The Miraculous Sweetmakers: The Frost Fair: The perfect illustrated children’s fantasy adventure

Product Information

If you are looking for a magical tale to keep you warm and entertained this winter season, The Miraculous Sweetmakers is the book for you! Bestselling author Alexandra Christo, author of TikTok sensation To Kill a Kingdom, introduces her new book, The Night Hunt (Hot Key Books), a dark...

The ending was really the cherry on the cake for me. On the one hand, we had the happy ending and seeing Anne and Thomasina’s friendship and dreams blossoming and seeing the multiple journey threads tying together with the characters that came together. On the other, it was a little bittersweet, because Thomasina’s dream, the wish that had driven her so far and nearly cost so much was out of reach; and yet that in itself made for a perfect and fulfilling ending, and the last scene with her and Inigo was both heart breaking and heart-warming and was an important step in dealing with grief. As Thomasina continues to visit the Other Frost Fair she helps her father sell their sweets and biscuits on at the Thames Frost Fair, befriending Anne Hawke a young woman who has just moved to London with her uncle to open an apothecary. Anne dreams of opening her own shop and as their friendship grows the girls develop a business plan which combines both their talents; Anne’s apothecary skills and knowledge of herbs and Thomasina’s sweet making and baking. Together they make a range of medicinal sweets which they are given permission by Thomasina’s father and Anne’s uncle to sell at the Frost Faire once their normal duties are done. Their sweets sell incredibly well, and they start to develop more products. The Frost Fair” by Natasha Hastings had a heart wrenching beginning, fascinating middle, and a happy ending. The author kept me guessing throughout the story with vivid imagery and magical details sprinkled throughout. I loved how this story took place in London during the winter of 1683. It was fascinating to learn how people lived turning that time – wildly different and yet familiar in many ways. I also loved how clever Anne and Thomasina were to create medicinal sweets to sell on the river!Something else I absolutely loved here was the disability representation. Not only do we see mental illness represented in a book for children and in such a setting, asthma is also being represented and I think it has been very well done. I myself have been suffering from asthma since my early childhood and I don’t think I have ever come across a book where this has been a theme, so that was really nice to see (even though what happened here was really sad). A heartwarming, wintry treat of a read perfect to snuggle up with on cold, snowy days’ Hannah Gold, bestselling author of The Last Bear The writing was beautiful and very fluid, giving the story a whimsical and cosy feel, which made me not want to put it down at all. Life and health willing I’m sure I could easily have read this in a single sitting. I also loved how it ended and how wholesome and heart-warming it was when everything came together. Hastings has the wisdom to realise that young children are more than capable of dealing with nuance and what some might call a 'mature' theme of grief, in a way that is not heavy handed nor evasive, but in the language that everyone has always known - good story.

Can you feel rhythm? It's poetic, almost song-like. I'd wager a serious sum of money that within this book there is a broader vocabulary (that never feels out of place or done for the sake of it) than in most adult fiction titles.

Synopsis

With another two books in the series, Natasha is currently working on the second, which is due to be published in early 2024. Both follow-ups will feature the same characters but facing different areas to explore and new magical systems. As the story continues things begin to change after Thomasina’s visits the other frost fair and we find out more about this strange magical place and the dark and creepy atmosphere emitted by some of the Frost Folk and Father Winter. After the second time we see Father Winter I did guess what was happening with him and Thomasina but I didn’t know anything else about how this story would go and it was so brilliant and I like how weird and eerie everything is along with Inigo’s character who is more interesting the further you read on. The descriptions of this fantastical night-time spectacle are so richly imaginative; I particularly loved the Frost Beasts who only accept Thomasina's presence there on special terms. However, as captivating as it may be, there's a creeping sense of foreboding and this is a rather chilling book, in more ways than one. It's not just a tale about the impossible though, and as with all the best stories, there are more relatable subjects examined here too. The book's winter cold setting contrasts the warm, heartfelt message of this story. It's like a warm hug on a cold day. A winter-ful debut novel. Alex’s intricate, magical illustrations perfectly replicate Natasha’s sensitive story. There’s movement and depth in every stroke, adding grace laced with a smattering of magic as the story embraces sorrow and hope with plenty of action and emotion along the way.

This reminds me of dark autumn Sunday evenings watching the BBC adaptations of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe and The Box of Delights with my family. The Miraculous Sweetmakers: The Frost Fair by Natasha Hastings is a heart-warming middle-grade historical fantasy that I finished a few days ago and loved every minute of. It was actually a really long read and despite how ill I’ve been feeling this week, I would have loved to follow these characters’ journey for a lot longer, so I hope it will be a series.Despite the nice things though, there are also tragic and very sad elements to this story – as well as some very dark fantastical elements which is why, despite the rather fun and colourful looking cover, I wouldn’t recommend this book to too young readers. On its surface, The Miraculous Sweetmakers is perhaps set apart by its setting - it's a magical tale set in a historic frosty London - where the river Thames has frozen over. This in itself is a unique location. But as book readers - both young and old - know all too well, a setting does not make a story! The synopsis says: "It’s a cold winter during the Great Frost of 1683. Thomasina and Anne are the best of friends: one runs her father’s sweet shop, while the other is an apprentice at the family apothecary, and together they sell their goods on the frozen River Thames. When a family tragedy turns Thomasina’s world upside down, she is drawn to a mysterious conjuror and an enchanted frost fair, but soon the world of Father Winter threatens to claim everything she holds dear. Will they be able to solve the magical mysteries that surround them . . . ?" I read this book for a blog tour, so thank you to the blog tour organiser for letting me take part on this tour, and thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy to read and review. All opinions are my own.