This book came so highly recommended and its accolades were sung so virulently that I ignored my usual rule (either I buy it at Kindle or I get it from the library. I don't buy "books" per se anymore) and ordered the hardcover from Amazon, sure that I would love it.

I actually found it kind of meh. Everything about this story is cute and nice, which is good praise for the author, but there's nothing spectacular about it.

Many parts of the book were lovely, different, imaginative and sweet. The sto More...

Review as of second reading:


I've said it before and I'll say it again: This book is like chocolate.
But this time, I'll elaborate.

You know that first piece of chocolate, the small piece you take because it's a treat and maybe you haven't had it in a while and you want to savor it? And you roll it around in your mouth a little, let it get all melty, experience the taste as fully as possible. You try to eat the rest of it- the bar, the bag of chocolate chips, those little Dove eggs- slowly, and for More...

That cover is just marvelous honestly. Just one look at it made me so excited to read this book. I mean the detail in it is just on point. The reflection of lightning on her face, you can just feel the magic already. You just know (and hope) that what's inside will give you as much of a thrill.

Sydelle Mirabil has lived in Cliffton her whole life, but has always felt she needed to get out to see what lies out of her little town. She gets that opportunity sooner than expected when a young wizard, More...

Finished this book in one day around 3:30 in the morning. Closed the cover, sighed with a smile and felt all gooey inside. Haven't read a romance like this in so long if ever, and the adventure had me turning page after page into the night.

Sydelle is a girl who is chosen by a young wizard to accompany him to Provincia and carry a message that might save their kingdom from a disastrous war. Having little choice in the matter Sydelle goes but not without some resentment. Having never left her sma More...

I can hardly contain my excitement over this book! It was amazing! Purely brilliant. Alexandra created a fantastical magical world full of mystery and intrigue that tugged at me, pulling me into the story and refusing to let go. Alexandra wrote beautifully. The words were-how else can I describe it?- woven intricately together to conjure up such vivid scenes and pictures.

The characters were written to perfection. Sydelle was amazing. I loved her fiery disposition, yet her quiet, gentle care and More...

Such a beautiful, beautiful darling.. oh, I mean, story ;))


One word: lovely!
2 words: loved it!
3 words: Thank you Arlene!

Once in a while I find myself lost in a beautiful story, with great characters I get to know and love so much, that I find it difficult at the end to let it go.. and yes, this is the case. I know, I'm a complete romantic with no cure - I take that as a compliment ;)

The main reason I loved this book so much was probably because of North..
Of course, in the beginning I didn't li More...

I don't think I've ever given up on a book so quickly - PAGE 2, I swear, I give every book a fair chance, but I disliked the writing from the first page - it was so strangely immature, so empty, so cliche, as if written by a 14-year old, with no finesse or artistry, no spark. Some of my friends really liked it, but it didn't work for me at all. I am not willing to push myself further to see if it gets better...

“I don’t do well without you,” North said. “Who I was before – I never want to be that person again. But I told you when I took you away from here that when everything was over, it would be your choice. You would get to choose where you wanted to go and who you wanted to be.” There was a pleading look in his eyes. In that moment, he looked as if I had stripped him of his cloak and magic. I could knock him back into that darkness with a single blow.

Alexandra Bracken’s Brightly Woven was the perfe More...

Brightly Woven is the fantasy tale of a young woman swept into great events. it has magic and it has romance, Young Adult style.

for the first half of this novel, i spent a lot of time muttering darkly about Kirkus Reviews and Publisher's Weekly. their glowing reviews are what led me to Brightly Woven in the first place. after having a great time in the Dystopic SciFi YA world (thank you, Hunger Games) and having a less-than-great time in the Paranormal Horror YA world (thanks for not so much, Be More...

Every once and awhile, I read a book that completely takes over my mind. I think about it at night while I’m trying to sleep and I contemplate what’s going to happen next constantly as I go about my day. It basically manages to squeeze into every thought I have until I’m able to pick it back up again. Brightly Woven is a perfect example of said mind-control.

