Once There Was by Kiyash Monsef is a unique entry into the realm of fantasy novels for middle-grade readers. Marjan Dastani feels like a very real teenager who is reacting in very real ways to her world being totally upended. She learns after her father's murder that she is the latest in an ancient Iranian line of people who have a connection with mythological creatures - which are real. But unlike many other books in this genre, Marjan largely has to navigate this discovery on her own with a few friends who she can't share everything with. She's not whisked off to a special school or handed over to a wise guide; instead, she has to trust her instincts and the wisdom of ancient stories her father told her. The book does a good job of keeping the reader in the dark as to who are the "good guys" and "bad guys", and the motivations for each are more complex than just black and white. This will be appealing to middle-grade readers who don't want easy answers or obvious platitudes - and want to believe unicorns exist.

This one is going to be a must-buy for my middle school and high school readers. It's a beautiful fantasy rooted in the real world. The importance of tradition and ritual mixed with modern technology and concerns is well done.

This one was interesting. Because parts of it, I loved. But other parts had me making every excuse to avoid reading. I loved every scene with the magical creatures, and I loved the explanations as to how they balanced the world. I did enjoy our main character as a person, there's something special about main characters who still believe in the good of the world. I just think this one got a bit too wordy and long. If it had stayed at 250-350 pages, it might have been something I enjoyed reading.

Thanks to Turn the Page Tours for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!


READING PROGRESS

Once There Was is a story of a high school Iranian-American girl whose father was murdered. While trying to discover who murdered her father, she realizes that he was not just an ordinary veterinarian. He was descended from a line of healers whose primary job is to heal mythical creatures. Thus begins the story of Marjan, who is thrown into her father's world of magic and betrayal. The story is fast paced and at times a bit scary. (The manticore is truly terrifying.) I love how the story is broken up with various myths about the creatures that are encountered. They all begin with, "Once there was, once there wasn't." This delightful book will be popular for fans of Rick Riordan. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

This 416 page book is incredible. The detail and the story, and the wonder of it all, is just what I needed to sweep me off my feet and show me a world of fantasy creatures and abilities, while also being grounded in the reality of a mysteriously murdered parent, loss, and being forced to grow up too fast. I acquired it wondering if the Persian heritage author writing an Iranian American character might have some Islamic threads in the book, and aside from a djinn revealing, there was none. But that's ok, because once started, there is no way to stop reading this upper middle grade magical realism tale. It is truly one of those books that you wish you could read again for the first time as you begin to be absorbed by the details of forgotten stories manifesting in Marjan's new reality. The book is remarkably "clean," and the relationships with the side characters layered and developed. The book is fantasy, there is death, murder, killing, loss, secrecy, deception, manipulation, a possible crush, a few side female characters with boyfriends, a witch, and a unicorn that is the source of all life. But there is also a dragon that lives in a teapot. The story is based in our reality with the fantasy world building coming from Persian stories that begin with "Once was, once wasn't" (Yeki bood, yeki nabood). And because good story telling is just good story telling, this book may be listed as being for 10 and up, but I think teens, and adults, will enjoy this story and not be phased by the reading age recommendation at all.

Once There Was is more than a wonderful fantasy. It is also a gentle reminder that we can do better in preserving our world, in protecting wildlife, in putting others' needs above our own.

Marjan has had a difficult life. Her mother died from cancer when she was 7, and her father just died a month ago. He was killed, and Marjan wants to know who did it. She inherited his veterinary clinic, which barely scrapes by. But more than anything, she wants to know what he hid from her and why there is a piece of her missing. Her best friends Grace and Carrie are trying to understand her, but her anger and emptiness makes it hard to get close to her. Marjan has stopped attending school, because she knows her classmates won't know what to say to her. Her neighbor, Mrs. Francesca Wix, is her guardian, providing food occasionally, supervision and signatures when needed, and love all of the time. She is one of the people who kept an eye on Marjan when her dad had to leave on mysterious business trips.

Then, someone comes to the clinic and gives her a first class ticket to England, telling her she's needed to heal an animal. Marjan has no veterinary training, and has no idea why anyone would think she can help, but she's curious about her father, and the person who brings her the information promises they will help her find who killed him. When she arrives in England, she finds a sick griffon. She may not be a vet, but when she touches the griffon, she can sense what is wrong with him. The owner's son, Sebastian, quickly becomes her friend as she tries to figure out what this special gift means, and why her father never told her anything about it.

She remembers all of the folk tales from Iran, his homeland, that he had told her, and is amazed to realize they are real. She meets the other players in the magical creatures world, and has to decide for herself what is right and wrong when it comes to taking care of the animals.

I can't say enough about the writing and the storytelling in this book. It is luminous, and makes you feel everything the characters are feeling. The author interspersed folk tales among the main story, illuminating the creatures she's seeing, and it made me want to pick up a book of Iranian folk tales. But beyond the story of how Marjan learns about this hidden world, there are lessons on how to be a friend, how to care for our world, how absolute power corrupts absolutely, and how to navigate the world when you aren't sure about anything.

I absolutely loved this book! Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book.

Once There Was by Kiash Mosef is an impressive story of a young girl who loses her father and then finds out he has been a veterinarian to mythical beasts that she thought only existed in his stories he told her. When she has to take his place she finds strange creatures to take care of and new friends, all while trying to carry on her normal life as a high school student.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy. The Iranian-American Marjan has to take over her father's secret fantasy-animal vet life after his death. The first chapter will make you think twice about unicorns, and the murder mystery and descriptions of magical animals keep the reader's attention. The djinn appearance was my personal favorite. The themes of grief, friendship, and resilience can all be discussed. I appreciate that this is a clean novel that I can keep on my classroom shelf. While there is closure, I felt slightly unsatisfied with the ending and wished it could have been happier.

This is a really lovely book. It is almost similar to folktales. I love the animals and the fantasy within this book.
Lots going on, but made it interesting and keeps you wanting more..

Thanks NetGalley & the publisher for this ARC!

I nice different book with its Iranian folktales and the magic animals of the world. Truly enjoyable and an original.