Spark and the League of Ursus by Robert Repino

Synopsis (via Goodreads): Toy Story meets Stranger Things in this epic tale of warrior teddy bears and the children they protect.

Spark is not your average teddy bear. She’s soft and cuddly, sure, but she’s also a fierce warrior. At night she fulfills her sacred duty: to protect the household from monsters. But Spark’s owner Loretta is growing up and thinks she doesn’t need her old teddy anymore.

When a monster unlike any other descends on the quiet home, everything changes. Children are going missing, and the monster wants Loretta next. Only Spark can stop it. She must call upon the ancient League of Ursus—a secret alliance of teddy bears who are pledged to protect their human friends. Together with an Amazon-princess doll and a timid sock monkey, the bears are all that stands between our world and the one that lies beneath. It will be a heroic chapter in the history of the League... if the bears live to tell the tale.

𑁋𑁋𑁋

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

When I first stumbled across Spark and the League of Ursus, I was so excited! Teddy bears that are alive and keep their children safe? Awesome! Toy Story was one of my favorite movies growing up (the third one still makes me cry), and it's one my monsters also enjoy. Unfortunately, this book left a lot to be desired. The story and characters lacked depth, and the details were vague and unsubstantiated. More often than not, the plot didn't make a lick of sense, and it frequently contradicted previously established facts. I really wanted to love this book, so I went into it with high expectations. I didn't expect weak world-building and confusing character origins. 

In a nutshell, the teddy bears (and occasionally other toys) come to life whenever they are loved into existence by a child. From what I can tell, age doesn't really matter, and the toys can be passed from one person to the next without it affecting their aliveness. However, they're supposed to protect until the final light, and we're told how that could potentially happen, which means Sir Reginald the Brave should have ceased to exist the moment Dad put him in the attic. Instead, his son (Matthew) is gifted Sir Reginald years later. Spark is given to Loretta, and Sir Reginald teachers her about the job and what it means to be a teddy bear. Apparently, there are monsters and demons, but we only see Jakmal (more on that in a moment). 

Things I want to know after reading this book:

1. Where do the teddy bears come from? How did the League of Ursus establish itself in the world? We see how the League of Ursus is formed (sort of), but there's very little information regarding how they expanded, which leads me to...
2. How did the teddy bears communicate with one another? They didn't write letters, make phone calls, or travel through underground tunnels, so how did the League talk to ALL of the living teddy bears around the world? It wasn't feasible.
3. Where do the stories come from? How are they passed down, if a teddy bear only starts living once they are given to a child? Sir Reginald was able to tell Spark, but if he started his existence once Dad loved him enough, then where did he get his stories? His information? How did he talk to the League? 
4. Why is it mostly teddy bears, but occasionally other toys (sock monkey, princess)?
5. They "go where they are needed" the most? Where is that? Who knows that? How are they informed?
6. If they live "until their final light," how was Sir Reginald passed off at the end? 
7. Now there are magical teddy bears? They're called hexens? How does that happen? How does it work?
8. Oh, now imaginary friends can be brought to life? They have no physical boundaries, because they emerged from a special child's imagination? WELL, THAT MAKES ABOLUTELY NO SENSE. 
9. Why did Sophia insist Matthew change the ending of the movie they were all working on? Why did the hero need to discover the magic within themselves? Who told her this? How was it relevant? Did it impact the story in some way?
10. Why didn't Jakmal get to speak for himself?

There was hardly any resolution at the end, which FRUSTRATES ME GREATLY. The immediate conflict was resolved, and the children were saved, but they didn't actually "defeat" the evil monster. Additionally, the evil monster might not have been a bad guy, only someone that was wronged and misunderstood. According to the teddy bears, Jakmal was a creature of their own making, and I actually wanted him to succeed with his not-so-nefarious plans. If I were him, I would've been pissed and looking for a way out of my eternal hell as well, so I can't really fault him for his actions. He didn't hurt anyone, and it seemed like he just wanted a way to end the pain he was in (that doesn't mean I think it was okay for him to abduct children). UNFORTUNATELY, NONE OF THAT WAS RESOLVED. The author doesn't even touch on what happened to him, or talk about how his story will end. I haven't heard anything about a sequel, which makes it worse. 

Spark and the League of Ursus lacked character development, had way too many plot holes, and left me feeling like the story was unfinished. I liked the characters, but didn't connect with them. The information presented in this book was confusing and contradictory, and I wish the magical elements had been expanded on. You can't create something like this without also providing readers with a strong background, and a world with clearly defined rules. It also needs to be something that can be built upon, just in case there is more story to tell. Lastly, no resolution really chafes, and it's not something that I can easily forgive as a reader. (★★★☆☆)