Astrid and the Accidental Slip Between Worlds by Jaclyn Moriarty

Title: Astrid and the Accidental Slip Between Worlds

Author: Jaclyn Moriarty

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Allen and Unwin

Published: 3rd November 2026

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 432

Price: $26.99

Synopsis: From the award-winning author Jaclyn Moriarty comes a brilliant, funny, fast-paced fantasy suitable for readers who love Jessica Townsend, Diana Wynne Jones and Karen Foxlee.

Astrid Mettlestone-Staranise can always tell when someone is lying. But this doesn’t help when she’s thrown from the Kingdoms and Empires into our world – a world that will steal not only her memory, but the essence of who she is.

Ordinarily, Astrid would rely on her older sisters, Esther and Imogen, to rescue her.

But Esther’s on a school trip to a wilderness camp, along with a Whisperer, a sea monster, and a Faery. The group have found themselves trapped. Food is running out, Shadow Mages keep attacking – and frying pans and grand pianos are falling from the sky.

Meanwhile, Imogen is busy at the Elven Games with her cousin Bronte Mettlestone, and their friend Oscar. The trio are seeking a True Mage turned evil, whose wicked plan might tear the fabric of the universe to shreds.

Neither sister knows Astrid is in danger. Can they locate the True Mage and stop the evil plan before all the worlds are permanently changed, and Astrid is lost forever?

PERFECT FOR:

– Readers aged 10-14 who love magic, mystery and whimsy

– Fans of Nevermoor, Harry Potter or the Impossible Creatures series

– Parents, teachers and librarians looking for an entertaining middle grade series

– Gift givers looking for a beautiful hardback and a perfect immersive magical read

READ ALL THE BOOKS IN THE SERIES:

– The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone

– The Slightly Alarming Tale of the Whispering Wars

– The Stolen Prince of Cloudburst

– The Astonishing Chronicles of Oscar from Elsewhere

• The Impossible Secret of Lillian Velvet

Previous reviews:

The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone

The Slightly Alarming Tales of the Whispering Wars

The Stolen Prince of Cloudburst

The Astonishing Chronicles of Oscar from Elsewhere

The Impossible Secret of Lilian Velvet

~*~

The sixth book in the Kingdoms and Empires series is here, and the two worlds, our world and Kingdoms and Empires are about to collide in a very different way. Meet Astrid Mettlestone-Staranise, sister to Esther and Imogen, cousin to Bronte. She’s been asked to attend the Tournament of Pinnacles as the mayor’s assistant, and is waiting to get things started when a comment from Professor Georg Garonizki sends her into our world. Or, as the residents of Kingdoms and Empires as The World.

She arrives in Sydney and is taken in by Echo McGarretty and her family. None of them believe Astrid’s story about being from another world, even though they are impressed by her ability to tell when people are lying and to presumably read minds and know things before anyone else does. Yet, being here is dangerous for Astrid. The longer she is in Sydney, the quicker she will disappear.

So, she sets about getting Echo to help her get back and get in touch with Imogen and Esther. Except, Imogen is at the Elven Games with Oscar and Bronte, and Esther is on a school wilderness trip. So who can help Astrid get back to her world before she forgets who she is and disappears all together?

Poor Astrid! She never asked to be sent to Sydney, and she’s got no idea how to find her family. And poor Echo, trying to make sense of her family and their grief. Of what Astrid is telling her. And of the sneaky things going on with her father, who is absent for much of the book. In the sixth book in the series, things are getting interesting and whilst it feels like it is its own story and it is, there are hints throughout in memos from Kingdoms and Empires that there is something more going on. Is it a hint that there will be another book that wraps things up with all these characters? That will certainly be interesting as the books have been playing with wars and conflict. Shadow Mages, Whisperers, Genies, and all sorts of other magical creatures that populate Kingdoms and Empires.

There does seem to be something that each of these individual yet connected books are leading to, and after this one, it makes me wonder if Echo will have a bigger role. They are long, with many short parts and chapters, but this works for these books. I can’t put my finger on why,  but in this instance it is very effective across the series. And even when we have multiple perspectives, like I journal entires, it’s clear who is talking (or writing) which helps shape the characters and their voices. This one goes between the worlds and characters as Echo tries to help Astrid, and as her family realises what has happened. This tension and mystery builds throughout the book as everyone tries to reach or help Astrid, even those that don’t believe her. Luckily, Echo is able to spin a story that ensures nobody questions things too much. Well, sort of. It certainly adds to the zest of the book and the series.

This book involves all the characters from the previous books at some stage, and it has connected them all very well. It is definitely a series that you should read in order to appreciate what is going on and make all the connections about the story and the characters. This is what made me think there is another book coming that might wrap things up and bring everyone we have met so far into things. What this will be, I don’t know. I do think it will be epic though.

As for this book, I think it captured the balance between the worlds very well. I enjoyed it and thought it was told very well. There is a lot going on in this book, but it is all there for a reason and I did enjoy the seemingly disjointed bits at the beginning, as it cleverly started to bring things together later in the book. As always it ended on a good note and I can’t wait to see what comes next.