Book Review: Music Boxes by Tonja Drecker

            For those who like the fine arts mixed with a little spookiness and magic, Tonja Drecker’s new MG fantasy is a page turner. Twelve-year-old Lindsey McKay and her younger sister, Bridget, dream of musical futures. Talented Lindsey loves ballet. Bridget is a prodigy with the violin. But Mom and Dad have moved them from Nebraska to New York because Bridget has been accepted into the prestigious Julliard school. They can’t afford Julliard for both girls, so Lindsey has to content herself with ballet lessons at a community center, and she tries hard not to resent this.

            Her life is changed when, on the way to her ballet class, she encounters Madame Destinée, who, after a short conversation, offers to teach Lindsey for free. But the lessons must be in secret. From the very first, Lindsey can appreciate Madame Destinée’s expertise, and she can see her own growth and improvement. But there are strange aspects to this school: Not only must the lessons secret, but they are late at night, so she has to sneak out of the house to attend. Performances are at midnight for a mysterious audience. From fragments of conversation, Lindsey’s new classmates seem to be from other places, even other countries. Yet here they are all at the same school. Madame Destinée also has a collection of music boxes, all of them with charming little figurines of ballet dancers inside. The music boxes are similar to the one Lindsey’s grandmother gave her, which was created by a toymaker with a mysterious legend about his disappearance. 

            

            And Madame Destinée’s collection is growing.  

            I liked this book for so many reasons. I like anything to do with ballet and the musical world, and this author really knows her ballet. Her descriptions of moves and positions and performance highlights were spot on. Her characters were believable and sympathetic. I found it easy to care about both sisters and some of the other dancers in this mysterious school. Setting details of the theater and school were nicely drawn. And the plot built with just the right amount of intensity to keep me engrossed at each point. No spoilers here, though. 

Here is a trailer to pique your interest:  Go Here    

    

You can connect with Tonja Drecker at her   blog here:                                                      Find her on Twitter:    and    Facebook:

         Click on these sides to find her book:

          Amazon: 

          Barnes & Noble: 

          Kobo:      

How about you? Do you like fiction that involves one or more of the fine arts? Do you like ballet? Do you like music boxes? And . . . do you like spooky magic?

Book Review: Bubba and Squirt's Big Dig to China

  

Bubba and Squirt have a great fall. And what a fall it is! 

This is another good read for young people that allows travel back into ancient history in the form of an adventure that connects to curriculum in the classroom without being pedantic or dull. I found the title engaging, since, as a child, I always heard that phrase, ". . . dig a hole to China."

Fourth grader Bubba decides he can dig a hole to China. His older sister, Squirt, gives him a bad time. But Bubba is confident. The shovel Grandpa Joe bought at a garage sale is supposed to be magic. And it is. 

            When the ground inside  the hole Bubba’s digging cracks and crumbles, both Bubba and Squirt (yanked in while trying to pull him out) find themselves tumbling through time and space, coming out in ancient China of the first Emperor Qin Shi Huang. In fact, they are in the emperor’s grave, where 8,000 or so terra cotta soldiers stand vigil to protect his tomb. Once over their shock, the siblings look for the hole they fell through. It’s gone! Worse, they encounter Qin’s ghost, a very upset ghost, not happy about their invasion of his tomb. Qin cannot rest, because someone stole his special pendant, or “pi” that protects his soul until it gets to heaven. And Bubba and Squirt can’t go home unless they find his pendant.

            After Qin's ghost disappears, a uniformed guard above the pit spies them, and the siblings make a hasty escape up a ramp, out some doors, into a busy marketplace, where more adventures unfold. New friends, Tou Wan (about Bubba’s age) and her grandmother, Nai Nai, listen to the siblings’ tale and have a few tales of their own, all connected to the pendant. 

            This book offers so much to young people to enjoy: For 6^thgraders, this is great supplementary reading for the unit on ancient China. For students with a Chinese background, it’s an opportunity to see China’s history and culture portrayed in meaningful ways they can connect to. It’s a good introduction for children of any culture, and young people in general will enjoy the time travel, the ghosts, and the magic. It also offers maps, a glossary, and a tasty recipe for Chinese dumplings. 

You can connect with Sherry Ellis at her website here. 

You can find and purchase her book HERE.  

