This is post originally on Vivian's Book Pavilion 
 Never go into the deep parts of the forest, for there are many dangers there, and they will ensnare your soul. 
 Congratulations to me!!!! My summer vacation has come!!!! Yeah!!!! Free to read until my heart content!!!!! And you know what the other exciting thing to announce is? I receive my first and ever ARC paper back copies!!!! OMG, when I receive the email I was totally panic...it's impossible!!! But then...after I replied...they said yes!!!!! What's better, the agent of Serafina and the Splinter Heart agreed to send me the first two copies as well, which I've longed to read since it was released!!!!! How can I even survive the excitement???? I still can't believe this kind of luck happened to me!!!! And I received the bookish mail so fast!!! So of course, in order to reply the kindness, how can I do other thing than read this series as soon as I return home? I devoured it within three hours...so now my eyes... 
 You know...I originally thought it was a fantasy...however, after I finished it, I realized that it was more of a detective novel than fantasy. Nevertheless, I like it as a middle-grade novel. I didn't read that much of this kind of middle-grade novels, I can recalled what I read before is the 39 clues by Rick Riordan a long time ago, one-hundred-year-old secret by I forgot which authors. And that's probably most of it? I guess...however, I never read a detective novel with fantasy, and I thought it was perfect. I like this book really much, and enjoyed almost every moment with Serafina. But...tbh...I will still say some of the plots are predictable. Like her birthright and her gradually grown relationship with the land lord's son. Yet...still...I didn't quite guess the final clue right...that's annoying. But then, it shows it's a great book, isn't it? So I gave it 3.8 stars out of 5. It's not the most awesome book I've ever read, but it is a great middle-grade book I think a lot of children would enjoy. 
 Our Character Isn't Defined By The Battles We Win Or Lose, 
 But By the Battles We Dare To Fight. 
 To tell you a secret...there is a reason why I didn't read detective novels that much...because I usually scared myself to death when I'm reading. Since I usually read after every one of my family member asleep...the entire house was dark except for the little lamp on my desk. It's kind of creepy to read something dark in that time, however, without those dark, scary time, the book won't be so fun, won't it? So...I confessed that the hairs on my back kind of stand when I was reading the graveyard scene. But...at the same time...that part is so great and thrilling!!!! Especially with the lion cubs. Serafina met the lion cubs when she was exploring the graveyard to find anything about the Black Cloak...and she stopped to play with those adorable little things. Damn!!!! My entire mind is screaming "Watch out for their mother!!!!!" And it appeared!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! Serafina screamed and crumbled away as soon as possible, never looking back, fearing that the mountain lioness will follow her. It will be sad that she wasn't died because of the Black Cloak, but under the paw of a lioness. Sorry...I just invented that scene. Well...she did meet the lioness...but as for the rest? Read it for yourselves! There are actually several creepy scenes for you to find out! And I can see a great friendship building in the future sequel. Unlike some of the book with the make character getting stronger and stronger and eventually overpower the female character, in this book, at least, Serafina is the powerful one. And I love it. It's time that we have a girl solo in a detective, which I was found out not only in middle grade books, but also the adults. We can usually see them in pairs, but...I'd love to see only girl. And here we are, the brave lioness in the book. The greatest Chief Rat Catcher. 
 So...I'll totally recommend this book to all middle grade readers, regardless your age, your interest, your gender...blablabla. It'll be a great book for teachers to select for their students! I might even recommend Serafina and the Black Cloak to my teacher for making this as a recommendation summer read...if anyone in Taiwan is interested in reading in English. That's sad...but if you're a parent, than let your children read this rather than watching TV or phones all the time, if you're a professional reader, than get a chance for some easy read to release from all those fantastic massive huge books! It's always a great thing to read middle-grade book than back to adult or young adult. 
 I received the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.