiser than me.

The writing style was fantastic. I enjoyed switching between Oscar and Imogen telling us about their adventure. And the way Jaclyn Moriarty plays with language gave the book an especially immersive experience. Throughout the book, I had to think of Gary Provost's teachings: "The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. […] And sometimes, when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals–sounds that say listen to this, it is important.” Jaclyn absolutely nailed this.

Even though this is book 4 in the Kingdoms and Empires series, this book can be read as a standalone. I have not read the first three books, but now I am so curious to get a deeper understanding of the characters that I will go back and begin from the start.

I enjoyed this book immensely and recommend it to everyone who likes A Series of Unfortunate Events mixed with magic like in Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard.

Years ago I read A CORNER OF WHITE by Jaclyn Moriarty, and I remember really liking her writing style and the way that her characters have a lot going on inside them. It was also a portal book, so I figured another portal book by Moriarty would be a good idea.

And it was. Just like her other book, I found this one to have a great cast of characters. I enjoyed the banter and layered emotions between them. Though it’s the fourth book in the series, I didn’t have any trouble following what was happening. There are some references to events that happened before this book began, some of them from previous books in the series, but they were explained well enough for me to follow. This adventure features characters from earlier books in the series, but it’s a pretty self-contained adventure.

The only thing I wish had been a little different is that the characters had many conversations or arguments. They were always quippy and fun, so the scenes weren’t boring. I guess after a while, it didn’t feel fresh anymore? Despite that, I still enjoyed the conversations between the characters.

I think readers who enjoy portal books, especially books about magical quests, will find a lot to love in this book. The storytelling is pretty gentle, but there’s a lot of humor and fun.

The Astonishing Chronicles of Oscar from Elsewhere by Jaclyn Moriarty is the fourth instalment in the Kingdoms and Empires series. This book follows a boy named Oscar who is transported from our world (Elsewhere) to the world of the Kingdoms and Empires where he meets characters from the previous books: Bronte, Alejandro and the sisters Imogen, Astrid and Esther. The children discover an Elvish village which has been spelled to have layers and layers of silver on top of it, trapping everyone except for one lone elf from the village. They must go on a quest to find the pieces of a key that will stop this from becoming permanent.
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This is a huge adventure that requires courage and smarts to solve the riddles. They meet many interesting people including gnomes, witches and a sterling silver fox.
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I have loved all of the previous books in this series and this one does not disappoint. Oscar gives a fresh new perspective on this magical world, all the while his new-found friends find the references to Oscar’s world baffling. There is mystery, adventure and friendship. The illustrations by Kelly Canby add just the right touch, giving us a brief look into the world. The cover also, is so pretty. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.
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It is quite a thick volume which may be daunting to some so I think this would be a great book to read with your child (if they are a bit younger) or independently for slightly older children (10+).

I loved The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone, but this follow-up failed to grab me. The back-and-forth was abrupt. Moreover, the formatting of the e-arc I received was difficult to follow and prevented me from engaging effectively with the story. I was very disappointed with this title from an author I've previously enjoyed, and the first 10% was such a struggle to read that I ultimately did not finish the book. Hopefully other fans of Kingdoms and Empires will enjoy book 4 more than I did.

The story starts with Oscar who is assigned to write a report about the reasons why he was absent from school for the whole week, and that is what this book is about.

This book has dual pov. Usually, a story with dual pov would feel separated. Each character tells their own story with their own perspective. But not in this book. Like I said before, this book is supposed to be Oscar's report, but there is another person who also writes in it, Imogen. And throughout this book they write back to each other, and it is so fun to read.

Oscar From Elsewhere is a fun middle-grade story about a boy who gets carried through a mirror to an Elfin world. The story moves nicely through the mission that Oscar, Imogen, and the rest of the group are on, and that is to save the Elves from the sleeping curse. I found that it was a bit odd at the beginning until it settled in. The characters were fun and tweens should find them engaging. All in all, this is a silly middle-grade story that kids will enjoy.

First I would like to thank NetGalley, and the publisher for the eArc I received which in no way bias' my review.

The middle grade fantasy world that Moriarty develops is big enough to entertain, small enough to be easy to follow, and once I started reading I knew I wasn't going to be able to put it down.

"The Astonishing Chronicles of Oscar from Elsewhere" will be great for your child to read by themself, or an adult to read at bedtime. It has great characters, and a magical parallel realm that has everything you could want! Witches, Elfs, and, Genies, are just some of the great fantastical elements woven between the pages.

The story is told as an accounting of events from the two main characters, Oscar, and Imogen. Readers will relate to them both immediately, and cheer for them throughout their quest to save the Elfs, and their city. Oscar, a 12 year old skateboarder from modern day earth is thrust into a storybook adventure with Imogen, native to the realm, but the only person without powers, in an overpowered family.

I absolutely loved this novel, and can't overstate that enough. It brought back a whiff of old memories, and left me with such a great taste in my mouth. It read so nicely, and developed the characters so well that I had no idea that it was the fourth in a series until I started to research after I finished it. I can't wait to read them all to my toddler!

A wonderful and magical story for Middle grades. A strong and varied team ventures to save a town of elves by going on a quest for nine keys. Moments of fun and adventure but also more serious themes of love, family and trust, this is a wonderful read alone or read aloud story.

I was provided with a digital ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I quickly fell in love with the world that Moriarty created in her Kingdoms & Empires series. This is middle grades fantasy at its best -- the kind that provides incredibly detailed world-building with just enough whimsy to make you giggle, but characters who can tug at your heartstrings too.

Oscar from Elsewhere is a great addition to this series. Part of me wants to say that I hope students will see themselves in Oscar, but part of me doesn't want to say that because I hope that students are never made to feel the way Oscar is made to feel by his teachers and principal. There's so much good stuff here -- the character development, the ongoing mystery with its riddles and puzzles, the world-building.

My only complaint is that a few of the narrative choices felt a little *too* convenient, but overall this was a great story. Fun and heartwarming.