I should have known better than to read this book when I'm already emotional and grieving, but oh, what a book. It brought back nostalgic feelings of the wonder I had when I read The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe for the first time, and The Secret Garden. These beautiful books that taught me, as a child, that magic existed in my ordinary world, if only I had the curiosity and eyes to look for it. The introduction talks about these books as inspiration, and it comes through in a wondrous way here.

The way S.E. Reid managed to craft this story from the eyes of a ten-year-old child is awe-inspiring. Her writing is always whimsical and atmospheric in the best ways. It transported me right back to those days when I was young and just wanted to be heard, to have a grown-up who would have a real conversation with me, to feel belonging somewhere. And of course, now that I'm a parent myself, I felt the ache from Pete, who was just trying to be the best dad he could be.

Ivy & Ixos is a master work in such a small book. It made my heart ache. I loved it.