The Unchosen One by Amy Sparkes | a book review

Hello, all!! ^^ How art thou doing on this fine (or perhaps, though hopefully not, not-so-fine) day? My poor blog has been abandoned a bit recently, save for these weekly book reviews, because life has been… crazy. As is typical. *sighs* There was a fire at our apartment recently which was not at all fun. It got put out though, so all is fine, though I was panic-snatching all my important notebooks in case of evacuation. But it got put it out! So all is fine!!!

However, today, I am ever so glad to be reviewing a wonderful upcoming middle-grade fantasy by Amy Sparkes: The Unchosen One!! The book releases on May 12, 2026 in hardcover and ebook. A thank you to NetGalley and Candlewick Press for providing the ARC.

The blurb reads:

What happens when the Chosen One decides to go on strike?

Tassie has always dreamt of a life of adventure and exploration. Instead, she’s stuck in the Citadel under the care of the Chief Steward, well away from any form of danger. When the Wisest of the Wise Witches comes to visit and proclaims her the Chosen One, destined to save her people from death and destruction, Tassie realizes why she’s spent her life under lock and key—in order to fulfill a prophecy.

Can she refuse the role and find an alternative? Along with her best friend, a griffin named Spin, she embarks on a hilarious epic quest through magical lands in a race against time.

Y’all, this book is hilarious. I… really don’t know what I was expecting when I picked up this book. A more serious novel, I suppose. Though looking back now at the cover (which is gorgeous, by the way! I adore the dragon.), I don’t understand how Past Me could have possibly assumed this was a very serious “the world is going to end” novel like KOTLC or PJO. But this novel… There is humor, there is action, and the wraiths had me cracking up!!

Not to mention there is an absolutely gorgeous map in the beginning!!! And a most wonderful prologue that hooked me into the story right away!

The main character Tassie — Tassalonia Monk — is such a fun protagonist. She is just so very fun and is a terribly relatable middle-grade protagonist!! She has humor and sneaks out to avoid studying Ancient Gnomeology to get plums instead. Her character…. It is hard to describe, really. But she is mischievous and attempts not to get into trouble while failing terribly at it. That sort of character, I suppose. Her adventures had me laughing so hard, and just… such a wonderfully hilarious protagonist!!

Her friendship with Spin is delightful as well. (I adore griffons in books!! As well as inventors!) He would much rather stay inside and fiddle with inventions and do research than go hopping off on wild adventures, and so seeing Tassie drag him along her quest was terribly humourous!!

And the Wisest of the Wise….

She is hilarious. (Really, Amy Sparkes’ writing is just so full of humor and whimsy!!!) The way she is just so incredibly solemn that it is humorous and the way she kept pulling out and solemnly reciting her grocery list by accident (instead of what she meant to pull out to read) never failed to crack me up.

“Hair curlers,
Fish and chips for supper,
Postage stamps,
Half a dozen golden quail eggs.”

That just had me cackling.

The plot moves fairly quickly and it is very fast-paced without feeling too rushed, which I found lovely! It is full of humor and jokes and laughter and all sorts of sticky situations that Tassie and her friends get into! I do think that, due to the fast-paced plot, it would appeal greatly to younger middle-grade readers who are looking for quick reads!!

And not to mention the wraiths.

I…. still don’t know what I really wish to think of them. On one hand, they are hilarious (the poor things are trying so hard to be terrifying and evil!! And then they’re just… kind of not. XD And they kind of are terrifying in a way, but also terribly funny.) Which was wonderful, though I wasn’t entirely sure how well it worked with them trying to be terrifying.

The setting was wonderful as well! It is just so quirky and whimsical!! Full of mischief and magic!! And there are dragon taxis!! Which are such fun. Much less fun if you’re being chased by wraiths at the same time though.

However, as hilarious as this book is, I must admit that I did have a few qualms with it. Personally, I did think that, because of all the humor that is in the book, it really felt like the story lost some of the stakes at times. Some younger MG readers might not mind, but as someone who adores epic fantasy, it was one of the things I didn’t like so much. The climax and ending also felt a bit anti-climactic to me. I personally really like humorous books where there is humor, but the story doesn’t lose the stakes. (A good book that does this, in my opinion, is Wicked Marigold by Caroline Carlson.)

But again, it must be noted that I am someone who typically reads epic fantasy, and perhaps others (especially younger middle-grade readers) wouldn’t mind it.

Overall, this is a hilarious middle-grade read that I’d highly recommend to any MG reader who is looking for a fast-paced, thrilling read that will have you laughing out loud at every single page! 3.5 out of five stars from me. :))

And of course, we cannot leave out the dear Cute Fluffy Comrades….

Thoughts from Izzy, Charlotte, and Fuzzy Bee

Izzy: Hmm… A terribly interesting read that had me laughing out loud at every page!! Tis a splendid book for youngsters, I think, though it does not really match my reading tastes. A very good book, I think, for the right readers. Three out of five stars from me.

Charlotte: I loved this book!!!! It has a great deal of what I want in fantasy booksies. Dragon taxis!!! Humor! Laughter! Adventure! Chaos and chaos and chaos!!! Though I must admit, I was not a huge fan of the wraiths. In my opinion, if wraiths are to be terrifying, let them be terrifying. But aside from that, this was a gorgeous middle-grade book!!!!! I adores it!!!! Five out of five stars!!!

Fuzzy Bee: What a gloriously hilarious book!! It is so full of laughter and fun and whimsy!! I really ought to read more fun and whimsical books like this. A fantabulous book for anyone looking for something to cheer them up on a sad day!! Four out of five stars from me!!! Now. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll lug this book back to my shelf of books to hoard….

Charlotte: NO, FUZZY!! I want to hoard that book!!!

Fuzzy Bee: *glances at Charlotte* What? But… *glances down at the book* I want to keep this book on my shelf to hoard.

Charlotte: Well, so do I!!! *pouts* This isn’t FAIR. I liked the book more than you do. I gave it five out of five stars, Fuzzy!!! I ought to get that book!!!

Fuzzy Bee: But I need more fun and whimsical books!!!! And I enjoyed this book!! And I want to re-read it!!! And you’ve already re-read it three times!!!

Charlotte: FINE, then we’ll trade booksies!

Fuzzy Bee: (pouts) Then fine. I want the hombit book.

Charlotte: But – but that’s one of my favorite books!!!!!!!!!!! You can’t hoard that one!

Isabelle: Alright, alright, knock it off you two!!! *clears throat* How about we do this somewhere else, not in front of, like, hundreds of blog readers? And Charlotte, you ought to share your books. I only have one copy of each!!!!! Give poor Fuzzy some time to actually re-read.

Charlotte: *pouts* Fine. But when you’re done, I want to re-read it a fourth time!!!!!!

Fuzzy Bee: *flies off merrily with The Unchosen One*

Er, alright. There was a bit of an argument between the CFC over there, but tis all fine!! Hopefully…… *eyes Charlotte* But at any rate, it appears the youngsters of the CFC adore this book!! Enough to fight over it, apparently.

Do let me know down in the comments what you thought (and if you’re planning to read this book)!! ^^ I love hearing from y’all! Again, The Unchosen One comes out on May 12, 2026, in hardcover and ebook.

Till next time, and wishing y’all a wonderful week!

-Isabelle