Book Review: The Candy Shop War

The Candy Shop War by Brandon Mull

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I was impressed with this book. I wasn't sure what to expect or whether I'd really like it.

This book was not as quick a read as I thought, but it was entertaining and exciting the whole way through. I can't even recall any parts that seemed to drag -- which is a good thing!

As far as it goes... I'm not sure I'd really consider this a children's book. It's not as dark as Harry Potter 5 and 6 but it is darker than I thought it would be.

The whole premise of the book is that wizards can't use magic because it works best on children so they exploit children to further their cause. Which means they are okay with asking kids to do some really dangerous or bad things.

I don't know that this would be a book I'd let me little ones read -- but maybe preteens.

It's clean as far as language and what-not goes and it is entertaining but thematically I think it should be read by an older children's audience.

If you are looking to read it for yourself I think you'll enjoy it. It isn't a quick read, like I said, it is fast paced and fun. The characters are fun, though there's not as much characterization as I might like. You don't really feel at the end of the book like you know all the main characters well. And sometimes I got them mixed up with each other because they didn't stand out individually.

Not a waste of time!



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