Stefan Bachmann

Cinders and Sparrows

A suspenseful tale of witches, family, and magic from internationally bestselling author Stefan Bachmann. When a twelve-year-old orphan unexpectedly becomes the mistress of a seemingly abandoned castle, she is thrust into a mysterious plot involving murderous spells, false identity, and a magical battle of wills between the living and the dead. Readers of Kate Milford's Greenglass House, Victoria Schwab's City of Ghosts, and Diana Wynne Jones will be riveted. Twelve-year-old Zita, an orphan and a housemaid, has resigned herself to a life of drudgery when a strange letter arrives, naming her the only living heir to the Brydgeborn fortune. Now the mistress of the castle, Zita soon realizes foul play led to the death of her family. And as she is guided through lessons in the art of witchcraft by the somewhat mysterious Mrs. Cantanker, Zita begins to wonder who is friend and who is foe. Unforgettable and utterly enchanting, this stand-alone tale about family, belonging, and friendship will bewitch readers of Tahereh Mafi’s Whichwood, Katherine Arden’s Small Spaces, and Diana Wynne Jones’s Howl’s Moving Castle. Cinders & Sparrows is a magical page-turner by the author of The Peculiar, the acclaimed international bestseller.

Loved the plot, looking forward to the reread!

Susan

laura

Overal I liked this book. I really liked how this book focused on witches and witch powers. I liked the characters but did not love them. I also felt a bit disconnected from them. I overall liked the pace and the plot and really liked how this book would be a good book to read in the fall because its had a light ereiry hint. I also really liked the house and the set of this story. I would def check out more reads by the author in the future.

Sarah Willhite

*2.5 out of 5 stars*
So.... I have some thoughts. This was very cute and autumnal. I was disappointed though because I just had so many high hopes for this. I wasn't really in the mood for this so I think that effected my enjoyment with this book. There were some things I enjoyed and other things that annoyed me. 

 So we are thrust into this magical, witchy world where this young girl named Zita is an orphan and Zita doesn't know where she belongs. She is a housemaid for a woman named Mrs. Boliver. One day a scarecrow delivers a letter addressed to Zita that she inherited the Blackbird Castle. When she arrives, there is a women Mrs. Cantanker who is sure Zita is not who she says she is. Once Zita takes a test and proves she is a witch Mrs. Cantanker teaches her witchy things. This is a coming of age middle grade about witches with those very nice autumnul vibes. Even though the synopsis sounds so amazing, the book follows it but it takes a turn and kind of gets off track. The good thing though, I was flying through it and it was such a quick read. 

 One thing I really disliked though, was the fact that no one was who they said they were in the end. So it ended up getting really repetative and annoying. I also never really connected with any of the characters. The only thing that kept me going through this book was the fact that I was reading about 2 and 1/2 pages per minute and that I could fufill two Magical hop-a-thon prompts with this book. I still liked some elements of the story but most of the time I was not invested in the story.

 I definately stiil want to read more of Stefan Bachmann's books because he can really write well but this one just wasn't it for me. I think for some people, this would be a 5 star read but for others and myself it just didn't hit home. It definatly depends on your mood at the time. Overall, I thought it was cute and I somewhat enjoyed it.

Cinders and Sparrows

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