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Title | The Accidental Apprentice
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Author | Amanda Foody
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | Margaret K. McElderry Books - 2021
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First Printing | Margaret K. McElderry Books - 2021
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Title | The Weeping Tide
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Author | Amanda Foody
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Cover Art | ---
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Publisher | ---
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First Printing | ---
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Category | Middle Grade
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Warnings | None
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Main Characters | Barclay Thorne, Viola, Tadg
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Main Elements | Wizards
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Website | amandafoody.com
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 The Accidental Apprentice
The last thing Barclay Thorne ever wanted was an adventure.
Thankfully, as an apprentice to the town’s mushroom farmer, Barclay need only work hard and follow the rules to one day become the head mushroom farmer himself. No danger required. But then Barclay accidentally breaks his town’s most sacred rule: never ever EVER stray into the Woods, for within the Woods lurk vicious magical Beasts.
To Barclay’s horror, he faces a fate far worse than being eaten: he unwittingly bonds with a Beast and is run out of town by an angry mob. Determined to break this bond and return home, Barclay journeys to find the mysterious town of Lore Keepers, people who have also bonded with Beasts and share their powers.
But after making new friends, entering a dangerous apprenticeship exam, and even facing the legendary Beast of the Woods, Barclay must make a difficult choice: return to the home and rules he’s always known, or embrace the adventure awaiting him.
The book was described as Harry Potter x Pokemon, which just seemed, well, weird. I usually don't put too much credit in books that say "Hey I'm like XYZ" since more often than not its just a marketing thing and the book is nothing like XYZ...but this one...well it kind of is Harry Potter mixed with Pokemon, and it was actually really good.
Our Harry is Barclay, an orphan in the village of Dullshire, training to be a mushroom collector. Until he accidentally captures a Pokemon...sorry, Beast in the woods. He then has to leave the village (that never wanted anything to do with him anyway, he never fit in) to learn how to break the bond with his Beast. There he has to go through trials, since only the strongest will survive having their Beast removed, while finding he's actually pretty good at this magic stuff, and he starts making friends, something he never had before. But it was a Beast that killed his parents and he just can't bring himself to ally himself with one feeling that he was betraying their memory.
I really look forward to reading the rest of the series since this book had a lot of adventure, and fun, a touch of humour and fun worldbuilding. And some great characters, each with a lot of history to them, and you never know who you can trust until they show their true colours.
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