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Legends of Lotus Island #3
City of Wishes
From three-time Newbery honor recipient Christina Soontornvat comes a compelling new young middle grade fantasy series for readers who love stories about animals, magic, and kids like them embracing their power to change the world.
During the New Year break, Plum and her friends travel to fancy, fashionable Nakhon City. There they'll stay with Sam and his mother, the powerful Lady Ubon.
At first, Plum is dazzled by how big and exciting Nakhon City is. She's never experienced anything like it! But under the glittering surface, secrets lurk. A storm is brewing, and Plum will have to harness all of her growing powers to survive it.
During the New Year break, Plum and her friends travel to fancy, fashionable Nakhon City. There they'll stay with Sam and his mother, the powerful Lady Ubon.
At first, Plum is dazzled by how big and exciting Nakhon City is. She's never experienced anything like it! But under the glittering surface, secrets lurk. A storm is brewing, and Plum will have to harness all of her growing powers to survive it.
130 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 5, 2024
39 people are currently reading
186 people want to read
About the author
Christina Soontornvat
40 books745 followersChristina Soontornvat grew up behind the counter of her parents’ Thai restaurant in a small Texas town with her nose stuck in a book. She is very proud of both her Thai and her Texan roots, and makes regular trips to both Weatherford and Bangkok to see her beloved family members (and eat lots and lots of Thai food!). Christina is the author of the fantasy middle grade series, The Changelings, and the early chapter book series, Diary of an Ice Princess. Her forthcoming books include the middle grade fantasy, A Wish in the Dark, and All Thirteen, a nonfiction account of the Thai Cave Rescue.
In addition to being an author, Christina holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a master’s degree in Science Education. She spent a decade working in the science museum field, where she designed programs and exhibits to get kids excited about science. She is passionate about STEM (science, technology engineering, and math), and loves learning new things. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, two young children, and one old cat.
In addition to being an author, Christina holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and a master’s degree in Science Education. She spent a decade working in the science museum field, where she designed programs and exhibits to get kids excited about science. She is passionate about STEM (science, technology engineering, and math), and loves learning new things. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, two young children, and one old cat.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
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March 13, 2024Yes, I will shout out this chapter book series every time a new installment comes out 🤩. Here to tell you book 3 was just as good as 1 and 2.
Elementary school teachers & librarians - do you have these on your shelves? 👀 The LEGENDS OF LOTUS ISLANDS series has a low page count, illustrations, short chapters, and is set in a magical Thailand I absolutely love.
Have you read these? And if so, would you also give up anything to have a Guardian form? 😩🦌
Elementary school teachers & librarians - do you have these on your shelves? 👀 The LEGENDS OF LOTUS ISLANDS series has a low page count, illustrations, short chapters, and is set in a magical Thailand I absolutely love.
Have you read these? And if so, would you also give up anything to have a Guardian form? 😩🦌
March 23, 2024
This series keeps getting better and better! I appreciate how the conflict keeps deepening, and of course I love the focus on the effects of the city on the natural environment. I also appreciate the complexity of the character Rella—she had the potential to be a very flat, mean girl character, but she’s much more than that. I definitely didn’t expect the turn of where our characters ended up at the end of the book! Now to wait for book four. :D
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April 2, 2024
Trigger & Content Warnings
Building collapse from an earthquake
Cave-in
Building collapse from an earthquake
Cave-in
May 14, 2024
i love this little book series :3
August 31, 2025
Amazing book! Very excited to read the next one!
July 14, 2024
Love this series! Great for 2nd-4th graders or kids who are not huge readers. Very well developed story in a short readable book.
March 10, 2024
Book 3 in the Legends of Lotus Island is out now!
🏮
It’s New Year’s break and Plum and her friends have traveled to the fancy and fashionable Nakhon City to celebrate with Sam and his mother, Lady Ubon. Plum is enchanted by the city, having never experienced anything like it living with her grandparents in the small town back home. While there Plum meets and befriends a creature, last of his kind, that shares information about the trees Sam’s family keeps tearing down so they can build. As a storm brews, Plum must have to harness her powers and stand on her own.
🏮
While fantasy is never my go-to genre, I’m hooked on this MG series I hope it goes on forever! Plum and her friends are just so sweet to read about. I loved the Rella storyline, as always, and can’t wait to see where that goes as they head out on a new adventure!
