This is my favorite type of middle-grade story! Wizards, magic, small-town vibes, snowy and cozy atmosphere, action, excitement, and, most importantly, messages about doing what's right and learning about yourself and your self-worth. This actually also had a lot of humor in it as well, which surprised me, since it does have darker themes. I really enjoyed this a lot and recommend it highly!

Plus, the cover is just SO adorable and cozy and very peak MG.

This is a fun to read story about 12 year old Nick, who has run away from his mean uncle only to wind up as an apprentice to the Evil Wizard Smallbone whose enemy is a loup garou named Fidelou. Nick learns magic and learns about his own self worth in this story. It has excitement and magic and I think that middle school age children will enjoy it very much.

Everything You Could Want

On its face this looks and feels like it's going to be a pretty standard wizard-apprentice tale. Runaway headstrong kid ends up as a wizard's apprentice and has adventures. Been there; done that. Well, allow me to apologize in advance for being a crank. This book often zags when a zig is expected, and it is loaded with prickly, sharp bits that set it apart.

We start off conventionally. Twelve year old orphan Nick runs away from his abusive uncle and finds himself wandering around in the woods. He comes across a creepy bookstore in the middle of nowhere and figures he can con the owner, stay and warm up, and maybe even steal a few necessaries on his way out. Wrong. The proprietor is The Evil Wizard Smallbone, who is a wizard and is evil. He basically traps Nick on the property and sets him to work.

Now, your hero kid isn't usually quite so much a streetwise crook. Your wizard isn't usually evil. And your setting isn't usually a claustrophobic bookstore in which the hero kid has to slave away for fear of being turned into a spider. At this point, which is still fairly early on in the book, you wonder if it's going to open up or lighten up, or is this some psychological hostage/captor thriller. Then it gets weirder. The Evil Wizard Smallbone is engaged in a battle to the death with another, even more evil, neighboring wizard. And Smallbone controls a little village that he keeps isolated from the rest of the world and that feels like something out of "Children of the Corn".

No spoilers, except to promise that if you read the entire book everything will become clear, characters' true natures will be revealed, and mysteries will be solved and questions answered. There will also be small magic and big magic, small action and big action. Lots will be going on.

But here's the really good part. This is exceptionally well written. Nick grows up in a convincing and satisfying fashion, and even given the whole magicky angle his growth feels authentic. Smallbone is a great and complex character, and his dry humor, casual evil, and long game make him a fascinating focus of the action throughout. Minor characters, villagers, the other evil wizard, henchmen, and various were-animals all command the page when present. There is a lot of humor here - dry throwaway lines, prickly observations, clever bits of dialogue. This is not by the numbers stuff.

So, I was a little doubtful about this as I started, but quickly became a convert. There is much that is original, edgy, clever, and unexpected here. It was a nice find. (Please note that I received a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

Being from Maine, I loved that this story took place in my home state! I think my students will really enjoy that setting, because it will be something they can relate to. I thought the climax and resolution were very clever, and it was unpredictable. I can definitely see adding this to my classroom library!