Where Carpets Fly

by Elise Edmonds

Fly for fun … fly for fear … fly for freedom … Restless teen Elina is bored of village life. When she starts magic lessons in the city, her only concern is exploring the sights with new school friend Kara. However, life takes a darker turn. Her magic teacher is hiding a secret, and odd happenings pile up, like unsociable Simeon's shady dockside deals. But Elina’s questions go unanswered. When Elina and Simeon develop a magical mind link, she suspects his involvement in foreign spy work. But an unexpected ship tour-turned-voyage throws her and Kara right at the mystery’s heart—in the volatile, dangerous country of Pallexon. Alone and with no ID, things worsen when a terrorist act blows Kara’s cover. With her own freedom at stake, Elina must rely on her wits and magic to save her friend and unravel Pallexon’s secrets—before it's too late. Friendships are forged and loyalties tested in this magical fantasy adventure from debut author Elise Edmonds. Read now and let your imagination fly!

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Kindle Edition

Published March 1, 2021

About the author

Elise Edmonds is a young adult fantasy writer from the UK. Reading and writing have always been her doorways into another world—a way to escape and spend time walking with wizards, flying with fairies, and dealing with dragons.

As a lifelong avid fantasy reader, her writing is influenced by Diana Wynne Jones, J K Rowling, Angie Sage, C S Lewis, and Enid Blyton. Any books with the power to draw someone into another world fascinate her, and she's tried to capture this feeling in her own novels.

She lives in a quiet South Gloucestershire village as a finance professional by day, and in her spare time she pursues writing as a creative outlet, to put the magic back into everyday life. When not writing, Elise enjoys going to Zumba classes, wildlife gardening, and playing with her two beautiful cats.

Reviews

[Elise Edmonds · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my book, so obviously I think it's good :) But if you like flying carpets, magic, adventure, and espionage, then I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy it too!

[Kristen Kooistra · Rating 5 out of 5]

There may be bigger things going on in Elina's world, but she just wants to get out of the boring old family carpet shop. She manages to win permission to move to the city of Kamikan where she can get magic lessons at a private school.

Flying carpets, magic, sailing, and a crazy adventure are waiting.



I loved the worldbuilding with the glowglobes, carpets, biological life, and even the food. It was cool to see the different types of magic and how they could be used. When things start getting out of control for Elina and her friend, Kara, I was like, UGH, because it was all things that you couldn't do anything about. A series of unfortunate events! Though when Kara stopped at one point, I wanted to drag her onto the ship by her hair.

I did think it was weird how Elina during one of her Cognitive lessons was like, "Oh gosh, does Simeon like me?" because they'd just recently met and there'd been so little book time with them together that I was actually surprised that Elina even considered it since there was no reason to wonder.

There's a handful of light swear words(I think they're all "Hell" with maybe one damn.), but other than that it was very clean. No gore or sexual stuff and the violence was tastefully conveyed. You know, "She clubbed him over the head" type stuff, not descriptions of what that looked like or anything.

It was awesome that Simeon and Elina had a chance to use what they'd been learning. I think Kara's ordeal helped make the larger situation of what's going on in this world more personal and close for both Elina and me. It'll be interesting to see if Elina feels inspired to help and change things for the better.

[Heather Hayden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where Carpets Fly follows Elina, a headstrong girl who is staying in the city of Kamikan with her aunt in order to attend magic school. Her father is equally headstrong and wants her to focus on Tangible magic so she can return home to help out in his magic carpet shop. (Yes, that's right. There are magic carpets in this book and they're a normal form of transportation in this country! I'm so jealous.)

Elina doesn't want to work in a dusty old shop for the rest of her life--she wants to travel the world. And, unexpectedly, she gets her wish. Though not quite in the manner that she expects...

I loved every aspect of this book. The characters, the descriptions, the storyline, and the world-building (especially that magic system!) Everything flows together into a gripping narrative that kept me turning the page until I reached the end. Elina especially made this story shine--she's a strong heroine who struggles to overcome her flaws. I loved watching her grow over the course of the story.

There's something for everyone in this story--plenty of adventure and peril, strong friendships, a touch of romance, and, of course, magic! I can't wait to read more stories about Elina and her friends.

