I am sad to say that I didn't enjoy this book very much. I wanted to. I really wanted to (So far I love The Mother Daughter Book Club series so I thought I would like Heather Vogel Frederick's writing overall). But Once Upon A Toad left something to be desired for me. The book follows Cat who is in the process of moving in with her father and step-family as her mother has to spend a few months on the ISS (International Space Station- and their name is Starr. Her mother is an astronaut and her name is Starr. That was my first problem with the book). Cat loves her father, stepmother and half brother. However she cannot get along with her stepsister, Olivia. Of course she and Olivia share a room and spend the beginning of the novel not getting along. Of course, Cat's fairy godmother shows up (and of course she didn't know that she even had a fairy godmother), casts a spell that doesn't work as expected but takes off where she can't be found before the characters figure out that there is a problem.
The basic synopsis for this book is cute. The target age group will likely enjoy it (around 8 years old or so). I was not the target audience. I kept describing the plot as convenient. How convenient that Cat's mother wasn't even on the planet when her daughter needed her. How convenient that Cat's best friend back in Houston is a super genius and is able to track down
Great-Aunt Abyssinia. I struggle when the plot falls into place too easily. I want to be able to believe in the plot and characters even if it's a completely made up world. This book just didn't do it for me. Again, younger readers will likely enjoy this book, it just wasn't for me.
Happy Reading!
-Melanie
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