Autumn Malog, 12, is looking for her brother, Winter. Everyone, including her three older brothers and her grandmother, think that Winter was devoured by the fearsome Hollow Dragon one year ago. Autumn, however, has a connection to Winter that the others don’t: he’s her twin, and she has a sense in the back of her head that he is still out there somewhere. It is because of this that she won’t give up until she either finds Winter or knows for sure that he’s dead. The one problem she has searching for him is that she feels he’s trapped in the Inglenook school for magicians, the school where Autumn is just a servant, just a beast keeper, the lowest of servants. She can’t search for her brother when there’s a whole school of people looking down on her and wondering why she’s even wandering around there. So, when Autumn is approached by the one and only Cai Morrigan, the chosen one prophesied to slay the Hollow Dragon, for help, she strikes a deal with him. Autumn will help Cai get over his rather ironic fear of dragons if he helps her search for Winter.
The School Between Winter and Fairyland
Written by Heather Fawcett.
Published in 2021 by Balzer & Bray (Distributed in Canada by HarperCollins Canada).
In The School Between Winter and Fairyland, Autumn Malog is a servant at the Inglenook School for magicians. She is searching for her missing brother Winter with the unlikely help of Cai Morrigan, the prophesied saviour of Eryree. He is foretold to slay the ferocious Hollow Dragon – which everyone believes killed Winter. Along their magical journey, they explore hidden places that hold centuries worth of secrets about the school and the enchanted forest surrounding it. Can Autumn and Cai find Winter, and also change the fate of Eryree?
We enjoyed reading this book because it contained mystery elements that were captivating, it kept us wanting to read more, and it was full of surprises. The story line was breathtaking and the end was satisfying. There was depth, perspective, and imagination in every page. Each character had backstory, the chapters made sense, and most of the content flowed together.
We recommend reading The School Between Winter and Fairyland because the story was adventurous and exciting, it was imaginative and sparked thoughts, the chapters were emotion-filled, and it entranced us to keep reading. We think that others would like this book as well.