The Moon Child

July 1, 2016

Gr 4-7-This historical fantasy, full of dark magic, is the sequel to the British import The Jade Boy, featuring a trio of young teens who battle evil sorcerers using their wits and newfound magical abilities. The story picks up soon after the events in the previous volume. Enough backstory is provided that readers new to the series won't be too confused. In Jade Boy, Jem, 13; apprentice shape-shifter Ann; Egyptian-born mind-reader Tolly; and Cleo, Tolly's pet monkey, defeated evil sorcerer Count Cazalon in St. Paul's catacombs during the 1666 Great Fire of London. Now it's 1667, and their Twelfth Night celebration is interrupted by a misshapen creature trailing a knotted tail accompanied by dancers wearing stag masks. The creatures surround Ann and magically spirit her away. As Jem and Tolly set out to rescue her, the dead count's staff warns them to "beware the shadow man who walks between worlds." Their search leads them to stow away aboard a strange ship that sails on a witch wind bound for the new colonies. The ship's owner is a one-eyed Frenchwoman with a clawed foot. She's only one of many evil creatures and strange illusions they encounter during their eventful journey. One of the secondary characters, Mingan, seems to be Native American, though the author does not specify a tribe or region. Elements of Native American mythology, including aspects of witiko tales, are used, though specific tribes or stories are not identified in text or back matter. VERDICT Purchase where there are fans of the first installment.-Sharon Rawlins, New Jersey State Library, Trenton

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 15, 2016
A spooky series second-parter takes a 17th-century 13-year-old English boy and his friends across the Atlantic to the magical New World.Jem, an unacknowledged bastard son of Charles II with "gypsy looks," is overjoyed that he's soon to see his friends Tolly and Ann. The pair has been traveling with a troupe of players since the trio's joint escape from wicked Count Cazalon at the conclusion of The Jade Boy (2013). Their celebration goes horribly wrong when an evil force spirits away gentle, white 12-year-old Ann. Though the well-meaning adults all hope to rescue Ann, Tolly and Jem hare off on their own rescue mission--only to find themselves on a trans-Atlantic ship journey. Psychic Tolly, the African former slave, can magically tell that Ann is somewhere aboard, but where? Their quest is aided by the kindly ship captain and his crewman Mingan, a "noble savage" stereotype who's both bizarre and unpalatable. The Native American Mingan has no named tribe but merges characteristics of native nations from across North America with the usual fantasy native fare of werewolves and skinwalkers, along with the more inexplicable: constant reference to his waist-long hair threaded with "scores of tiny white skulls." Entertaining if rife with stereotype; Joseph Bruchac's Wolf Mark (2011) is both comparable and better. (Fantasy. 10-12)

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