T. Kingfisher

Fourteen-year-old Mona isn't like the wizards charged with defending the city. She can't control lightning or speak to water. Her familiar is a sourdough starter and her magic only works on bread. She has a comfortable life in her aunt's bakery making gingerbread men dance.But Mona's life is turned upside down when she finds a dead body on the bakery floor. An assassin is stalking the streets of Mona's city, preying on magic folk, and it appears that Mona is his next target. And in an embattled city suddenly bereft of wizards, the assassin may be the least of Mona's worries.

A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking

Sarah Sammis

A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher is another children's fantasy that Ursula Vernon couldn't get published under her actual name because it's so different from her Dragonbreath and Harriet Hamsterbone series. Her other recent children's fantasy is Minor Mage (2019) In this case, the trouble is that it opens with a dead body in a magical bakery, found by the fourteen year old protagonist, Mona.

Mona's age aside, my initial reaction to this opening chapter was to proclaim that T. Kingfisher was writing a cozy. Frankly, she got close to that with Paladin's Grace (2020). Other than this novel being set in a fantasy kingdom (really more of a city-state as Mona explains), where magic is known but not exactly commonplace, this book is no different than the set-up of the Magical Bakery mystery series by Bailey Cates.

3300FF - family city cornfield (or in this case, lots and lots of flour)

Fourteen-year-old Mona isn't like the wizards charged with defending the city. She can't control lightning or speak to water. Her familiar is a sourdough starter and her magic only works on bread. She has a comfortable life in her aunt's bakery making gingerbread men dance. But Mona's life is turned upside down when she finds a dead body on the bakery floor. An assassin is stalking the streets of Mona's city, preying on magic folk, and it appears that Mona is his next target. And in an embattled city suddenly bereft of wizards, the assassin may be the least of Mona's worries...

kayla 

stars ,, 5.0
cawpile ,, 10.0

want to read about dancing gingerbread-man golems fighting mercenaries? ,, this is your book!

i honestly can't express how much i loved this book. it was so fun 'n sweet and i cried, genuine sobs! this book was everything i wanted and more, it wasn't even on my tbr, i just saw the title and went,, yep, reading that now. the characters were fantastic,, and made me cry ,, the writing was impeccable (to the point of me forgetting where i was in real life for a hot minute) and the plot itself was so fun! would definitely recommend this! ,, definitely getting a physical copy noooowww ,, <3

This was probably the most charming of all the Kingfisher books I've read so far. It was so whimsical. I loved the idea of this wizard who uses her powers to bake and would rather make gingerbread men dance than fight a war. Mona is such a young, naïve character who gets thrust into saving her entire town, and I liked how she did everything on her terms. I liked watching her grow into her powers and gain confidence in her abilities. I loved all the baking elements. Bob, the sourdough starter, and the gingerbread man stole the show. If you're looking for a quick, fun fantasy that feels more middle-grade, I recommend checking it out.

Heather Harrington

Fourteen-year-old Mona isn't like the wizards charged with defending the city. She can't control lightning or speak to water. Her familiar is a sourdough starter and her magic only works on bread. She has a comfortable life in her aunt's bakery making gingerbread men dance.But Mona's life is turned upside down when she finds a dead body on the bakery floor. An assassin is stalking the streets of Mona's city, preying on magic folk, and it appears that Mona is his next target. And in an embattled city suddenly bereft of wizards, the assassin may be the least of Mona's worries¿

It was pretty fun ! I didn't expect to enjoy a cozy fantasy although the stakes were a bit high for a 

But the ideas were fun and i couldn't help thinking of Shrek when imagining some cookie Soldiers haha

Amira BEN

It was pretty fun ! I didn't expect to enjoy a cozy fantasy although the stakes were a bit high for a cozy fantasy that is

But the ideas were fun and i couldn't help thinking of Shrek when imagining some cookie Soldiers haha

Death by sourdough, an army of dead horses, a familiar made of gingerbread. This was good solid fun and perfect for a weekend morning. In between the baking and the ferocious aunts and the murder there's a seriousness too - the cruelty of separatism and  distrust of what you don't know or can't understand. 

Although the characters are so young (14 and 10) it's not necessarily a children's book (though I'm sure they would enjoy it), and Kingfisher does an excellent job of capturing the frustration of being young and not having adults take you seriously, as well as the frustration of being young and adults not being grown-up enough to deal with the situation and leaving it to the children. 

Mostly though, this book is whimsical, cozy, and delighting in magic. 

It will also make you hungry for blueberry muffins.

hat carter

Death by sourdough, an army of dead horses, a familiar made of gingerbread. This was good solid fun and perfect for a weekend morning. In between the baking and the ferocious aunts and the murder there's a seriousness too - the cruelty of separatism and  distrust of what you don't know or can't understand. 

Although the characters are so young (14 and 10) it's not necessarily a children's book (though I'm sure they would enjoy it), and Kingfisher does an excellent job of capturing the frustration of being young and not having adults take you seriously, as well as the frustration of being young and adults not being grown-up enough to deal with the situation and leaving it to the children. 

Mostly though, this book is whimsical, cozy, and delighting in magic. 

It will also make you hungry for blueberry muffins.

Nikki Milton

While I expected this to be a fun, quick read, I didn’t expect it to have so much heart.

The story itself was certainly good and gripping, but maybe just a touch cliche? That's not to speak I'll of it of course, I was definitely invested. But it was the characters that really gripped me! All the characters from Mona to Knackering Molly to The Duchess to Bob, all characters were just so interesting and unique! 

