The Sign of the Sinister Sorcerer

After 5 years and about double that in interlibrary loans, I’ve finally reached the final book of Lewis Barnavelt’s magical adventures! Brad Strickland sends us off with an exciting escapade to wrap things up, pitting Lewis, his uncle Jonathan, Mrs. Zimmerman, and Rose Rita against another of Jonathan’s old sorcerer pals - the sinister sorcerer alluded to in the book’s title. This story utilizes the magical rule of three, a basic tenant that most people who read in the genre are likely to have come across, and weaves the magical sign throughout the story to create a clever narrative that has us wondering until the final chapters whether Lewis will manage to survive his threefold curse. Of course, we know full well that he’ll show more come out on top - he is the hero, all - but Strickland uses his well-honed skills to keep us entertained with magical lore, background on Uncle Jonathan’s warlock training, and a little bit of European flair for good measure. It’s hard to stack any book in the series against John Bellairs’ original tale of witchcraft and highjinx, but Strickland pulls all the same tricks out of the hat to give us one last grand showdown and the story stands up well. It’s almost too bad that we have to end things here, but all good series must come to an end - and now it’s time to delve into Bellairs’ other magical mystery tales with another presumably fun cast of characters. show less