Review: The Nixie's Song by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black

The Nixie's Song

Author: Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi

Publication Date: September 18th, 2007

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/YA/Middle-Grade

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Synopsis:

The Spiderwick Chronicles leave the old-fashioned charm of New England far behind and head south for some fiendish faerie fun in the hot Florida sun. Eleven-year-old Nicholas Vargas only thinks his life has been turned upside down after his developer father remarries and moves his new wife and daughter into the soon-to-be completed Mangrove Hollow. But an "expedition" to a nearby lake turns up a little nixie with a giant problem - the huge, lumbering, fire-breathing variety - and it's up to Nick; his stepsister, Laurie; and his big brother, Julian (plus a familiar face from the original Spiderwick Chronicles) to figure out the best way to stop a host of rampaging giants before all of Florida goes up in smoke.

My Thoughts:  Ha, well, with a story this short and a summary that long it doesn't leave me much to tell you about, but here it goes anyway.

This is the first book the the Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles trilogy, which is a sequel to the original Spiderwick Chronicles. It takes place, from my guess, only very shortly after the original series ended. We have some brand new characters, the main ones being Nick and Laurie. Nick's mom passed away  a little while ago leaving him his dad and his older brother behind. His dad has recently re-married and so now Nick has a new sister named Laurie. Nick is not to happy about his new family members, especially since he had to give up his room for his new step-sister. On top of that, she totally weirds him out. She has books on unicorns and seems to almost be proud of her nerdy/quirkiness.

Nick somehow get's suckered into showing her around the neighborhood and she takes him on a hunt for Faeries using The Guide. Nick finds a four leaf clover, but doesn't tell Laurie since he thinks she is just crazy. Later on he see's a pale form laying in his lawn. Henceforth, Nick and Laurie find themselves immersed in the world of faeries. Nick is in shock all this weird stuff is real, Laurie discovers that maybe she doesn't want the things she's believed in to be real after all once they discover a fire breathing giant right next to their house!

With no idea how to handle this situation they seek help from the authors Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black themselves, who just happen to be having a book signing close by. Who do they meet there but Jared and Simon themselves! Will they be able to convince the twins they're telling the truth?! Even if they can, will they be able to take down a fire breathing giant by themselves?!

This book carries on in the fun adventures of fantasy and faeries. As always, we got new creatures: Giants and a Nixie!A Nixie is a water creature that kind of seemed to me like a mix of a mermaid and a siren. I always enjoy these books, they are a fun, short and super easy read with playful illustrations placed throughout to make the read even more fun. Great for fantasy readers of all ages. If you liked The Spiderwick Chronicles, I'm pretty sure you will like this to :).

Review: The Wrath of Mulgarath by Tony Diterlizzi & Holly Black

The Wrath of Mulgarath

Author: Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi

Publication Date: September 7th, 2004

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/YA/Middle-Grade

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Synopsis:

Three ordinary kids, Jared, Simon, and Mallory Grace, have entered another world -- without leaving this one! Two remarkable talents, New York Times best-sellers Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black, have risked everything to bring this remarkable account to light. Five books -- one thrilling adventure -- the Spiderwick Chronicles! Their world is closer than you think.

My Thoughts: So here we are at the final installment of the Spiderwick Chronicles, at least as far as the Grace Children are concerned. The final book does tie up all loose ends, and I like that in a series! Now that I'm done, I'm glad that I read it and I think it's a series I would like to share with me kids someday :).