Ari Rose

Mona is a teenage magica who has an unremarkable power. She can magic dough and batter. Bread, cookies, cake, etc. She is happy working with her aunt in the family bakery. She makes sure they have the most tasty pastries and nothing burns. Sometimes she makes the stale gingerbread cookies dance and there is a carnivorous sourdough starter in the basement. (Don't go down there uninvited). One day she finds a dead body when she arrives to open the bakery. She gets interrogated, accused, and pulled into a mystery and politics that she never imagined. But she does find some allies and some help along the way. The tone is whimsical and full of dry, dark humor. Things get really weird and I had a lot of fun. This reads as upper middlegrade but fun for adults as well. Lots of people are calling this cozy fantasy, and I think that fits pretty well. Good for humor and slightly quirky fairytale asmosphere. The tone and humor will not work for everyone, as it is a very personal taste. But try it out and see.

Cheryl Hedlund

Ashley Steele

This has to be my favorite personal read for 2023 so for. I just could not put the book down. I stayed up way past my sleeping hour just to continue on. Highly recommend.

Super cute and fun read. I would have definitely loved this book in middle school, but found the unique magic very interesting. I wish there was more depth to the characters and the ending of the book lost me a little bit. Overall it was a wholesome story and I enjoyed it. 

🌞Laur🌞

Light-hearted, but extremely impactful YA fantasy story with quite a unique magic system. As T. Kingfisher noted in the acknowledgements, this story is now relevant more than ever. A must read! 

(Bre)anne✨

TW to be added later

Light-hearted, but extremely impactful YA fantasy story with quite a unique magic system. As T. Kingfisher noted in the acknowledgements, this story is now relevant more than ever. A must read! 

abby

Could’ve used a little more depth in characters but it was sweet cute & easy to get thru I would’ve loved this in middle school

I love it! It's so fun.. I just love Kingfisher's writing.

Ilona Labská 

I was looking forward to this book. The story is nice and unique. I instantly fell for the young wizard Mona, her gingerbread cookie familiar and sourdough Bob. It kept me entertained for a while. I need more books from T. Kingfisher.

Stephanie Ridiculous

So. Cute. So. Wholesome.

An absolute delight.

Raag Sudha

** spoiler alert **
           Very cute book that was quite wholesome and got me back into reading properly! The premise of a minor wizard with only baking powers was what got me hooked and the dead girl in the bakery definitely kept me wanting more. But I low-key lost interest towards the very end because the battle chapters were a little drawn out and I ended up just reading it to finish it rather than because I was gripped. Loved the writing style though, and the protagonist is so likeable with a kind and pure heart. Overall a very wholesome read that’s sufficiently engaging!

banger novel. it is so funny to me that the castle wizards are named elgar, gildaen, and ethan.

Sophie 

A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking was a fun whimsical time and I enjoyed it. My favourite characters were all made of dough, and there was magic, and mystery, and a battle (that was my favourite part). It was one of those books I'll probably never reread, but it offered a lighthearted (sort of- the book starts out with a murder) break from the real world, which was much needed.

It follows our protagonist Mona, who can magic bread. Its not entirely uncommon in her world, wizards could be anyone. Ranging from the girl in the market who can talk to fruit, to the old lady down the street who can reanimate dead horses. But when she finds a dead body in her aunt's bakery, wizards everywhere start to go missing. Could this be part of a larger ploy to leave the city defenceless? Mona ends up caught in a fight much too large for a fourteen year old girl, with a lot resting on her shoulders. 

Paola C

This book was a super fun read. 

It follows 14 year old Mona who is a bread wizard. She somehow ends up being the only wizard left in the village and ends up discovering a plan to overthrow the Duchess and needs to help her win the battle or else her village is lost.

4.5 stars - this is a very funny, but also sometimes sad and slightly dark fantasy tale about a baker's assistant who discovers a dead body one morning as she enters the bakery. She's also a wizard whose magic works only on dough and various forms of bread. She has a lump of sourdough and a gingerbread man as funny sidekicks, and also makes friends with a street kid who teaches her how to survive when things suck. 

The story is about a murder mystery, there are dark echoes of totalitarianism and ethnic cleansing (view spoiler)[(all wizards either have to leave town or are murdered) (hide spoiler)], and finally there's an army threatening the city while its usual defenders are away. And our heroine has only bread magic and sourdough. Can you defend a city with that?

For me, this was 4.5 stars, almost 5, and I can very much recommend it, especially as a winter holiday read: there's lots of yummy baking going on and despite of its dark themes, it always manages to maintain a warm and lighthearted tone. 

This was also a very fast read for me: I practically flew through this book and was incredibly well entertained on every page. 

Why not a full 5 stars? I felt that it had such rich themes and such a wonderful premise that even more could have been made of it, we could have gone into much more detail concerning the magic system, the world, etc. But maybe this will become a series, it certainly has the potential.

Iween Suni

T. Kingfisher’s A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking is a (dark) middle grade fantasy story that follows fourteen year old magic-wielder and baker, Mona, whose life that has so far only ever known the world from behind the counter of her and her aunt’s bakery, is whipped into a frenzy the day she finds a dead body in the bakery.

And what a frenzy it is.

I’ve had many pauses in between reading this but I came back each time delighted and entertained and moved by Mona’s story. It is an epic with bursts of humour and a lot of heart and beautifully, some of the most unexpected profound messages that I looked to fondly in the thought that this story came at a time when the world was struck by the need to fight to obtain justice against prejudice; against wrong.

I am left feeling so much love for this story - and what is more filling than one so baked and magicked into life as this?

Ben Nathan

This is definitely my top Lodestar (at the moment). Delightful start to finish. Such an interesting magic system that was well executed. I loved all the bread creatures and how everyone interacted. Perfect ending. Can I have more please?

A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking

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