Wednesday, June 18, 2014

The Demon Notebook by Erika McGann

What if your failed spells started coming true?

Sourcebooks Jabberwocky and Net Galley allowed to read this book for review (thank you).  It has been published, so check with your local bookstore for a copy.

This is written for middle graders and is a fantasy tale with witches, demons and school all mixed together.  School is bad enough, imagine if a demon was loose!

It all starts when they try to make magic spells to get even with those who pick on them or to make their own skills better.  They made a list of their spells, but none of them worked.  So then they get the bright idea to use a Ouija board to see if they can make contact.  They do and they wish they hadn't.  You see, they were in exactly the wrong place when they did it.  And now a demon has possessed Una!

While they are very worried about that, they also notice that their spells are coming true and not all of them are "nice" spells.  Nor are they as much fun as they thought they would be when they made them...  

What are they to do? Out of desperation, they go visit the odd lady across from the school who they think might have a clue.  She does and she helps but they have to do the work themselves. 

I liked watching the girls learn to overcome their fears and how they merged into a team with each person willing to give help to another.  That's an important skill to learn in life. 

The ending is exciting and fitting and I don't think anyone in this group of girls is going to be doing spells again.  I wouldn't either!

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