How about you? Did you ever dig a hole in your back yard thinking it could get you to China? Is China one of the places you would like to visit one day? Do you enjoy Chinese food, and do you have recipes to share? 

A Fun Read: "Some Very Messy Medieval Magic"

Recently I had the pleasure of reading C. Lee McKenzie's new book in the Pete and Weasel time travel series: Some Very Messy Medieval Magic. While part of a series, it easily stands alone as a good read.

Pete and Weasel are eighth grade best friends in the small town of Hadleyville. Pete, a budding wizard, is an orphan and lives with his Aunt Lizzie, one of many witches in this town. Weasel’s parents are scientists, always busy with lab work to the point of nearly ignoring their son. Fanon, an alligator, happens to be Pete’s familiar. Dr. Wraith, is a blend of a supreme wizard and a sort of “Dr. Who”, in charge of passports for time travel, orchestration of various wizard enterprises, and solving problems time travel and magic gone awry can cause.

Magic has gone awry in this fun story: Pete didn’t properly close a time lock in the 1100s at the close of an earlier adventure. Now Peter of Bramwell, a page and the nephew of Earl Minimount, has gone missing in time. Pete and Weasel must go back to the year he disappeared to head off a resultant disaster. On arrival, two guards, Sir Egbert and Sir Alywin, discover the boys wandering around; they decide Pete is the missing Peter of Bramwell and Weasel his servant. They take the boys to Earl Minimount, and since Minimount hasn’t seen his nephew since he was a toddler, he welcomes them in these roles.

Humor, danger, mystery, and suspicion unfold in this romp of a tale: Rumors abound that trouble is afoot in the countryside. Sir Egbert skulks around and sneaks out of the castle at night. And why does he take such a dislike to Pete? The teenage Richard, Duke of Aquitaine stops by en route to France and wants to go on a hunt. Pete is assigned to accompany him. But Pete has never ridden a horse, much less hunted. Then there are the dreaded Dark Woods, a place people inside and outside the castle fear, and the mystical Circle of Stones, where Druids worship. The young duke himself brings new dangers with him. And why does Earl Minimount’s niece, Juliana, Peter of Bramwell’s cousin, seem so familiar to Pete of Hadleyville? It takes the “very messy medieval magic” of the title to resolve these questions and bring the real Peter of Bramwell back to the time where he belongs.

Some Very Messy Medieval Magic, published by Dancing Lemur Press, L. L. C., will be released May 15, 2018 and is available on Kindle and in some Amazon locations.

C. Lee McKenzie is on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/cleemckenzie

on Twitter https://twitter.com/cleemckenzie

and you can learn more about her and her books at her website: http://www.cleemckenziebooks.com/middle-grade/

New Free Kindle Download of The Fourth Wish.

With the holidays drawing close, I'm offering a second free Kindle download for The Fourth Wish, this time for three days: Sunday, December 15th through Tuesday, December 17th. The last one put the book as #1 in its category. But what made me happiest was the prospect of so many young people being able to read it. Here is where to go on those dates:

This story takes place over the winter holidays. It involves magic and wishes, complex family situations, and I've been told it's very humorous. A good read for both boys and girls, ages 8 to 12.

I hope you will check it out.

Meanwhile, what are some of your favorite titles for readers of that age group?

Do You Believe In Magic?

Last June I blogged about a great radio site for listening to interviews with professional magicians, called The Magic Broadcast. (You can read the post here.) The Magic Broadcast is hosted by Steve Johnson, a local (Sacramento area) magician, who owns the fabulous magic shop in Carmichael, Grand Illusions. This shop has everything that would interest a budding magician: Books, tricks, costumes, juggling lessons, puppets. . . . For those of you in the general area, you can read reviews of the shop and get driving directions here.

But I'm personally excited, because on Monday this week, Steve interviewed ME on his magic broadcast station. Normally his interviews are with professional magicians, like Lee Asher. Why me? Because I wrote a book that featured a fictious local magician, and Steve was interested in how tips on fiction writing could translate into the story patter all good magicians use in order to fool audiences with their tricks. 

It was an enjoyable interview for me. I always love talking about writing, but I've never had to think about how writing might pertain to a magician's performance. The more I thought about it, the more parallels I could see. You can listen to the interview here. Just scroll on down to November 28th interview, and click the play button. 

