Another win for Wynne Jones

Title: Castle in the Air
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 304
Genre: Fantasy/Young Adult
Series #: 2 of 3
Date Started: September 19, 2009
Date Finished: September 20, 2009

Rating: A+

Description (from Barnes & Noble): Abdullah was a young and not very prosperous carpet dealer. His father, who had been disappointed in him, had left him only enough money to open a modest booth in the Bazaar. When he was not selling carpets, Abdullah spent his time daydreaming. In his dreams he was not the son of his father, but the long-lost son of a prince. There was also a princess who had been betrothed to him at birth. He was content with his life and his daydreams until, one day, a stranger sold him a magic carpet.

In this stunning sequel to Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones has again created a large-scale, fast-paced fantasy in which people and things are never quite what they seem. There are good and bad djinns, a genie in a bottle, wizards, witches, cats and dogs (but are they cats and dogs?), and a mysterious floating castle filled with kidnapped princesses, as well as two puzzling prophecies. The story speeds along with tantalizing twists and turns until the prophecies are fulfilled, true identities are revealed, and all is resolved in a totally satisfying, breathtaking, surprise-filled ending.

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Howl's Moving Castle has found a place amongst my top 10 favorite books, and Diana Wynne Jones is now one of my favorite authors. When I finally got the sequels from the library, I was confident that Jones would make the next two books just as exciting and fun and ridiculous as the first. And this book definitely lived up to my expectations.

Abdullah is a great character that you can't help rooting for, and Sophie is just as headstrong as ever... even when she's not human. I liked that Jones introduced new characters without losing her old ones. Just as good as the first. A