The Voyage of Lucy P. Simmons

September 15, 2012
Magic helps an orphaned heiress fight a rapacious uncle out to steal the family fortune. After her parents drown off the coast of Maine in 1906, Lucy is left in the care of her aunt. Unfortunately, Aunt Prudence is off in Australia tracking down a family curse, and greedy Uncle Victor steps in to control Lucy and the purse strings. Lucy has both her faithful servant and a good dose of magic on her side. She suspects that her uncle is up to no good and snoops through his papers, aided by beautiful magical mists. When her uncle decides to send her to boarding school, another magical creature shows up in the form of the teacher. The only other students at the school are three children desperately trying to avoid their drunken father, known as the Brute. Lucy tries to connect the dots between the teacher, a woman in a painting in her father's study and a mysterious woman seen walking on the shore. Events come to a highly dramatic and visually stunning conclusion. However, Mariconda leaves the reader with unresolved threads. What is the source of the magic? What will happen on the next voyage? Adventurous possibilities await in a necessary second installment. (Historical fantasy. 8-12)

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December 1, 2012
Grades 4-6 Set in New England, in 1906, this historical novel pits a young heroine against an odious villain and his allies. Lucy is orphaned in chapter 1 when a sailboat picnic ends tragically with a rescue attempt in which both her parents drown. She is placed under the guardianship of Uncle Victor, whose chief concern is plundering or inheriting her parents' estate. Clever Lucy shows plenty of pluck in finding allies and engineering a means of escape from her uncle's tyrannical and potentially murderous clutches. The novel is a melodrama in that characters act out clearly defined roles with flair (Uncle Victor's wife flaunts her greed, power, and cruelty by wearing Lucy's mother's jewelry) rather than nuance. While supernatural elements are woven into the story, a huge magical event near the end comes as a surprise. The story quickly pivots, takes a new direction, and stops without a satisfying conclusion. Hinting at a sequel, it leaves some unanswered questions and, quite possibly, some unsatisfied readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)