Unicorn Academy 7 – Rosa and Crystal

Julie Sykes's Rosa and Crystal is a Unicorn Academy adventure for 7 year olds about a girl who LOVES being in charge.

What happens

Rosa has been at the academy for a month. She's got a beautiful unicorn called Crystal and she's always first with her hand up. What she hasn't got yet is a dorm full of best friends.

The girls in Diamond dorm are all very different. Ariana is neat and sensible. Matilda is messy and can't stop drawing. Violet is friendly to everyone. And Freya would rather be scribbling in her notebook about something she wants to build.

So Rosa decides to fix it herself. She climbs on an upturned bucket and announces a dorm outing. Freya says no (and calls her bossy).

Then there's a proper mystery. The magical map in the Great Hall has stopped working because the tiny model of the school is missing. Rosa is sure Diamond dorm can find it and make all the teachers proud.

A hidden key, a secret safe behind a painting and a hand-drawn map later, they're off to an ice cavern in the mountains. Not everyone thinks they should go without telling a teacher. Ariana really isn't keen!

It's very easy to like Rosa even when she's being a bit much. You see how nervous she is underneath, standing up in front of everyone with her heart pounding. You also see her get it wrong. She refuses to listen to Freya about the tunnels and leads everyone straight into a dead end full of ice bats.

Crystal is lovely too. She usually goes along with whatever Rosa wants, so it really matters when she starts gently nudging her to listen.

If you've got a reader who likes to be the one in charge, they might recognise a bit of themselves here. And who actually enjoys admitting they've got everyone lost?

There's also a water fight in a brook that ends somewhere nobody expects. That one's best left as a surprise.

It's the seventh book but it starts with a whole new set of girls. It does mention what happened at the academy the year before, though, so if your reader plans to read the first six it's worth starting there.

What to read next

If they'd like something sillier with another girl desperate for her own unicorn (and LOADS of medals), try The Naughtiest Unicorn. Mira has wanted to go to Unicorn School since forever, and her big sister never stops showing off about it.