The author of the Doomspell trilogy lays out a new storyline, this one set in a miles-long garbage dump and featuring six ordinary children who suddenly find themselves changing or acquiring eldritch powers. Drawn by a strange compulsion, the six meet in the gang-haunted wasteland of Coldharbour, frequently confused or frightened by their new abilities: Helen, for instance, has become a telepath; Walter, a 12-foot tall giant; and Thomas can project an indefinable force he dubs “beauty.” Oddest of all, though, is Milo, whose human skin and form are sloughing off, as he lies in agonized semi-consciousness, to reveal a silver-skinned being. By the end of this episode, the children have clashed and bonded, received an inkling of their mission in Helen’s visions of a huge, insatiable interstellar Elemental snaking Earthward, and seen Milo undergo a final, titanic, trendy transformation that sends him winging into the sky. A strong opening despite the latter—longer on imagination than action, but that could well change in future installments. (Fantasy. 11-13)
Pub Date: April 1, 2005
ISBN: 1-57505-825-1
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Carolrhoda
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2005
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Low in physical violence, while being rich in moral and ethical issues, as well as in appealingly complex characters and...
Pub Date: March 1, 2007
ISBN: 0-316-05777-0
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Megan Tingley/Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Four fifth-graders are recruited by a scheming magician in this hefty bonbon from the author of the Fablehaven tales. At first, Nate, Summer, Trevor and Pigeon think they have it good. Having asked them to help her recover a hidden treasure that (she says) belongs to her, Belinda White, friendly proprietor of a sweets shop that has just opened in their small town, provides some uncommon candies—like Moon Rocks, that give them the ability to jump like grasshoppers, and literally electrifying Shock Bits. When she begins asking them to commit certain burglaries, though, their exhilaration turns to unease, and rightly so; Mrs. White is actually after a draft from the Fountain of Youth that will make her the world’s most powerful magician. And, as it turns out, she isn’t the only magician who’s come to town—not even the only one whose magic is tied to sweets. Filling out the supporting cast with the requisite trio of bullies, plus magical minions of various (and sometimes gross) abilities, Mull trots his twist-laden plot forward to a well set-up climax. Leaving the door open an inch for sequels, he dishes up a crowd-pleaser as delicious—if not so weird—as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory . (Fantasy. 10-13)
Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2007
ISBN: 978-1-59038-783-2
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2007
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