🏮
It’s New Year’s break and Plum and her friends have traveled to the fancy and fashionable Nakhon City to celebrate with Sam and his mother, Lady Ubon. Plum is enchanted by the city, having never experienced anything like it living with her grandparents in the small town back home. While there Plum meets and befriends a creature, last of his kind, that shares information about the trees Sam’s family keeps tearing down so they can build. As a storm brews, Plum must have to harness her powers and stand on her own.
🏮
While fantasy is never my go-to genre, I’m hooked on this MG series I hope it goes on forever! Plum and her friends are just so sweet to read about. I loved the Rella storyline, as always, and can’t wait to see where that goes as they head out on a new adventure!
March 11, 2024
This series is an absolute delight. I am so impressed with the complexity of the characters in such short books for a young audience, reflecting that people aren't simply "good" or "bad." I also appreciate that the kids in this book play an important role, but the adults aren't cartoonist buffoons; it is the clear-sightedness of youth that makes them so effective a part of the team. The messages are strong and the excitement is perfectly balanced. We cannot wait for the next in this series!
A5R3.5K3.5
A5R3.5K3.5
March 22, 2025
Quick synopsis
: Set in what at first seems like a magical fantasy world, a young girl (Plum) has been accepted to an elite magical school that trains Guardians -- people who protect the natural world.
Brief opinion : I love this author so much! These books are meant for younger readers (they're Middle Grade books), but other than how short they are, I enjoyed them from start to finish.
Plot : Plum and the other students/her friends go to Nakhon City on that largest island mentioned in book 2. What could be causing the increasingly worse earthquakes there? Could it have to do with all the new high rises they're building on the island?
Writing/editing : As close to perfect as you can get! I spotted one minor editing issue in all four books -- three had no issues at all, the last one had the minor one (missing punctuation at the end of a line).
What I Liked/What I Didn’t Like : Getting my minor (and unfair) dislike out of the way first: By book 4, I was tired of the strong pro-environment message, but that was the entire theme of the series. The Guardians are charged with the mission of preventing what happened in our current world to happen in their new world, so of course the environmental message would be a major part of the story. Of course I'm pro-environment, but four books in a row of it being the central message got to be a lot.
Other minor dislike: The books were way too short! About half as long as a Middle Grade book usually is, which already would be short. These four books together made up about one YA book.
Things I like would be a list so long I'd run out of space in this post. I LOVED the worldbuilding so much! That it seemed like real magic to the characters but adult readers could spot what the truth behind the "magic" must have been.
I loved getting hints about the "Old World" (our current modern Earth).
I don't usually care about or want illustrations in my story, but I really loved the style of these!
Related to the illustrations, race was never mentioned in the story (the characters seemed "colorblind" and saw only people), but in the pictures we could spot that the richest people, the ones in power, were all darker skinned. That was nice and subtle!
I enjoyed that there were elements from our world in the story's world, like bowing to elders and out of respect.
Rating: 1-Hated / 2-Disliked / 3-Okay / 4-Liked / 5-Loved : Each of the four books gets the same rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️- Loved. I really hope there are going to be more books set in this world!
Brief opinion : I love this author so much! These books are meant for younger readers (they're Middle Grade books), but other than how short they are, I enjoyed them from start to finish.
Plot : Plum and the other students/her friends go to Nakhon City on that largest island mentioned in book 2. What could be causing the increasingly worse earthquakes there? Could it have to do with all the new high rises they're building on the island?
Writing/editing : As close to perfect as you can get! I spotted one minor editing issue in all four books -- three had no issues at all, the last one had the minor one (missing punctuation at the end of a line).
What I Liked/What I Didn’t Like : Getting my minor (and unfair) dislike out of the way first: By book 4, I was tired of the strong pro-environment message, but that was the entire theme of the series. The Guardians are charged with the mission of preventing what happened in our current world to happen in their new world, so of course the environmental message would be a major part of the story. Of course I'm pro-environment, but four books in a row of it being the central message got to be a lot.
Other minor dislike: The books were way too short! About half as long as a Middle Grade book usually is, which already would be short. These four books together made up about one YA book.
Things I like would be a list so long I'd run out of space in this post. I LOVED the worldbuilding so much! That it seemed like real magic to the characters but adult readers could spot what the truth behind the "magic" must have been.
I loved getting hints about the "Old World" (our current modern Earth).
I don't usually care about or want illustrations in my story, but I really loved the style of these!
