Micah believes everything his grandfather ever told him about Circus Mirandus: the beautiful flying bird woman, the world's smartest elephant, The Man Who Bends Light. It's always been Micah and his grandfather since Micah was little, but now Grandpa is dying.
When Ephraim was a boy, he visited the magical circus, and the Lighbender promised him a miracle. He's been saving it all these years, but now it's time to call it in. He's too sick to visit the circus himself, so Micah must go in his place. Along with his practical friend, Jenny, Micah must find the circus to save his grandfather.
As if finding a magical hidden circus weren't hard enough, he also has to sneak around Aunt Gertrudis who does not believe in magic. She won't even let Micah in to see Grandpa
Micah sets off on a grand adventure to save his grandfather, but he also learns some truths about himself and his family. Can the Lightbender provide a miracle after all these years? Read Cassie Beasley's book to find out!
Callum Hunt knows one thing. He must fail the test and be refused entrance into the Magisterium. His father has told him all about the magical training school. The Masters don't care about the welfare of their students. They perform experiments on them and involve them in violent wars. Plus, the school is like an underground prison. Callum does his best to fail, but it doesn't work.
Callum is now a student at the Magesterium, an apprentice of Master Rufus, the most prestigious teacher at the school, and he's not really sure how it happened. After a rough start, Call reluctantly starts to befriend his fellow apprentices, especially Tamara and Sean who are also working with Master Rufus. There are some things about the school that reinforce what his father has always told him, but the longer he lives there, the more he begins to like it. He even discovers that he is actually good at magic.
His twisted leg, broken when he was a baby, has always held him back in school, but at the Magesterium it hardly seems to matter to the other students. But even as he starts to settle in to life in his new underground school, there is a growing uneasiness in the magical community.
The Enemy of Death was once a student at the Magesterium until he turned on everyone and began a war that ended in a great slaughter children, the old, and the sick: The Cold Massacre. There has been a truce for the last twelve years, but everyone knows it can't last forever. What if the enemy returns? What if Callum's father was right, and he's about to be forced into battle with the Enemy of Death?
This new series opener by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare is fun read. There are some good twists and turns to the plot, but it does have heavy overtones of Harry Potter. Potter fans will probably enjoy the familiarity of the special child sent to magic school with enigmatic teachers and secrets. This is a solid book, and I look forward to seeing where the series goes in the next book.
Felicity's mother has a wandering heart. That's why they never stay in one place long enough to make friends, but now that they're back in Mama's hometown of Midnight Gulch, Tennessee, maybe things will be different.
Midnight Gulch used to filled with magic, and folks would come from miles around to visit the town and hear its most famous residents, The Brothers Threadbare, play music that made everybody's feet light and hearts happy. The day those two brothers had a duel was the day magic left Midnight Gulch, and things haven't been the same since. That was the day Midnight Gulch and its inhabitants were cursed. There's still a snicker of magic left to make life interesting.
Felicity has a little magic herself. She sees words everywhere--floating in the air, crawling on someone's arm, sliding across the cafeteria table. Felicity loves words, but she's too shy and tongue-tied to share them with anyone until she meets a spiky-haired do-gooder named Jonah Pickett on her first day in Midnight Gulch. Felicity's never had a best friend before, but Jonah claims her for his own on her first day at school. Felicity makes other friends, too, and she's getting to know her family, too.
It seems like everybody in Midnight Gulch is being held back by the curse, and Felicity is convinced if she can break it, magic will come back to town, and her mama's wandering heart will finally find home.
I love this book! It's a wonderful story about words, creativity, magic, and love. I got to meet Natalie Lloyd last week, and she was so cute and sweet just like you would imagine. You should all read this book!
On a school trip to the Chicago Museum of Art, Ruthie and Jack fall in love with an exhibit of miniature and highly detailed rooms. Ruthie is content to gaze for hours into the tiny rooms, but Jack is little more active. When he finds a door to a back room open, he quickly darts inside and finds a beautiful key.
He and Ruthie soon discover that the key has special powers that will allow them to get a closer look at the rooms than they ever imagined. They will discover the magic of the rooms and their secret history. The key might also give them the ability to help some people in the process.
If you like stories with a touch of history and magic, this is the book for you. The best thing about this book is that the sixty eight rooms are real, and you can visit them if you go to Chicago. Watch the video below for more about the Thorne Rooms and images of all the rooms!
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