Magickeepers: The Pyramid of Souls
Gr 5-7–Thirteen-year-old Nick continues to adjust to his new life after he is kidnapped by a cousin and finds that he is a member of a family of magicians with ties to Romanoff Russia. As a blind for their magic abilities, they put on a magic show at the opulent Winter Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas where they live. The action begins with a convention of other magician families from throughout the world. The festivities are interrupted when the Shadowkeepers, the villains from Magickeepers: The Eternal Hourglass (Sourcebooks, 2009), steal the Pyramid of Souls. With his developing ability in sword fighting and his gift of Gazing into crystal balls, Nick is instrumental in defeating the enemy. The book is awash in details from Russian history and culture, and Nick's gradual adjustment to his new family and his role in their world is well executed. However, the vignettes Kirov drops in, about Edgar Allan Poe and a raven and Sir Isaac Newton and his magical Fourth Law, are not fully realized. Children who enjoy reading about kids confronting supernatural situations will find this quick read appealing.Kathleen Meulen Ellison, Sakai Intermediate School, Bainbridge Island, WA© Copyright 2010.  Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc.  No redistribution permitted.