Cute book. A young wizard’s apprentice is a natural magician but would rather follow in her father’s footsteps and become a detective. She gets mixed up with a somewhat silly mystery about missing party gowns and a much more serious one involving attempted murder. Light, funny, and friendly, this serves as a much better introduction to the world of fantasy than Harry Potter.
My mom gave my son an uncorrected proof; he liked it and passed it on to me. Clearly The Wizard of Dark Street is the first book of a series; it reminded me of a cross between Encyclopedia Brown and The Chronicles of Prydain. Being aimed at children, the main cases are wrapped up neatly at the end, but contains obvious villains and dangling plot lines aplenty for future volumes. An upbeat tone and positive messaging (“Neither man nor faerie can live long without hope.”) coupled with comfortable characters and easy friendships, this is a great book for any kid.
“Magic is a fickle thing,” said twelve-year-old Oona Crate.
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