Enchanting Review: Enchanted Ivy

ENCHANTED IVY
SARAH BETH DURST
YA fantasy
McElderry Books
ISBN# 978-1416986454
310 pages
$16.99
Hardback Available Now

4 Enchantments

Lily Carter’s dream college is Princeton University. When she finally gets to visit the campus, her grandfather tells her that she’s been selected to take a secret Legacy Test. If she passes, she’ll get an automatic acceptance to Princeton.

But Lily finds out the Legacy Test has some secrets which includes her family. Along the way she meets Tye, a cute college boy with orange and black hair who claims he’s a guard. Also talking gargoyles who tell her there is a gate between our world and a magical one. Lily needs to gather all her strength and courage to unite both worlds and unlock her own family secrets.

I loved Sarah Beth Durst’s first fantasy INTO THE WILD. In that story she has creatures from children’s fairy tales exist right along our world. Durst is an expert on weaving such a world. ENCHANTED IVY is no exception. I loved Lily’s persistence and determination to get into the college of her dreams. Even when she finds out both her grandfather and mother hid some secrets from her, Lily refuses to give up. One of my favorite scenes has to be when she climbs up to one of the gargoyles, unfazed by how strange it all is, and listens to him. Or when she continues to watch out for Tye, even if he isn’t all he seems to be.

Durst casts a spell on the reader with her fantasy world filled with talking gargoyles, cute shape shifter boys, and heroic knights. Let’s just say I’ll never think of Princeton in the same way again! I especially like Tye, the mysterious tiger boy with an impish sense of humor. His loyalty to Lily makes him very likeable too. This fun, colorful world is sure to become a favorite of fantasy lovers.

Sarah Beth Durst is the author of INTO THE WILD and its sequel OUT OF THE WILD. She is a graduate of Princeton University. Sarah lives in Stony Brook, New York, with her husband and children. Visit her at sarahbethdurst.com




Kim Baccellia
ENCHANTING REVIEWS
September 2010