The story has a wonderful balance of adventure, magic and self-discovery. I would’ve never imagined a young adult novel possible of holding More...

Brightly Woven is a stay-up-reading-late-into-the-night worthy book! I was up half the night reading it, as I couldn't stand to put down the perfection Brightly Woven is. It is one of my absolute favorites!

Some fantasy can be overbearing, but Brightly Woven was a perfect mix of everything a good book needs. Bracken drew me in with page one, and didn't let me go until the last page. Brightly Woven really puts a new spin on wizards and the magical abilities that come with a world like that. The wo More...

How fun was this book! It has a little bit of everything; magic, adventure, romance and mystery.

Fantasy is my favorite genre, it always has been, so Brightly Woven already had that going for it before I even started. I went into the book expecting to love it. And for the most part I did.

It was beautifully written, simplistic, but engaging. It was easy to get lost in this story, and the writing played a critical role in that. The plot was just as intricate as the woven strands in Sydelle's creati More...

To be honest, I wasn't very engaged with Brightly Woven at first. The story begins when this town on the outskirts of the kingdom receives it's first rainstorm after many years of drought. Turns out some bad stuff is about to happen. Our lovely heroine Sydelle finds herself caught in the middle of this maelstrom of events. I was eventually drawn completely into this novel, as I found Sydelle to be an enchanting character. The romance did not hurt either.
Read the rest of my review here More...

It took a while for me to get into this. But after that, I could hardly put it down. I was so absorbed into the story that it was 3 am when I finished reading it. And I want more!

A fantastic journey with magic, mystery and romance. I would definitely recommend it!

If Brightly Woven was an amusement park ride, I'd say it would be a wooden roller coaster - it's fun and exciting at times, but the ride is very bumpy, rickety, and you wonder how in the world the coaster got a license to operate in the first place.

Most of the time, I try and at least pretend to be objective. But every once in awhile a book comes along that totally unleashes the inner opinionated Amelia, and this was one such book. In a nutshell, I didn't enjoy this book. It was hard to get into More...

Wow, I’ve waited way too long to write a review for this. From the very beginning I was beyond excited to read this. It was even compared to Howl's Moving Castle! So I couldn't wait to finally get my hands on this. Plus the cover looks so cool.

Quick Overview: Sydelle's small village has been plagued with a seven year drought. Then one day, out of nowhere, the rain comes. Along with the rain comes a young wizard named Wayland North. Sydelle's father, the village elder, offers him anything he asks More...

Creative, magical, unpredictable. Was ridiculously easy to get lost in. Really wanted to skip sleep altgether to continue reading it, but alas, I couldn't. And now that I've finished it, I want MORE!

**4.5**

This book was written as a gift from the author Alexandra Bracken to a friend. Well, let me tell you, this was one hell of a gift.
I adore this book!

I just loved everything about it. The plot, the pacing, the different type of magic, the mysterious parts, the world it takes place in, and most of all - the characters. The characters made this story come alive to me. Sydelle was a great lead character, strong and independed. And Wayland North.. Oh, North. I think I have a crush on him. Not More...

Picture me, circa 1998. It's Christmas morning. My parents hand me a gift. It's rectangular and I feel my heart start to beat faster because I know exactly what it is. I tear through the wrapping paper and my gleeful suspicions are confirmed:

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: THE OCARINA OF TIME.

Cue monumental squee like no 13-year-old had ever squeed before. I fell into a zombie-like state for the next month that was only paused for my hand to find the bag of Baked Lays BBQ chips. Link was awesome. Zelda w More...

For those of you who are book bloggers, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about when I say this: Have you ever read a book that causes your heart to break when you turn the last page because it's over? What about one that has you wanting to call your best friend at 3 in the morning in order to tell her all about it? Well, guys, I'm happy to say that Brightly Woven did all this for me and more.

First of all, I couldn't believe that this was Alexandra Bracken's first novel. It's so incredibly well More...

