Beneath the Swirling Sky by Carolyn Leiloglou and Vivienne To (Illustrator) Review

 Happy Monday Bookish Lovelies :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I'm so thankful you chose to stop on by The Preppy Book Princess today for another book review.

I have to say this weekend was a bit of a doozy around here. Our area got hit with a crazy summer storm on Saturday evening, and I've never personally seen anything like it. There were crazy amounts of rain, hail and high winds, and there was quite a bit of damage around our city after it blew on through.

We were extremely thankful that all the damage to our house and yard was cosmetic, but we still had quite a mess to clean up yesterday.

We spent most of the day doing that, and then got to spend some time with family for the rest of the evening.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend no matter where you're reading from!

If you're new to my blog, I'd like to preface this review by saying that I love reading across quite a few different genres, with Christian fiction being my favorite.

It's been quite awhile since I last read a really great middle grade read, so when I had the opportunity to advance read an upcoming release from a Christian publisher, I jumped at the chance.

I hope you'll all keep reading down below to find out what I ended up thinking about it.

Let's jump right into today's review.

Beneath the Swirling Sky by Carolyn Leiloglou and Vivienne To (Illustrator):

Source: Publisher via Netgalley

Publisher: Waterbrook

Publication Date: September 12th, 2023

Genre: Middle Grade/Adventure/Fantasy/Christian Fiction

Series: The Restorationists

Synopsis:

A house full of paintings, a missing sister, and a family secret send a boy and his cousin into a world where art is the key in this fantasy adventure perfect for fans of The Wingfeather Saga and Pages & Co.

After an experience he’d rather forget, Vincent is determined to be done with art. So when he and his little sister, Lili, spend spring break with their art conservator great-uncle, Vincent's plan is to stay glued to his phone.

That is, until Lili disappears into one of the world's most famous paintings and Vincent learns his parents have been hiding something from Their family is the last of The Restorationists, a secret society with the power to travel through paintings—and a duty to protect them from evil forces.

With Lili’s safety on the line, leaving art behind is no longer an option. Vincent must team up with his know-it-all second-cousin Georgia, wrestle with why his parents lied to him, and confront both his past and a future he never wanted. Young readers are invited into a captivating universe where paintings become a portal—and adventure and danger lurk beyond every canvas.

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

It's been a long time since I read a middle grade title that I enjoyed as much as I did Beneath the Swirling Sky. This creative and whimsical story follows a pair of cousins whose family has the unique gift of being able to travel through paintings. Of course it's not all fun and games, and Vincent and Georgia discover this up close and personal when Vincent's young sister Lili is kidnapped inside a painting, and it's up to the two of them to rescue her and stop the villains in the process.

What follows is a tumultuous journey where our two protagonists will have to face their fears, discover who they're truly meant to be, and find their rightful place in their family's destiny. With well developed, three dimensional characters, an innovative world built upon the history of many beloved art pieces, a wonderful plot that keeps the reader engaged throughout, and beautiful illustrations that truly bring the story to life on the page, Beneath the Swirling Sky is an innovative, original story that I can't possibly recommend enough.

As someone who studied art history a bit in college, I loved how central the history of many art pieces is to the story, and I found bits and pieces that I didn't know about before choosing to pick this one up. While there is a brief content piece of talking about "nude art", I thought it was handled tastefully, and shouldn't be enough to be off putting for any young readers.

Most of all however, I loved the fact that there's a brief faith element included that I wasn't expecting, and it was beautiful and showcased such a wonderful and authentic redemption arc.

Final Rating: 4/5.

This is definitely a winner in my eyes, and I'm looking forward to continuing on with the next title in the series. I'm especially hopeful that certain plot points that were introduced in this one will be continued on in the next one. If you're looking for an adventurous middle grade with superb world building, then this is definitely the book for you.

Thanks so much to Waterbrook for allowing me to advance read and review this one!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary advance reader copy of this novel from the publisher (Waterbrook) via NetGalley. I was not required to give a positive review. All thoughts and opinions are my own, and this is my honest review.

Thanks so much for reading guys! I hope your week is off to a great start, and I look forward to sharing more reviews with you all later on.