Customer Reviews

Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist by Liz Kessler is a fantasy must-read for all preteens! It starts when the main character, Emily Windsnap, finds a beautiful diamond ring buried in the sand, so she puts it on... but then she can't take it off! It becomes a burden (it's cursed and magical), and King Neptune, the king of the sea, is not happy (more like infuriated) with Emily... Read the book to find out why he's so angry with her. Since he is so angry, he sets a curse on her which will result in her never seeing one of her parents again... can she stop the curse?

I just LOVED this book. LOVED it. It was very mysterious and interesting. When Emily was trying to get the other ring, and she was trying to swim to Shona, I was so interested that the real world faded away and I was pulled into the story, not thinking about one other thing besides the book (Seriously!)! When Ms. Kessler was describing the ocean and surroundings, she did a great job, too.

When a book is by Liz Kessler, you know it's going to be great! She always has an interesting fantasy story to tell, whether it's about a mermaid or a fairy or time-traveling. This one happens to be about a mermaid, and it is the third book in the series. Liz Kessler is a great author from England, and she is a very popular author of children's fantasy stories. Never stop writing! :)

Kristina Cardoza
Children's Book Author

i thought this was the best book i have ever read!! It is amazing!! I would recomend this book the all young girls!! An amazing fantasy book!!

EMILY WINDSNAP AND THE CASTLE IN THE MIST is the third installment in Liz Kessler's continuing saga of Emily and her friends and family in their half-ocean, half-earthly community.

Emily is a perky kid who enjoys being a mermaid, although her mother seems to be having a difficult time reconciling the fact that Emily's more academic studies have been put aside for her mermaid studies --- oceanography and underwater hairstyling. The ever-widening chasm between the lives she shares with each of her parents starts to cause a rift between them, and Emily fears they will break up.

But then King Neptune, still angered from the loss of his only intermarriage with a human, learns that Emily has uncovered the diamond ring he gave to his beloved so long ago --- which he had hoped would never surface again. As a result, he decides to ban intermarriage between merpeople and humans and curses the offspring of such unions. Emily is forced to become either fully human or a complete sea creature, thus ensuring that one of her parents would be lost to her forever. Can Emily possibly locate the other missing ring that will break all the curses? Is there anyone who can help her save the day before it's too late?

This is a complex story with deepening questions about love and its meanings, anger and its consequences, redemption and hope for the future --- all good things couched in a lushly detailed story about underwater life that should capture the attention and hearts of girls who love adventurous, romantic tales encased in charming fantasy elements.

EMILY WINDSNAP AND THE CASTLE IN THE MIST is a great book, one that can be enjoyed on land or at sea and certainly raises the bar on mermaid stories for young girls.

--- Reviewed by Jana Siciliano

I have read and re-read these books since I was nine and have enjoyed every one! In fact, I am thirteen years old, and still enjoy them! This one is almost a bit darker than the other Emily Windsnap books. In #1 and #2, Emily isn't generally in any VERY dangerous peril (yeah, yeah, I know that getting her dad out of prison and dealing with a ferocious monster are pretty dangerous, but just hear me out.) In the other two books, there were some funny, happy moments where you can just let out a sigh of relief as you read and let the stress of her situation lift for a bit. But in this book, it is almost constant danger and worry. It is incredibly suspenceful since her ability to be part-mermaid/part-human begins to slip away, and she becomes more like a fish-human all the time! There is almost nothing funny or happy to relieve the cliff-hanging moments, so I wish there was a little more of that. Also, on page 66, I was unpleasantly surprised to find a swear word in Capital letters! I never thought I'd see a word like that in an Emily Windsnap. Here is the quote-

"****, those vows!" Neptune bellowed.

This book could be compared to "Shrek, The Final Chapter" (for lack of a better example.) It is very dark and gloomy until you finally find relief at the climax. The only exception is that Shrek has funny points and relatively happy moments. I think that is the only thing that this book is lacking. Also, I think that the swear word was not neccessary. There are other words that could effectively express Neptune's displeasure and anger without inserting a swear word in a children's book.

Bought this book for my daughter and she is hooked on the series! And the service was great! Thanks so much!

Received book within 3 days of order. New book in great condition at a great price. My daughter is enjoying this mermaid tale and I am pleased to keep her reading this summer. Great read for 4th to 5th grade.

So first I would like to say that this book is well-written with several tense moments and so forth. But, like all stories, there are positives and negatives.

Positives- This book is wonderful FOR AGES 8-12. I would not recommend it to anyone older then that, because it does not have very much depth. It is a good ending to the Emily series, which I have read since I was 8.

Negatives- I was extremely surprised and alarmed that there is a swear word in this book! Up until now, Emily has once or twice said "Oh, God!" or expressions like that (which I was able to overlook.) However, I cannot overlook a swear word. THIS IS A KID'S BOOK FOR PETE'S SAKE!!! I just don't understand the need for that. (Just FYI, it is on page 66, just in case you would like to know that.

Moving on I would like to say, despite all of the comments above, Emily has been my friend for years now and I think this book is a marvelous conclusion to the series. Thanks for everything, Em. :-)

I have not read it, but my granddaughter just loves it. I bought is as a gift for her, and it was a big hit!

I think that if you are looking at this review you must be aware that there are two books that come before this one, if not it would be advisable to select book one first.

I said in former review of this series that I have seen my young daughter enjoy entering the world of books with no pictures (there are small occasionally illustrations). As a reader and often an audience as we get into bedtime story mode I can see her imaging what is happening and she often stops my reading to interrupt with relevant questions. We often guess what will happen next - and I think this is healthy for literacy development either as a reader or listener.

Great series - and what a wonderful price

In this amazing sequel to The Tail of Emily Windsnap, Emily finds a ring that belongs to Neptune, the king of the sea. The ring comes with more than beauty, though. It also comes with a curse. When Emily puts the ring on her finger, she now has to choose between living with her father in the water, or her mother on land. When Emily tries to take the ring off, she realizes it won't budge. Neptune goes into a rage and creates a huge storm, carrying Emily's ship, Fortuna way out at sea. When Emily's best friend, Shona, who is also on the boat sees a castle way out in the mist, they decide to go out and explore the castle. When they look up and realize the farther they swim, the farther away the castle seems, they get discouraged. So they swim back to Fortuna and when they get back, Emily's mom's friend Millie is frantically searching for them. They explain to her that they went to find the castle in the mist but couldn't reach it. She warns them never to do that again. That night Emily sneaks back out to try and find the castle. This time, though, she lets the ring take her. Emily reaches the castle, but her joy is short lived when she finds out they need to find the other ring, (Neptune's wife's) to lift the curse. And you can only find the ring at full moon on the spring equinox....