Amazon.com:What would you do for an hourglass that stopped time?
Nick Rostov's father is the worst stage magician in Las Vegas. He can barely pull a rabbit out of a hat. So it is a strange morning indeed when Nick wakes up to find himself on the top floor of the Winter Palace Casino with a promise from the greatest magician in the world to teach him magic.
And not just stage magic. Real magic. Nick sets out to learn about his mother's family, the strange Russian clan of magicians that secretly run the Winter Palace. But there is a catch: Nick has the sight, the ability to see into the past. And so it must fall to him, with only his cousin Isabella to help, to pick up the long-buried clues and unravel the mystery of The Eternal Hourglass, the only magic artifact ever created that can actually stop time.
I thought the Eternal Hourglass was a great set up for a series. Right away, main character Nick is plucked out of the life he knows with his father and grandfather and placed in this large Russian family that lives and works within the Winter Palace in Las Vegas. They are the relatives of his mother and they are all magicians! I felt sort of bad for Nick's dad who also worked as a magician at another nearby hotel but he's not very good at what he does. I did really like seeing how this family operates though. I especially liked Nick's cousin Isabella and her white tiger Sascha. I like the idea of animals that we would normally fear being part of this family!
What I thought was really clever is that the author takes pieces of history and melds them into this book thus getting readers interested in finding out more about these pieces of history. It was interesting to see how these flashbacks related to the present storyline. I also liked Nick's lessons from learning how to use a crystal ball to switching out Isabella for Sascha those were some great parts of the story for me!
I think the story will work best for younger teens and older children but I still had a great time reading it. It will be interesting to see what other kinds of adventures Nick gets into with his new family. I sure hope he still gets to see his dad and grandpa!
Magickeepers: The Eternal Hourglass was released on May 1st 2009.
3/5 Stars
Review copy provided by publisher for blog tour
I really enjoyed this book and think kids will love Nick and his adventures. I agree with you that merging the historical information with the story might teach kids something!
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the review books my son requested! It sounds great, right up his alley!
ReplyDeleteI think this sounds like an incredible idea for a story. I'll put it on my list to be read!
ReplyDeleteSidenote: You ever read any of Camy Tang's books from her Sushi Series?
ReplyDeleteI always loved your blog. I have to tune back in now that I'm back. I saw you on twitter and it reminded me! :)
ReplyDeleteSoudsn good for teens.. and maybe I will also enjoy it :)
ReplyDeleteYou have an award waiting at my place... come over :) :)
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a great read. Superb review. I love the cover.
ReplyDeleteJust skimmed quickly because I'll have my review up on Tuesday for this. I hate being influenced!
ReplyDeleteNIce review. I too liked the history bits.
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