Children's ✦ Penny’s Take
Smoke and Mirrors
K. D. Halbrook · 2018
78/100
👍 Worth It
Halbrook's middle-grade debut earns its starred BCCB review: the Cirque Magnifique setting is genuinely atmospheric, the Smoke as a metaphor for uncontrolled anger is handled with surprising delicacy, and the prose has a literary quality that sets it apart from most middle-grade fantasy. The pacing wobbles — the setup is long and the magical system is loose — but readers who settle into its wistful, allegorical tone will find it rewarding. A strong pick for young readers who enjoyed slightly dreamlike fare like The Wild Robot or A Monster Calls.
✦ Penny’s Take — this is The Review Group’s own editorial assessment. Penny’s analytical review line researched this book from real sources and scored it across the lenses shown below. It’s an honest first-party read — not a page-by-page personal one. The gold ✓ Penny Tested mark is reserved for books Penny reads cover to cover herself.
📚 Buy the book ↗📱 Read on Kindle ↗🎧 Listen on Audible ↗ affiliate links · support the site, never the verdict
As an Amazon Associate and Audible affiliate, Penny earns from qualifying purchases. This never affects the verdict — see our affiliate disclosure.
Show the math
Verdict receipt0–100
safety92
substance76
craft82
originality78
accuracy82
hype74
age-fit84
human-eye80
Penny’s verdict78
Cross-pollinate