Synopsis from Penguin Random House:

A hilarious illustrated middle grade series for reluctant readers starring a vampire girl, Amelia Fang. Welcome to the world of Nocturnia, where darkness reigns supreme, glitter is terrifying, and unicorns are the stuff of nightmares!

Amelia Fang would much rather hang out with her pet pumpkin Squashy and her friends Florence the yeti (DON’T CALL HER BEAST!) and Grimaldi the reaper than dance at her parents’ annual Barbaric Ball.

Then the King’s spoiled son Tangine captures Squashy, Amelia and her friends must escape the party to plan a daring rescue!

In their race against time, they begin to realize things in Nocturnia may not be quite what they seem…

About: Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball was written and illustrated by Laura Ellen Anderson. It was published on 7/30/2019 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Random House, 224 pages. The genres are horror, middle grade, fantasy, and fiction. This book was intended for readers ages 7 and up, grades 2 and up. There are 8 books to Amelia Fang series where this is book 1 and book 2 is called Amelia Fang and the Unicorn of Glitteropolis. According to the publisher’s website, “Delacorte Press was founded in 1921 by George T. Delacorte, Jr., and first published pulp magazines, detective stories and articles about the movies before it too became a full-service house, publishing original works of fiction in all formats.” Please see below for more information about the author, illustrator, and publisher.

My Experience: I started reading Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball on 5/20/2020 and finished it on 5/21/2020. This book is fantastic! I love the illustrations and it’s cool that there’s something on every page. The humor is great especially the word choices the author made. I like Woo the ghost. His hints to Amelia is clever and I like that he rather hint to her than tell her what to do. The pretending on not remembering the Prince’s name is hilarious.

This book follows Amelia Fang, 10, as she complains about going to yet another one of her family’s Barbaric Ball to her parents, Count and Countess of Nocturnia. The reason is because the ball is for adults only, but Amelia’s mom insisted that she come. This year, however, they will welcome a guest that has long been absent. In the meantime, the Prince, Tangine will tour the town’s school as part his training to become King. The Prince later took something of Amelia’s that force Amelia to recruit her friends to help rescue.

Amelia Fang and the Barbaric Ball was a fun read filled with amazing illustrations. I love the details in the drawings. The tree that looks like a unicorn is awesome! The friendship is great. A cute Halloween addition. Amelia’s house with the confusion of doors is interesting. Amelia’s teacher and her body functions cracks me up! I recommend this book to everyone.

Pro: illustrations, fast paced, humor, friendship

I rate it 5 stars!

Buy it here for free shipping: Book Depository or Penguin’s website

About the Author:

Laura Ellen Anderson (lauraellenanderson.co.uk) studied illustration at University College Falmouth. She is the author and illustrator of many books, including the Amelia Fang series, I Don’t Want Curly Hair, and I Don’t Want to Be Small. She lives in London. Follow her on Twitter @Lillustrator and on Instagram @laura_ellen_anderson. (Photo obtained from the author’s Instagram and Info obtained from Penguin’s website).

More Information about Penguin Random House

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***Disclaimer: I won a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway hosted by the publisher, Delacorte. I appreciate the opportunity to read and review. Please be assured that my opinions are honest.

xoxo,

Jasmine