How to Heal a Gryphon follows Giada on her journey to save her brother and earn her family's approval. She's stubborn, quick to anger, and has a huge heart for animals, but her desires to worship and practice magic for the goddess Diana, don't align with her family's traditional healing of humans under the watchful eye of Apollo.
The novel is full of magic, adventure, delicious food descriptions, and a black cat familiar named Sinistro. The world building is fantastic. I'd love to occupy this magical version of Italy that Giada lives in. The characters are compelling and rich, with room for evolution. There are also complicated family relationships at the heart of this novel that I think are pretty relatable for a lot of readers (middle grade and adult alike).
I did have issues with the pacing at various points throughout the story. When I first read the beginning excerpt, I was blown away by how much I wanted to be in this universe and devour this book, but I didn't feel as strongly about it with the full book in my hands. There were some issues with the pacing and some unconvincing dialogue that detracted from my reading experience. However, there were parts of this novel that were definitely 5 stars for me, including the ending.
I think this novel will appeal to lots of middle grade readers, and that if the book continues into a series, the writing will get even better. I'm glad I had the opportunity to experience this novel, and I would recommend it to fans of middle grade fantasy, magic, and Greek Gods/Goddesses.
The novel is full of magic, adventure, delicious food descriptions, and a black cat familiar named Sinistro. The world building is fantastic. I'd love to occupy this magical version of Italy that Giada lives in. The characters are compelling and rich, with room for evolution. There are also complicated family relationships at the heart of this novel that I think are pretty relatable for a lot of readers (middle grade and adult alike).
I did have issues with the pacing at various points throughout the story. When I first read the beginning excerpt, I was blown away by how much I wanted to be in this universe and devour this book, but I didn't feel as strongly about it with the full book in my hands. There were some issues with the pacing and some unconvincing dialogue that detracted from my reading experience. However, there were parts of this novel that were definitely 5 stars for me, including the ending.
I think this novel will appeal to lots of middle grade readers, and that if the book continues into a series, the writing will get even better. I'm glad I had the opportunity to experience this novel, and I would recommend it to fans of middle grade fantasy, magic, and Greek Gods/Goddesses.