Book Review: The Revenge of Magic by James Riley

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Book received at no charge to facilitate review.

A vacation day visit to Washington, DC by Fort Fitzgerald and his father ends tragically with his father's kidnapping by a monstrous creature who breaks through the earth. 

Fort struggles to make sense of his father's disappearance and vows to avenge his father's death. Six months later, a man named Dr. Opps shows up to his aunt's house and invites him to the Oppenheimer School to learn magic. Fort jumps at the chance with visions of Hogwarts running through his mind. He quickly discovers the school is a government run military school and nothing like Hogwarts with guards everywhere.

The school is full of secrets and Fort wants to solve the mysteries laid at his feet, like why everyone thinks he's trying to destroy the school and who the girl he sees when he sleeps that seems to take over his mind. The only problem is that Fort is given three days to master three spells in three days or he will be sent home. He learns it's nearly an impossible task but is he up to it? Will he be able to find out what's hiding within his new school before attacks? And what is with the books of magic discovered around the world next to bones of dragons? Who will have the power to use the magic and will Fort's friends, Jia, Rachel and Cyrus be able to help Fort?

While the idea of military magic academy is an intriguing take, the book lacks the magic of a strong protagonist that we see in the Harry Potter novels. Since the novel mentions Hogwarts, it's fair to compare the two and the reader will probably not connect as much to Fort as they do Harry. However, older middle grade readers who don't mind wading through the length of the novel, will find some fascinating tidbits of magical information.

Rating ★★★★☆

Publishing Information

Publisher: Aladdin (March 5, 2019)
ISBN: 978148148577
Ages: 8-12
Pages: 416

Order of the Majestic by Matt Myklusch: Book Review

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Book received at no charge to facilitate review.

Joey Kopecky didn't expect his test scores would cause an uproar at his school and home. Nobody suspected he would test at a genius level. At twelve-years-old, all Joey wants to do is escape into his comic books, not be sent to a special school where they don't even break for summer. However, his parents convince him he must jump at the opportunity for a full scholarship at the school for budding intellectuals.

His visit to the school requires one last test. To Joey's surprise, he lands mysteriously into an old theater where he meets Redondo the Magnificent, a magician from earlier decades whose last act included the disappearance of a child and a fire at the theater. Joey finds himself finding the truth means he must fight to keep magic alive. However, the dark forces of the Invisible Hand who want to use magic for evil try to thwart him.

What starts out as a gripping middle grade novel into the magic forces of good and evil gets bogged down in places by the length of the novel. However, the novel will strike a chord for Harry Houdini and magic fans for those who are patient enough to make it through.

Rating ★★★★☆

Publishing Information

Publisher: Aladdin (May 7, 2019)

Ages 8-12

ISBN: 978-1-534-42487-6