Related to the illustrations, race was never mentioned in the story (the characters seemed "colorblind" and saw only people), but in the pictures we could spot that the richest people, the ones in power, were all darker skinned. That was nice and subtle!
I enjoyed that there were elements from our world in the story's world, like bowing to elders and out of respect.
Rating: 1-Hated / 2-Disliked / 3-Okay / 4-Liked / 5-Loved : Each of the four books gets the same rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️- Loved. I really hope there are going to be more books set in this world!
April 7, 2024
Public library copy
As the New Year's break approaches, Plum is excited to be spending the time with Cherry at Sam's house on Nakhon Island. Sam's mother, Lady Ubon, is quite possibly evil, but after all of the drama with Rella, seems to be trying to do her best work for the islands in her hoverbot lab. The big city is exciting, but the frequent tremors are concerning, as is the construction of luxury apartments, which means tearing down a lot of yam yam groves. The Guardians are called on to rescue people from apartment buildings when the tremors get worse, and they locate the source of these increasingly alarming tremors. There's a stone creature, called Master Render, who has been tunneling in the rock beneath the city in search of the yam yam trees. Since they are gone, he has decided to leave the island. While preparing for the New Year's party thrown by Lady Ubon, the group uncovers a plot by Councilor Yurn that might be behind the problems the island is facing, and might be concerning to Lotus Island as well. There's definitely another book after this one, since the children's fate is up in the air at the end of this book!
Strengths: I love Plum's power of making other people stronger; that's a super power all on it's own, but not one that gets a lot of attention. The trio get to practice the powers they are learning at school, and as always, are on top of the environmental challenges that arise. Rella makes another appearance, and I'm not entirely sure what to think about her. This uncertainly will have readers waiting eagerly for the next book!
Weaknesses: I would have enjoyed more details about the city and Sam's house, but do appreciate that these books are nice and short.
What I really think: This is a great series to have at both elementary schools, where it would be good to hand to second graders who think they want to read Harry Potter. At middle school level, it's perfect for readers who want to pick up some fantasy but don't want to commit years to a series. There are a lot of culturally connected fantasies out there, but Legends of Lotus Island stands out because of the shorter length and the environmental focus. Definitely purchasing the entire series.
As the New Year's break approaches, Plum is excited to be spending the time with Cherry at Sam's house on Nakhon Island. Sam's mother, Lady Ubon, is quite possibly evil, but after all of the drama with Rella, seems to be trying to do her best work for the islands in her hoverbot lab. The big city is exciting, but the frequent tremors are concerning, as is the construction of luxury apartments, which means tearing down a lot of yam yam groves. The Guardians are called on to rescue people from apartment buildings when the tremors get worse, and they locate the source of these increasingly alarming tremors. There's a stone creature, called Master Render, who has been tunneling in the rock beneath the city in search of the yam yam trees. Since they are gone, he has decided to leave the island. While preparing for the New Year's party thrown by Lady Ubon, the group uncovers a plot by Councilor Yurn that might be behind the problems the island is facing, and might be concerning to Lotus Island as well. There's definitely another book after this one, since the children's fate is up in the air at the end of this book!
Strengths: I love Plum's power of making other people stronger; that's a super power all on it's own, but not one that gets a lot of attention. The trio get to practice the powers they are learning at school, and as always, are on top of the environmental challenges that arise. Rella makes another appearance, and I'm not entirely sure what to think about her. This uncertainly will have readers waiting eagerly for the next book!
Weaknesses: I would have enjoyed more details about the city and Sam's house, but do appreciate that these books are nice and short.
What I really think: This is a great series to have at both elementary schools, where it would be good to hand to second graders who think they want to read Harry Potter. At middle school level, it's perfect for readers who want to pick up some fantasy but don't want to commit years to a series. There are a lot of culturally connected fantasies out there, but Legends of Lotus Island stands out because of the shorter length and the environmental focus. Definitely purchasing the entire series.
June 6, 2024
This is very much a transition book. I don’t feel it can stand on its own. It also won’t make a lot of sense unless you read this series in order. The kids discover that Sam’s home island has a lot of interesting things. Including some bad interesting things. The question is, which are good and which are bad? Like their old enemy Rella. Is she telling the truth now? Plum also discovers an ancient creature. Is the creature bad or good? Or perhaps neither? Not many storylines get tied up in this book. I hope the next book comes out soon and advances the story quite a bit further.
