Stonewall Hinkleman and the Battle of Bull Run by.The Great Good Thing by Roderick Townley.Curse of the Spider King by Batson and Hopper.Ghosthunters and the Incredibly Revolting Ghost! b.The Secret History of Tom Trueheart by Ian Beck.The Pig Scrolls by Gryllus the Pig by Paul Shipton.Cirque de Freak: The Vampire's Assistant by Darren.I can see where this series might develop a following of readers, but I do not intend to read the second book at this time. The second half of the book was better and included some action as the plot built to the climax. I suppose it was necessary to develop the conflict, but it seemed like Gracie and Marcus were the only good people in the whole book who were not evil, shallow, or self-centered. I didn't enjoy the negativity in the first half of the book, and I considered not finishing it.

Old Crones' solution to the problem was enjoyable and creative. A sleeping soup only works on evil people but does not harm those with true hearts. The path to the home of the Old Crones happily greets Gracie when she first visits them, and the home seems to have a life of its own. Unusual events and descriptions in the book provide some endearing qualities. A bat named Marlon guides Marcus and Gracie throughout the adventure, and he offers some humorous dialogue with the characters. It is shortlisted for the 2008 Royal Mail award for children’s books in Scotland and for the Southwark Book Award 2008. She has a troll for an assistant, but she literally knocks his head off when she gets angry. The Robe of Skulls ApThe Robe of Skulls won the Stockton Children’s Book of the Year Award for 2008. The witch wants the ransom to pay for a new dress. The idea of turning princes into frogs is as old as folk tales, but this plot evolves in a unique way. The two of them are assisted by the Old Crones to stop the evil magic. Foyce's stepsister, Gracie, is the heroine in the story and is assisted by Marcus, a reluctant prince. A beautiful, but evil, young girl named Foyce offers to help, but she intends to cheat the witch in the end. A witch has the idea of turning princes and princesses into frogs and then asking their families for ransom money to change them back. This is the first book in the Five Kingdoms series, and I gave it a rating of three out of five.

The Robe of Skulls by Vivian French