In this final book, we get to see the return of Byron, the Griffin. He's been kind of out of the loop since the siblings brought him home to nurse him a few books ago. He's back full force and he kicks some major butt! The Grace Siblings are after Mulgarath, he has the guide...and their mom! How will 3 kids take on an entire evil faerie army?! They decide to risk returning to the elves and asking for their help, but they aid they do offer is pretty limited, they will have to pretty much figure this one out on their own. The elves ask that the guide be given over to them in return for the small favor they do provide.  The siblings devise a plan to go in and get the Guide back and save their mom. They encounter quite a few unexpected events and discoveries along the way. We got to meet Dragons! I love dragons :). In this book they were slightly less menacing than I usually see them. They were a lot more lizard like, they were compared to a salamander, although they were poisonous! How will the kids get past a brood of poisonous dragons?! Thimbletack, feeling guilty for having taken the book in the first place decides to come and aid in their journey.  So it's 3 kids, a griffin, and a brownie, up against all the evil, that we know of. Will they be able to take back the guide? They do get to receive some useful information from a very unexpected informant, who could that be? All the answers, and the suspenseful outcome can be found in the 5th and final book.


I had a lot of fun reading about the adventures of the Grace siblings. I liked all 3 of them, for different reasons. I like Jared for his determination, his protectiveness he has for his family, and his desire to do good even when he ends up looking like the bad guy. I like Simon because of his gentleness, his smart thinking, and his giant love for all living creatures. And finally, I liked Mallory for her stubbornness, her strength, and her honesty. She has a tough outward demeanor, but you can tell she cares a lot about  her little brothers and her parents. The three of them together make quite a team! I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a middle grade book. It packs some really lovely fantasy, lots of different fantastical creatures, and tons of adventure.

Review: The Ironwood Tree by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black

The Ironwood Tree

Author: Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi

Publication Date: April 6th, 2004

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/YA/Middle-Grade

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Synopsis:

First a pack of vile, smelly goblins snatch Simon. Then a band of elves try to entrap Jared. Why is the entire faerie world so eager to get their hands on Spiderwick's Guide? And will the Grace kids be left alone, now that the Guide has mysteriously disappeared? Don't count on it. At school, someone is running around pretending to be Jared, and it's not Simon. To make matters even worse, now Mallory has disappeared and something foul in the water is killing off all the plants and animals for miles around. Clues point to the old abandoned quarry, just outside of town. Dwarves have taken over an abandoned mine there. And the faerie world's abuzz with the news that a creature with plans to rule the world has offered them a gift to join with him -- he's given them a queen..

My Thoughts: doesn't ever really prove it. So speaking of Mulgarath, he is the new very evil bad guy introduced in this book.  I'm not entirely sure what kind of Faerie he is, but he has a band of goblin and ogre followers. And they carry in tow a bound and hooded prisoner, who could it be?

We always get to meet someone new in each book, and this book brought us Dwarves! I do really enjoy Dwarves, although these ones we're not your friendly type...The Grace siblings find themselves in quite the pickle when they decide to enter their underground lair. The details of that escapade await you inside this installment of the Spiderwick Chronicles. There was also a small appearance of a little guy called a knocker, he can talk to stones. He was a pretty creepy guy, and not someone I would want to encounter any time soon I don't think. We also met a faerie that can take the form of other people. He got Jared into a big pile of trouble. But of course, that is nothing new. The faerie world is always landing Jared in deep water. I feel bad for the little guy all the time!  He hates how disappointed his mom is, but how could he tell her the truth? She already thinks he is a little off his rocker based on the happenings of late. I'm hoping for the best for the Grace family in book #5!

Review: Lucinda's Secret by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black

Lucinda's Secret

Author: Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi

Publication Date: October 1st, 2003

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/YA/Middle-Grade

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Synopsis:

Their world is closer than you think.

My Thoughts:Then the worst trick yet happens. The guide goes missing and Jared is pretty sure that Thimbletack stole it. So this installment details the quest of finding a way to get it back. All while still being attacked by even more fantastical creatures.