March 5, 2024
Honestly, this whole series is a joy for me to read. It does have its flaws where the storytelling is plain and simple, or it usually regurgitates information from previous books as if we're reading it for the first time, but I truly enjoy the characters. Each one has a spark to them, and I am interested in the Rella arc in the next book. The fact these are so short makes the wait for the next one harder!
April 22, 2024
This series just keeps on giving - it is amazing what Soontornvat gets done in less than 150 pages. Characters you care about, action, reflection, growth - it is all there. I hope this series finds its way to young readers - especially those precocious readers who are reading way about grade level but aren't ready for advanced themes. Plenty here for them, and it would make a great family read aloud too.
May 20, 2024
My daughter and I are continuing to make our way through this series as they are released. While some of the plot elements in this book were interesting, this installment was clearly a stepping stone to the upcoming fourth (and final?) book in the series. It clears up some of the loose ends established in book two, and sets up an obvious conflict to be explored in book four. We are looking forward to seeing what happens to these characters we have come to really enjoy!
May 27, 2024
This book was wonderfully written and completely adorable. It did a great job of tying up its threads and adding new ones. I can’t wait to learn about the new characters we’ve met and really see the character dynamics develop in the next book. Best one out of the three so far! Probably also helps that it’s one of the longest and allows them to be kids while also uncovering the mystery. Would recommend!
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November 5, 2025Hey there! This is Charlie P! I am eleven years old and I read books to raise money for charity. I want to help moms pick out books that their kids will like! Here is another review by me
The city of wishes was a very interesting book. It had action and tons of cool character with magical powers. I really like the parts where they use magic and when they learn about magic. This book was a great fantasy book and I hope there is a fourth one! Ages 8 to 11
The city of wishes was a very interesting book. It had action and tons of cool character with magical powers. I really like the parts where they use magic and when they learn about magic. This book was a great fantasy book and I hope there is a fourth one! Ages 8 to 11
March 16, 2024
The excitement definitely continues in this series. The New Year is celebrated in Nakhon City. But there's no rest for the heroes. Plum makes a connection with a wise Original, a past foe, and some prophesies come to pass. This story is exciting, but felt less complete than the first two books. Clearly there will be a book number 4 - hopefully quite soon.
April 28, 2024
This is a fun series and written for little kids. It’s a great read and I’m enjoying the characters. This time round we got to meet Sam’s mom and although there were areas that drove me crazy 😜, it did flesh out the mayor of the most expensive and populated town. The continuing theme of the island being sold is the driving force for this series. Bring on the next book 📖
September 20, 2024
This exactly what I expected (I’ve read the 2 previous) and did it well. The kids are nice, not very deep thinkers, and slow to change their minds, but with cool powers they eventually stop the worst from happening.
June 24, 2025
This time the six friends are spending New Years in the city of Nakhon City, as guests of Sam and his mother. Everything is glittery, amazing and new. SO much everywhere! But what are those strange tremors? Why is Hetty going off to meet Rella?
Another very interesting read.
Another very interesting read.
September 3, 2025
I loved seeing Plum and her friends explore the fabulous Nakhon Island and even more so learning the lore of the Great Beast. I was not expecting the fun action scenes or the secrets, but it was a delight.
September 29, 2025
Another fun installment in the series. If you enjoyed the first two, you will want to read the rest! The ending in this one is completely unexpected and I love the character development of the kids. Defintely recommended !
October 10, 2025
I still think this is a great intro to fantasy story. I love that they are these little episodes with a larger storyline linking them all together. I'm looking forward to picking up the fourth and final book in the series.
March 31, 2024
This third book really picks up at the end! Setting us up for what I hope is going to be a fantastic conclusion!!
April 2, 2024
This is truly a great series!! Loving each installment and this one was really great—villains becoming friends and friends becoming villains. Wonderful!!
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April 16, 2024I love this series! There is so much adventure yet also wishing good things to the characters.
April 25, 2024
I really love this series and so does my kiddo! Can’t wait for book 4!
May 11, 2024
This series is way below me but I always read the new books when they come out! I love the world building details and the characters. I’m always rooting for them cause PROTECT NATURE YES 👏
May 20, 2024
Another cute addition to the series. I'm still suspicious of Lady Ubon, she's deeper in this than the children believe.
May 31, 2024
A fun read aloud with my kids before bed.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews