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Thrills, spills and mischievous magic in an enchanting tale

John Millen

Spellbound By Anna Dale by Bloomsbury ISBN 978 0 7475 8716 3

If you've got a younger brother or sister who gets on your nerves, and who you sometimes wished would just vanish into thin air, you'll enjoy Spellbound.

Athene Enright's young brother Zach used to be a complete nuisance until she found a way of getting rid of him. But once she had taken this very drastic step, Athene panicked about what she had done and tried to get him back. But it wasn't that simple. There were forces involved that could not be controlled.

Athene and Zach are as different in personality as it is possible for two siblings to be. In fact, you wouldn't think they had the same parents or belonged to the same family.

Zach is a bright, happy little boy, bouncing around all the time and having fun. But Athene hates having fun. She is a dour, serious young lady who has resented her young brother from the day he was born.

From day one, she decided that she would be as unpleasant to him as she could. It took a long time for Mr and Mrs Enright to accept the situation between their daughter and son. They tried their best to calm Athene down, but nothing seemed to work.

But during an annual holiday in the countryside, a chance pops up for Athene to get rid of her pesky brother forever. It's all so simple, and Athene knows it will work. This year the Enrights are having a holiday in a country cottage miles away from anywhere.

One moonlit night, Athene befriends a gnome-like creature she meets near the cottage. He's a member of the mysterious Humble Gloam tribe who usually stay well out of the way of humans. Surprisingly, Athene and Humdudgeon get on well, and the little creature tells her all about his tribe.

He also tells her about the nasty Low Gloam tribe who live underground. The entrance to their foul world is near the cottage, through the middle of a massive dead tree. This is a dangerous place, because if the Low Gloam capture anyone, they drag them underground and make them their slave.

Athene has a brilliant idea. She tricks Zach into climbing into the magic tree and he vanishes. The Low Gloam cast a spell over everyone who knew Zach and make it seem as if he never existed. What an excellent answer to all of Athene's problems. But in fact, this is only the beginning of a new pile of problems.

Spellbound is a fast-moving and absorbing story that is highly improbable but completely captivating. There is nothing weighty here, just fun and gentle adventure that might make you appreciate your little sibling more.

John Millen can be contacted on [email protected]

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