Sydelle is a 16 year old weaver living in a parched land that has become a pawn in a power play for the kingdom. She has hoped to apprentice with a master weaver in the City- now as war lands on her doorstep and she is whisked (literally) away from her family and mountain by a wizard, she is prickly and doesn't want to leave her home.
Coming to understand that she possesses a small magic, she realizes she can help the wizard who is beset on all sides by enemies as he races to get the intelligenc More...

So, I don't know about you guys, but lately my life has been tragically devoid of high fantasy, and that just won't do! In order to remedy this dreadful oversight on my part, I tracked down one of the first novels that came to mind when I thought about reading in this genre: Brightly Woven. It was better than I remembered. I bought this book on a whim last March because the synopsis hooked me, and the cover is just so lovely. It was an impulse buy, and I usually pay dearly for those. This time More...

Enjoyed it A LOT, even if I'll admit some parts disappointed me, like, we never got to see North using his new and quite improved cloak, and I had such high expectations for that scene; also, Sydelle’s kidnapping and following escape needed a lot more development---the whole thing was resolved too easily for my taste.

I also felt that sometimes the author forgets the readers don't know everything about the characters, that we don't know them as she does, and because of that a couple of scenes got More...

Originally posted on The Authoress: Book Review and More.


Ever had that feeling that a book gives you—where you know for sure that you’re totally in love with it, yet your head is so jumbled with its brilliance that even the day after you’ve finished reading it, you still can’t pinpoint the exact thing that made you love it? I feel like I can’t do it justice, even if I tried.

First, the main character. Completely awesome gal. Seriously. Worthy of a country girl. She must be from Kentucky. (Except More...

Reviewed by Jennifer Rummel for TeensReadToo.com

One moment, Sydelle and her friend, Henry, are hanging out on the rocks and then next, it's raining. Their village hasn't seen rain in ten years. Shortly after, they spot a wizard. They all head into the village, not knowing just how much their future is about to change.

Wayland North, the wizard, takes the credit for bringing the rain. The chief, Sydelle's father, offers him a reward. He's stunned when he finds out the wizard wants his daughter.

Way More...

Sydelle grew up in the tiny desert town of Clifton, known only for the sand that is exported out to other countries in exchange for water. Clifton has been in a ten-year drought. She barely remembers rain and has never seen snow. So when on a regular day when it suddenly starts raining, everyone in the town is confused but overjoyed. War is eminent and the wizard Wayland North, who caused the rain, needs to deliver a message to help prevent it. The people were so happy that he made it rain that More...

My Review originally posted on Oh, For the Love of Books!


Humble Beginnings:
All right, I'll freely admit that at first I wasn't completely in love with this book. Don't get me wrong, I really liked it, just didn't love it. Why? Because when i first started I had really high expectations (Thanks Small :P). Initially, what kept me going was the fantastic world-building and interactions between the characters.

Fantasy world at its finest:
Bracken created an absolutely fantastic fantasy world. It was More...

Brightly Woven was a beautiful, lovely, and an absolutely stunning book to read. Since I am a lover of fantasy and adventure, I enjoy this book from beginning to the very last page. Brightly Woven didn't disappoint me one bit. It was so captivating and capturing..The writing is so refreshing and conjures vivid details and images in my mind. I love reading this beautifully and crafted novel. I have to say this book is one of my all-time favorites.

The main character Sydelle is a brave, stubborn, s More...

I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand the author has done a great job in creating a new world and characters associated with it and on the other had there is not much of a great story to go by it. The first 50 pages of the book was a drag and I didn't really care much for the characters.But the book becomes interesting after that. The story begins at a fictional village called Cliffton, in the fictional country of Palmerta which has been suffering from a drought for the past 10 year More...

Paperback: Brightly Woven
Author: Alexandra Bracken
Pages: 368
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Release Date: June 28st, 2011(reprint edition)
Genre: Young Adult/High Adventure/Fantasy
Rating: ♥♥♥♥


Sydelle Mirabil is living proof that, with a single drop of rain, a life can be changed forever. Tucked away in the farthest reaches of the kingdom, her dusty village has suffered under the weight of a strangely persistent drought. That is, of course, until a wizard wanders into town and brings the rain with him.

In re More...