Skip to main content

Book Review: Octavia Bloom and the Missing Key

OCTAVIA BLOOM AND THE MISSING KEY by Estelle Grace Tudor

5 Stars

Verdict: A beautiful book, through and through. 


When eccentric Great Aunt Clara comes to stay in the Bloom's family castle, Octavia learns she's the keeper of the key for a magical fairyland. However, her family has a secret, one that involves finding rare flowers in order to break a curse. Although Octavia should protect fairyland and stay in the human world, the last flower to break the curse can only be found through the door. 

Octavia is clever and mischievous, so she's the perfect heroine for this tale. Her sister Fliss is protective and caring, making her a great side kick for this first book. I hear from the author that each book will focus on a different character, so this is Octavia's chance to shine.  

I loved Great Aunt Clara and Grandma. They're the sisters who were the past keepers of fairyland who have very different ideals about the hidden world, and they bounced off each other well. The book sets up a complex family history which I can't wait to learn more about. I wanted to know more about the past stories around fairyland, as well as Octavia's adventure. 

The cousins join Octavia and Fliss for the adventure, but they weren't too developed in this book. I think they could have played a bigger part in the story and showed more personality. I know they're going to be fleshed out more throughout the series, but I think there was space to do that in this book as things still happened to them which could have had a stronger meaning if explored a bit more. It felt like a missed opportunity, but didn't detract too much from the overall read.

All in all, this is an excellent first book to what I think will be a wonderful series. 

Source: Thanks you Estelle for proving a paperback copy. 

Buy the book and support the blog:  https://amzn.to/3i8uJsd

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Your Best Character: Quiz and Contest

The best characters are put through hell and yet can still carry the story forward on their broken shoulders. Your plot will fall flat if your characters are one dimensional and strong characters can make a cliché story really shine; characterisation takes work and thought. The key to character development is to ask questions. Maybe spend time thinking about the scenarios that have happened to your character which won’t make the final cut of the novel. The questions below are designed to test that (to some degree). [NOW CLOSED, REVIEWS PENDING] Answer at least 5 of these in a comment with a link to your story and I’ll give you an in-depth review. Reviews are approximately 1000 words and take me well over an hour, so if you’re looking to polish up your manuscript then don’t miss out. Also, the opening chapter with the most interesting and well-developed character will be featured on this blog! Feel free to write about anyone as long as they feature in the same story. You can ans...

Opening Chapter: Quiz and Contest

The opening chapter is pivotal. It needs to draw in an intended audience – it needs flare and promise of things to come, with writing that earns the reader’s trust, luring them into the next chapter.  I’ve made a quick quiz to test whether your opening has what it takes. You don’t need all of these things for a good chapter. Hell, I bet there are a few I’ve forgotten too! Answer each of the following using evidence from your opening. If you can’t, then maybe you need to spice up the chapter. 1) Is your opening line unique, scene setting, or hooking? 2) What makes your character unique? 3) Pick out your best line of description. 4) Pick out your quirkiest line. 5) Is the genre and sub-genres obvious? 6) Is it clean from silly mistakes – have you read through more than 10 times? 7) Does it end on a cliff-hanger? 8) What makes it different from other novels in that genre? 9) Does it start close to the action? 10) Are you happy with it?...

Show Vs. Tell: Round 1

Hands up if a critic has told you ‘show don’t tell’ (SDT). Keep that hand up if you found it rather unhelpful at the time or if that critic didn’t elaborate much. Yes, it’s a pesky phrase. Showing rather than telling can be a pretty powerful tool, and here's what it really means: Showing brings your words to life, creates imagery, and lets the reader know exactly what’s going on. It doesn’t tell you facts explicitly, but builds an idea in your head so that usually you understand it in far more detail than you would have. Good writing makes you realise a fact without being told it straight. As a writer it forces you to explore your imagination further really think about your story and your characters. It adds depth. *But showing is not always better than telling.* Telling adds pace. It moves the story along and sums up ideas that may be unclear if let to just showing. It doesn’t try to add detail to a relatively boring fact. It lets you know what piece of information is imp...