The Road to Nevermore

August 1, 2009
Gr 4-6-Billy Bones and Millicent are back in this sequel to "Tales from the Secrets Closet" (Little, Brown, 2008). With the villainous Commissioner Pickerel ensconced inside a magical red vase, the cousins feel safe to take on another adventure, but they get more than they bargained for when an even more nefarious character, Shadewick Gloom, pops up on the scene. Billy's Uncle Grim blew the whistle on Gloom when he created Nevermore, a banished wasteland of lost souls, and now Gloom has a score to settle with him, so he snatches away Grim's head and Millicent during a routine soul-catching mission. Billy soon learns that his family members have been dropped in Nevermore, and he embarks on a dangerous journey to get them back. The story is action-packed and filled with colorful characters, but can be confusing to readers unfamiliar with the first volume. Many of the important elementsBilly's transformation from a skeleton to a boy, the secrets closet, Millicent's parents' predicamentare lightly touched upon, but not explained enough to provide a full understanding of events. Purchase if the first book is popular."Beth Cuddy, Seward Elementary School, Auburn, NY"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2010
In this second book starring ten-year-old Billy Bones Biglum, Uncle Grim and Cousin Millicent are kidnapped. Billy must travel to the world of the Afterlife to rescue them, with help from his adoptive skeleton family. Though there's a little too much going on, the story's fast-paced action, evil villains, and black-and-white cartoon illustrations combine for an entertainingly ghostly read.

(Copyright 2010 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)