[Kate Coleman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you like magic, a vividly drawn world, intruige, a smattering of romance and the shadow of danger? Do you yearn for strong female characters? If you do, then Where Carpets Fly may be the book for you.
Elina wants to break free of her father's expectation that she will grow up and work in the family flying carpet business. But you know what they say. Be careful what you wish for! Elina gets more than she bargained for when she and a friend get tangled in dangerous foreign affairs. She has to grow up fast if she's going to save her friend and make it home safe.
This YA fantasy adventure is a quick read (it took me three good sittings, although I read quite fast). It's strengths are in the vividly evoked fantasy world (which has some modern day parallels) which the author skillfully draws the reader into with lots of colourful sensory details. The romance is touching, but no over bearing. And although the story stands well on its own, I'd happily read another of Elina's adventures.

[Katelyn Barbee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elise Edmonds’ Where Carpets Fly is a delightful, magic-filled adventure for both kids and adults to read. I couldn’t put it down and that’s rare for me, but I was engaged from start to finish!

Elina, the main character, is very relatable and easy to root for with her desire to make her own destiny rather than run the family carpet shop like her father wants. She quickly discovers that she has a talent for biological magic (interacting with plants and animals), as well as cognitive (mind reading) and both skills come in handy when she and her friend Kara accidently become stowaways and end up setting sail on a voyage to Kamikan, a neighboring city in the country of Pallexon, who has a tentative peace with their own (Tamarin).

One aspect that I particularly enjoyed was the political undertones. The tension between the two countries is palpable, a ticking time bomb, if you will, and it sets the stage for this book as well as the ones to come without being preachy or overbearing. Also, the magic system is fabulous and I adore it, well really, I adore just about everything about this book! Highly recommend it to everyone!

[Abi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review of Where Carpets Fly by Elise Edmonds:

Readability:

Amazing. I read this book in one sitting, and it went by very quickly. There wasn’t a dull moment to be found, and I was very happy about that.

Plot:

The plot was decent, and definitely exciting, with magic and adventure. I thought it wrapped up kind of quickly and easily though.

Characters:

I liked the main character of this book, Where Carpets Fly, and I thought that she was relatable. Elian was a rather impulsive young woman, who wanted to see the world. She grew throughout the story, and became less dreamy and annoyed with her situation. She ended up with a better, more complete view of the world, had more self reliance, and was stronger overall.

The other characters, I had mixed opinions of. Kara was okay, and I felt sorry for her at the end, even if I thought she was a bit spoilt and annoying in the beginning. I feel like she will become more radical in future books, due to her experiences, and may drag Elina down with her, eventually leading to some sort of break in their friendship. Either way, she was strong.

Janni irritated me. He liked Elina, and there was reciprocated interest, but I preferred Simeon.

Simeon was interesting, and it was hard for me to know what he wanted and what his feelings about, well, anything were. He was pretty closed off, but opened up eventually. At any rate, I liked him better than Janni. He was more intriguing, not to mention we met him first, so hopefully he’ll last.

On the Janni or Simeon thing (the love triangle) I prefer Simeon. But it was very up in the air for what would happen with that at the end.

Overall rating:

4 stars. I will be reading book 2.

[Debbie Jinks · Rating 4 out of 5]

This YA fantasy novel did not disappoint, with flying carpets, majics galore, heroine's and hero's it was great fun to read. Elina the main character was a courageous and somewhat rebellious girl, which made her all the more appealing. She didn't want to conform with what her father expected of her, to eventually take over his majic carpet business. She wanted excitement to learn interesting magic, not boring old tangible magic, as she saw it. When everything was turned upside down after accidentally ending up in a different country, not only did she have to avoid capture from some very malicious characters, but she also had to save her friend's life. In an unexpected and frightening series of events, Elina ended up getting involved in a lot more than she expected..... I really enjoyed reading this book and would certainly recommend it to anybody who likes to lose themselves in a good fantasy story. If you want to know more you'll have to read it for yourself!

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had so much fun reading this book. It did start out on the slower side but I prefer stories that take their time so it wasn't an issue for me. Even if you prefer fast-paced action, I suggest you read on, it gets there and once the action starts you'll be devouring the rest of the book and ordering the next one before turning the last pages.
I enjoyed the world building a lot. Elina was a pleasant POV character and I coudl easily sympathise with her. She's a bit naive at times but with her age it makes perfect sense and I'd be worried if she dealt with everything like an adult not a teenager. I can be wary of worlds where magic is widespread but at no point did the magic here feel like a deux ex machina used to rescue Elina from difficult situations. There were clear limitations and weaknesses and I really enjoyed that.
Overall this was a strong debut and I'm already several chapters into the second book(which is even better!!) so I can highly recommend reading this series.

