A huge thanks to Dave and crew over at TheWriteReads for organising this ultimate book tour and to Natash Hastings, Harper Collins and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis
An amazing and captivating, curl-up-on-the-sofa debut about a magical frost fair and the lasting power of friendship.
It’s a cold winter during the Great Frost of 1683. Thomasina and Anne are the best of friends, one running her father’s sweet shop and the other the apprentice at the family apothecary – together they sell their goods on the frozen River Thames. When a family tragedy turns Thomasina’s world upside down, she is drawn to a mysterious conjuror and the enchanted frost fair. But soon the world of Father Winter threatens to claim everything she holds dear. Will they be able to solve the magical mysteries that surround them . . . ?
Genre: MG Fantasy
Length: 368 Pages
Publishing: 1st November 2022
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Miraculous-Sweetmakers-Frost-Fair/dp/0063161273/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60194145-the-miraculous-sweetmakers-1
My Thoughts
How beautiful is this cover? I was completely hooked just from seeing it and it’s stunning. It has such a wintery vibe and I cannot stop staring at it.
The opening chapter was very unexpected and threw me a little. It was devastating and let me feeling so cold. From there, Hastings does a great job of really projecting the temperature and atmosphere of Winter in historical London and the frost, snow and ice just leapt off the pages. I often had a shiver or chills, which makes this book perfect to read snuggled up together.
The setting of the novel is just spectacular. I was completely transported away to 1600s London. The detail is so vivid and nothing is missed out. I was actually there, browsing the shop windows and investigating all the little bottles, curiosities and treats on sale.
Thomasina is such an interesting character. Very determined and ambitious but it’s also clear to see her pain and hurt from the terrible and tragic loss of her twin brother. She had such a strong work ethic but she was struggling so much with guilt and grief and had nobody really looking out for her.
I think the subject of loss is captured so well throughout this book and Hastings shows the different ways in which it can impact different people in Thomasina and her parents. I wanted to be angry with her family for being so oblivious but it was difficult as they were so caught up in their own grief and mental health issues which left Thomasina almost invisible and so lonely. As an adult I could see this but it took Thomasina a while to become more understanding about her parents’ feelings (as it would for a child). Their plight really tugged on the heartstrings.
The plot is unique and captivating and at times I forgot I was reading a middle grade novel as I had fallen into it completely. It moves at a good pace but has a really good balance of rich description to set the scene so well. It has a winter whimsy element to it and a touch of magic to add some wonder into the story and I adored it all.
This is a fabulous book to share with children, or just to read it to yourself. It’s entertaining, emotional and immersive and I highly recommend it.
Author Bio – Natasha Hastings
Natasha Hastings started developing The Miraculous Sweetmakers: The Frost Fair while studying history at Cambridge University, where she focused on gender and mental illness. While exploring these topics, she became determined to have the lives of working women, as well as their experiences of mental illness in this period, form the heartbeat of her debut book, The Frost Fair.
Herding Cats 
Fabulous review, Kerry! xx
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