Something I enjoy about these books is you are always meeting new and wonderfully created being. This book brought us Sprites, a Phooka, and Elves. I particularly liked these last two new creatures. The Phooka is an awesome mixture of animals, who speaks mostly in riddles. I've said it before but I love the illustrations provided in these books. A creature is never introduced without an awesome depiction to accompany it. And the Phooka just looks awesome! I enjoyed picturing him as I read. Secondly, the Elves. They portrayed Elves just as I always imagine them. These tall, elegant, and beautiful beings, who seem simultaneously good but extremely powerful and borderline evil. I don't think you would ever want to be on the bad side of an Elf. And that is exactly where the Grace siblings end up in this part of their journey.

How will they scramble their way out of this one? I look forward to the next book to find out, and to meet more awesome creatures.

Review: The Seeing Stone by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black

The Seeing Stone

Author: Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi

Publication Date: May 1st, 2003

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Middle-Grade/YA

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Synopsis:

The Grace kids are just beginning to get used to Aunt Lucinda's strange old mansion when Simon suddenly disappears. Jared and his sister have to rely on the help of a mischievous house boggart, a nasty bridge troll, and a loud-mouthed hobgoblin to get him back.

My Thoughts: a little bit of trouble. In this book the definitely go even deeper. They were warned not to keep or use the book they found in the secret room of their house. They decided not to heed that warning and now they are paying.

In this book we get to meet some goblins, a griffin, a troll, and a hobgoblin. I really enjoy the fantasy characters created in this story. The goblins who have no teeth so they make them out of rocks or bits of broken glass. Or the hobgoblin who takes the teeth kids leave under their pillow and uses them for his own. This is pretty well written and I enjoyed it even more than the first one. It turns out, most of the other fantastical creatures are invisible to the human eye. But there does exist a stone, along with a couple other more disgusting methods, that allows you to see the creatures. They are portrayed pretty well and the illustrations that go with each creature type are very well done and a really nice addition. It's so very easy to picture all of them, and what is happening. The above mentioned goblins decide to kidnap Simon, Jared's twin. Jared and Mallory are off on an adventure to experience lots of things they never imagined were real. How will the fare being immersed in a world they thought was only imaginary? Will they part with the book for the safe return of their brother? Or will they be to late?

Review: The Field Guide by Tony DiTerlizzi & Holly Black

The Field Guide

Author: Holly Black & Tony DiTerlizzi

Publication Date: May 2st, 2003

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Middle-Grade/YA

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Synopsis:

When the three Grace children -- Mallory, Jared, and Simon -- and their mom move into Aunt Lucinda's old house, readers know there's magic afoot. The kids uncover a nest of assembled junk, and on a visit to the secret library via the dumbwaiter, Jared finds a note describing "my secret to all mankind." After a few mysterious pranks that get blamed on Jared, the boy finally digs up the real prize: Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You. Fortunately enough, the kids meet one of the critters listed in the guide -- a brownie named Thimbletack -- who makes it all "real" and helps provide the book's suspenseful conclusion: "'Throw the book away, toss it in a fire. If you do not heed, you will draw their ire.'"

My Thoughts: There isn't a whole lot to say about a short novella after a big summary like that. And try not to  judge me for reading a middle grade book =P. I like reading everything, books are books and I love them all :).

So the story is about three siblings. Twins named Jared & Simon and their older sister Mallory. Their parents had a recent divorce and the kids and their mom take refuge in their crazy old Aunt's house. Said Aunt is now living in an insane asylum for talking about little people that took care of her. Very quickly after moving in, the kids discover that maybe their Aunt wasn't so crazy. They keep hearing scurrying in the walls, and inside they find what looks like a little nest. Complete with big decorations and pictures. This discovery eventually leads to a the discovery of a secret room full of fantastical wonders. Mainly a book that describes mass amounts of fairy like beings and more.

This is a pretty fun little read. I found it entertaining, and the characters are fun. You actually get to learn a lot about them even in such a short time. There's always lots  happening, they pack lots of suspense and adventure in a little story :). I look forward to reading more in the series! I think these would be great books to share with my kids when they get old enough to read them. I've actually been reading these out loud to them a little bit. There is lots of really great illustrations throughout the book as well, so it kept their attention well.