[J.M. Stengl · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A sweet story about a teenager going off to school to develop her magic, making friends, making mistakes, and getting into serious trouble along with her new best friend, Kara. A little romantic interest from two cute boys, Simeon and Janni, a clever magic system, an overbearing father, a mysterious magic instructor, and a heroic journey to rescue Kara from an evil government . . . it's fun.

I'm not sure why the book kept losing my interest (timing was likely an issue). I might have enjoyed it more when I was a teen? It is sweet and likable, so if you're interested in flying carpets, telepathic conversation, making plants grow with your mind, and other fun magic concepts, be sure to try this one.

[Elisabeth Bridges · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! The universal struggle of a young teenage girl trying to figure out her place in the world, as well as how to navigate relationships, was silhouetted against a magical backdrop of fascinating cultures.

The plot was fast-paced and gripping, but my absolute favorite part of the entire book was how, in spite of the exciting new cultures and magical possibilities, Elise Edmonds managed to make everything seem familiar and everyday-ish. Elina and her family set off on their carpet in the same way any other family would set off in their minivan, and river fairies attract no more notice than dragonflies.

[Matthew Dewar · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun read! The worlds of Pallexon and Kamikan are vividly brought to life as Elina Farramar learns magic from a teacher who seems to be hiding something. And that something is a big something! Her classmates are interesting, the magic lessons are fun, and the writing is well crafted. It was an easy an enjoyable read with a good mix between some light romance, magic, action, and mystery.
Looking forward to reading about Elina's next adventure.

[Rebecca Mikkelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love at first read

Where Carpets Fly is a delightful and exciting read that I could not wait to continue each night. It has all the workings of a masterpiece: friendship, blossoming romance, adventure and danger. This book is well worth the read!

[Lynden Wade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elina is delighted at her chance to leave her father’s magic carpet shop and attend magic school, where she begins to discover her own strengths. But an accidental voyage throws her into an adventure that quickly turns dangerous as she and her friend Kara find themselves in a hostile country.

There is clearly influence from Harry Potter and Diana Wynne Jones in this book, but the author has built a world that is entirely her own. The descriptions of the sights, sounds and smells really helped me to see the setting clearly, without effort.

Another nice touch was the way that the author inverted the common tendency to make the main fantasy world white. Here, Elina’s fellow countrymen are dark haired and live in a warm country while Pallexon, the country they hold an uneasy treaty with, is populated with white, light-haired people and the climate is colder.

The plot has several threads. On a personal level, there is the story of how Elina learns and uses her own gifts when she is caught up in adventure. On a larger scale, there is the story of the tension between the two countries and the mystery as to how Simeon, her fellow pupil, and Mr Jaxon, her teacher, are involved. There is also a romantic thread, which had me torn between wanting to tell her not to trust strange boys (I have my own teenage daughter!) and hoping they would get together at the end.

After a leisurely start, the action kicks in when the girls find they are trapped on the boat, and the momentum builds and holds to the final climax.

[Corinne Morier · Rating 5 out of 5]

An immersive page-turner by a promising new author!

Anyone who knows me knows how much I constantly rave about this book. I’ve read this one cover to cover multiple times, and on my most recent read (during downtime at work—I work in customer service and my boss is okay with us reading when there’s no customers) I breezed through it in one day and completely forgot I was still on the job! 😅 It’s not often that you see an Arabian-inspired fantasy novel that does its own thing instead of being a retelling of an Arabic myth of some sort. And OHMYGOSH does this book deliver.

Elina Faramar moves to a new city to take magic lessons, only to embark on a dangerous journey through the jungle after her best friend is taken captive by the corrupt government of the neighboring country, aided by her surly, secretive classmate Simeon and the jovial, generous sailor Janni. If you want a story with a rich, detailed world and a unique magic system, featuring best friends who would face death and imprisonment for each other and a sweet, clean romance, this is definitely a must-read. I shove this in the faces of everyone I meet—friends, family, coworkers, and even my dog!


(me anytime someone asks for a book recommendation and I tell them to read this book)

I should issue a content warning here: this book does use a couple of swear words (no f-bombs, though) so if you’re not comfortable with that, maybe don’t read this book. Otherwise, this is a book everyone needs to read, and if or when I become a teacher, this book will be on my class reading list. You need to read this book!!