The Dark Lord Clementine

July 15, 2019
A daughter must fill in for her indisposed Dark Lord father. Twelve-year-old Clementine's father has been cursed by the Whittle Witch and is being slowly whittled into a wooden puppet. While he locks himself away in his laboratory to try to find a way to stop and reverse the curse, it's up to Clementine to keep their farm running, a task that becomes harder as her father's magic begins to fail. Helping her are a talking black sheep (who used to be a boy and isn't so sure he wants to be human again) and a local boy who dreams of heroic knighthood. More worryingly, letters start arriving from the Council of Evil Overlords, instructing Clementine to carry out and report Dastardly Deeds to fulfill their family's Dark Lord obligations. Shifts in viewpoint reveal the dangerous witch to be after the Dark Lord's title and their mountain's unicorn; also after the unicorn is a huntress named Darka, who neglects to give her true motivation when befriending Clementine. After luring readers in with wordplay and tongue-in-cheek, genre-savvy humor, the plot takes an emotionally rich thematic turn, dwelling on community and forgiveness--all the while building toward a mythical, mystical arc involving the unicorn. The few action sequences are mined for utmost impact, as are the slice-of-life scenes and flashback vignettes. The characters seem to default to white. Absolutely delightful. (Fantasy. 8-14)

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September 16, 2019
“Clementine Morcerous awoke one morning to discover that her father had no nose.” With her opening sentence, Horwitz (the Carmer and Grit series) primes readers to expect the unexpected—and delivers. After Clementine notices that something is “chipping away” at her parent, the fearsome Dark Lord, he corrects her: “Not. Chipping....Whittling.” Such droll wordplay punctuates the labyrinthine narrative, which reveals that the Dark Lord has been cursed by his archnemesis, the Whittle Witch, who carves a wooden-doll replica of her victims and reduces them down to nothing. Horwitz’s ingenuity for bizarre enchantment and characterization proves boundless: Clementine’s confidantes include a boy transfigured into a witty black sheep, a paper chicken that morphed from the family spell book, an amorphous snow figure who protects the area, and a huntress searching for a powerful unicorn. Anchoring the tale are the sensitive girl’s conflicted feelings about inheriting the Dark Lord title, since she prefers flowers over weeds and spells that involve sunshine rather than darkness. In a wry, satisfying ending, Clementine hints at future enchantments ahead. Ages 10–up. Agent: Victoria Marini, Irene Goodman Agency.

November 1, 2019

Gr 4-7-Clementine has always tried to be as bad as possible, following the example of her father, the Dark Lord Elithor, who strives to terrify the local villagers with dastardly deeds. Everything changes when Lord Elithor starts to lose his power at the hands of a mysterious witch. Clementine's quest to save her father brings her a host of new experiences and leads her to question her commitment to being truly evil. Horwitz has created a perfect blend of wit and heart in this fresh fantasy adventure. Even secondary characters are given intriguing personalities and well-developed back stories, and the plot is paced just quickly enough to keep young people guessing. Fans of Shrek-style fractured fairy tales will especially enjoy having their expectations upended. VERDICT Highly recommended, this title will keep a wide variety of readers entertained with its compelling characters and witty twists on the fairy tale universe.-Gesse Stark-Smith, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2019
Grades 5-7 As the only child of the Dark Lord Elithor, Clementine will someday inherit the Evil Overlordship. That's a terrifying prospect for a 12-year-old, especially now that the Whittle Witch has cursed her father, weakening his body and his once-powerful dark magic in a bid to take over his title and dominions. Even more disturbing, Clementine begins to realize that her own emerging powers spring from light magic, which seems downright traitorous in the Dark Lord's heir apparent. Still, the girl is determined to protect the villagers, the castle, and the mysterious mountains. And though she feels isolated and uncertain of her path, she finds unexpected allies along the way. Written in third person from Clementine's point of view, the narrative gradually introduces characters and builds tension, saving the real fireworks for the satisfying conclusion. The descriptions of magical beings are fittingly awe-inspiring (the unicorn, the Lady in White) or amusing (the Gricken?a spell book transformed into a chicken). This inventive fantasy twists conventions while involving readers through good storytelling laced with irony and wit.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)