The Miraculous Sweetmakers: The Frost Fair: The perfect new fantasy adventure for 2022

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I loved the juxtaposition of the two fairs taking place on the frozen river Thames: the normal one during the day, and the darker, stranger, yet still also magical other frost fair at night. At first, Thomasina is overwhelmed by all that she sees and hears, but soon she grows vary of Father Winter, a strange character she can’t quite read. Together with Anne and another unlikely friend, they soon find themselves fighting much darker monsters that they were ever expecting – and try to save all of London from imminent danger! Her friendships give her hope, and the story does really get quite bleak so it’s good that she has Henry, Anne, and their business idea, to cling to. Anne and Thomasina are such a powerful duo; together they are strong, brave, and very smart, even coming up with their own business idea to combine both of their talents! I kind of got some Anna and Elsa vibes from this (together with the wintry theme overall), and while I’m not the biggest fan of the movie Frozen, I did love this book a lot! 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!

So, I really enjoyed this book, and it was such an effortless book to read despite some tough topics and important messages it conveyed to the reader. Natasha Hastings did a great job of making all her settings and characters come alive which really gave it a special wintery atmosphere.

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. 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. Michelle Misra, editorial director, acquired world rights at auction alongsideAlice Jerman in the USina multi-book deal for The Miraculous Sweetmakersfrom Chloe Seager at the Madeleine Milburn Agency. The characters are beautifully represented and the themes such as death, deception, mental illness, and asthma are handled with care and understanding. It is a touching story and will pull at your heartstrings. This is a book you will be invested in and one you won’t want to put down.

One of my favourite aspects of the book was the writing, which treads the balance of readability especially for a younger audience, but also indulging in some truly fantastic descriptive prose. Hastings has absolutely got her finger on the pulse of winter, and all the different elements that we associate with that time of year, and the atmosphere she manages to conjure as a result feels like stepping out a cold winter’s day and into the warmth and light of a Christmas shop, with all the colours and smells, and nostalgia that comes with it. The author also uses all the senses throughout this book, particularly when exploring the sweetmaking aspect, and it got to the point where I could practically taste the creations that Anne and Thomasina were coming up (and I certainly want to try them). This skill with the description was also evident with all the fantastical elements, and it made it so easy to imagine the Other Frost Fair and the tendrils that were twining around the real one and Thomasina’s life; and the imagery for the Frost Folk and Father Winter was spectacular. Thank you to the author Natasha Hastings for sending me a proof copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Dapo Adeola, Tracy Darnton, Joseph Coelho and Chitra Soundar are among the 19 authors and illustrators longlisted for the Inclusive Books for Child... 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. This is such a brilliant book and what happens is so interesting. Thomasina’s family have never been able to get over the grief of losing Arthur and Thomasina finds herself talking to him everyday while her father hardly ever speaks to her except to tell her what to do, and her mother is so consumed by her grief that she’s moved into the attic room with Thomasina, never leaving the bed. Thomasina does her best to try and help her family with the business, even more so when a Frost Fair is set up on the frozen river Thames and she and her dad set up a stall there to sell gingerbread and other sweet treats. The Frost Fair was a great historical element to this book, but the Other Frost Fair was a great fantasy element to add to it. I really enjoyed reading about this Other Frost Fair, the Frost Folk and Frost Beasts, even though I had a bad feeling about Father Winter from the start. However, I did really like the character of Inigo in the end. 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.