4.5 stars. A thinly veiled Wizard of Oz retelling with Seanan Maguire's (aka A. Deborah Baker) typical weird and slightly dark spin. I had a great time reading this one, though there are a few parts where the logic left me for a bit and I found some frustration in the story. However, I loved the whimsical nature of the story and the quirkiness of the characters.

I enjoyed the fact that Zib and Avery were not instantly chummy and that they had very divergent personalities. It was a nice development of conflict. The supporting characters are for the most point enjoyable and enchanting. I was not the biggest fan of Quartz, finding him somewhat unnecessary to the plot. I do appreciate the lessons about individuality being taught through the narrative.

The story does leave off very abruptly at the end, but there is a sequel coming, so I let that slide for the most part. This could be a very fun series and I look forward to reading more.