An onslaught of princesses in distress and other professional obligations put paid to a young wizard’s hopes for a peaceful summer vacation. Not sure whether an irascible witch’s prediction that he will never find happiness unless he looks past surface appearances is wisdom or an actual hex, the never-named spellcaster reluctantly takes on one ostensibly simple case after another, doing his best to avoid jumping to conclusions. It’s a good thing, too, as he rescues one princess from a dragon, only to find out that it’s the dragon who needs rescuing, figures out that another princess’s supposed evil stepmother is really just nearsighted, and concocts a challenging quest to interest prospective royal suitors in an unconventional third royal, then falls happily in love with her himself. It’s not all princesses, either: he also has to find a new home for a monster’s ghost (“Enjoy the lake. It’s called Ness”), quell a gang of extremely adolescent unicorns, and more. Weaving hilarious twists on familiar folktales and deft, clever solutions to a succession of domestic crises into these linked tales, Vande Velde not only invites readers into the most entertaining magical world since Patricia Wrede’s Enchanted Forest, but presents an engagingly wry magic worker with a sense of responsibility that turns out to be as much a gift as a burden. Another winner from the author of Heir Apparent (2002). (Fiction. 10-13)
Pub Date: April 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-15-204559-7
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2003
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic.
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
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A smart sequel that’s filled with surprises and heart.
In this follow-up to The Rhythm of Time (2023), young time-traveling adventurers face their biggest challenge yet, forcing them to question themselves and one another.
Rahim looks forward to starting eighth grade with best friend Kasia even though he anticipates a tough transition after homeschooling. Kasia makes friends as seamlessly as she makes the cool beats that Rahim skillfully raps over. Although Rahim, who’s a target for bullies, feels a bit left behind, the duo still has their music and a rather unusual extracurricular: on-demand time-travel adventures at the behest of their future selves and the mysterious Aevum Organization. Rahim’s parents place a lot of pressure on him and dismiss his hip-hop dreams as impractical. Adult Rahim and Adult Kasia present the pair with a mission to 1978 Honolulu, where temporal anomalies have been detected. They’ll be facing Chrononauts, time travelers who are trying to change the world to suit their own selfish ends. This entry markedly raises the stakes in ways that challenge even Kasia’s genius. Rahim’s intuition and emotional development are thoughtfully plotted as the kids leave their parents in the dark and take big risks. This nuanced story centering on Black middle schoolers explores trust and care, putting friendship to the test even as the Hawaiian setting offers a provocative allegory for being thoughtful about our global (and interdimensional) impact. Final art not seen.
A smart sequel that’s filled with surprises and heart. (Science fiction. 10-13)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2026
ISBN: 9780374393175
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Nov. 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2025
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