There was an added enjoyment for me when Steve told me that the magician in my book was believable. I'm used to people telling me the kids in the story are believable, but I was especially pleased to hear that about the magician as well.

Which brings me to the book itself. The story takes place over Christmas vacation, so this is a good time for eight-to-twelve-year-olds who like magic to get this for a Christmas present. (Can't resist that little plug!) It's available in paperback (in the U.S.) and on Kindle (in U.S., England, Spain, France, and Germany.) You can check it out and read reviews of it here .        

(By the way, you have to go to the site to look inside, or peek in the widget up in the right hand margin.)

Meanwhile, DO you believe in magic? If so, what kind? Do you like to do magic tricks? What about friends and kids? Do they? And, have you ever wondered about a magician's personal life when they are not performing at parties and theaters and such?

It's Magic!

I tweeted a new site about magic recently, but I want to discuss it at more length today:  The site is The Magic Broadcast ,  where you can read about professional magicians and their events and listen to great interviews with top magicians.  

Now why, you may ask, would a children's writer devote a post to a magic site?  Well, in my first book, The Fourth Wish , a key character is a professional magician whose magic goes all wrong when a wish enables him to do the real thing.  I'm finishing up two other books, a mystery and a historical novel, and then I've planned three sequels to The Fourth Wish  -- so I need to understand my magician, The Great Mondo (aka "Pete Garrity") in more depth.
                                                                    
The Magic Broadcast offers me (and any writer who has a magician as a character in a WIP) a golden opportunity to listen in on a professional magician's thinking about the profession or follow a professional magician's life as he or she prepares for bookings or encounters problems during performances.  It's a fun way to research, and it's quite enlightening.   

The Fourth Wish will also be coming out in Kindle soon.  I'll keep you posted.  Meanwhile, check out The Magic Broadcast and enjoy a little Abracadabra.

Book Review Friday -- The Ghost Downstairs, and Nocturne

It's Book Review Friday again, and today I want to mention two books: 

One I reviewed for Saramento Book Review , Nocturne, by L. D. Harkrader

One is an e-book I won in a giveaway contest, The Ghost Downstairs, by Molly Ringle.  

I'll share The Ghost Downstairs first:

The Ghost Downstairs   by Molly Ringle

For some reason I was not able to upload a picture of the jacket, but you can see it at Molly's site.  Normally I only review children's books or YAs on this blog, and this book actually falls closer to adult than YA.  But I love ghost stories, and I love a mystery.  This book has both, as well as a steamy romance (thus the "adult" comment).  

I don't want to give the plot away, because the whole idea is so original.  Let me just say that The Ghost Downstairs involves ghosts (two of them), broken hearts (two of them), manslaughter, suicide, and a young man with a mysterious past.  The story unfolds with one surprise after another and the ending was the biggest surprise of all.  Once I started reading it, I simply had to finish it.  Go check it out for yourself.  

And thanks, Molly, for an enjoyable read! 

Next is Nocturne, a YA novel with lots of atmostphere.  No ghosts , but  magic, mystery, and the question of who to trust. . . . .

Nocturne

By L.D. Harkrader
Mirrorstone, $9.95, 245 pages

Fifteen years ago, Flannery Lane was left on the doorstep of the village wizard, Monsieur Anatole. A mysterious note advised, she will do better with someone of her own kind. Monsieur Anatole has raised Flannery as his niece, admonishing her never to use her own magic. Why? Magic draws evil to itself.

“Flan squared herself before the immense gates, and as she stood there, searching for a bell or knocker on the fat stone pillar, the gates groaned and swung open.” 

But, it’s hard not to use natural talent. At fifteen, Flan surreptitiously dabbles in small spells. An incident at the local blacksmith’s earlier eroded villagers’ trust in Anatole’s protective magic. People come to him now only for simple amulets and spells. When a sudden curse weakens his powers, he becomes bedridden. Flannery tries to cure his curse while keeping his condition secret. Two mysterious strangers come to town. Each takes an interest in Flan: one claims he wants to become a vampire hunter. But, does he? The other claims he’s a relative of the last Viscount Blakely, the vampire hunter who protected the village when he was alive. But, is he? People disappear. A violin plays a nocturne in the still of the night.

This suspenseful tale brings new surprises on each page, and the author avoids a predictable ending.