Part HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE and part JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL. Patricia C. Wrede's ENCHANTED FOREST CHRONICLES were an extremely important part of my childhood, so I was pretty ecstatic to discover that she'd not so long ago written further novels. Or co-written.
This was a very fun book, peppered with ridiculous period colloquialisms and interesting characters. I have a few issues with the incredibly conventional manner with which one of the villains was disposed, but I don't mean for this to be a spoiler-filled review.
I didn't even wait to finish this before ordering the sequels. I'm only sad that I have to leave the characters behind long enough for them to get here.