The Conjuror (Orion Chronicles) - Softcover

John Barrowman has worked in television, musical theater, and film, and stars as Captain Jack Harkness in Torchwood and Doctor Who. His sister, Carole E. Barrowman, is a talk show host and teacher in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They are the authors of Hollow Earth, Bone Quill and The Book of Beasts.

Gr 9 Up—Torchwood and Doctor Who actor Barrowman collaborates with his sister on a new YA series. The first installment teams up twins Matt and Emily Calder, the heroes from the Barrowmans' "Hollow Earth" trilogy, with a powerful teen, Rémy Dupree Rush, the last Conjuror capable of stopping two evil entities from bringing to fruition the Second Kingdom and the coming of the dead. This work skips around in the first half, making it difficult to get into, and there is a good deal of exposition, but once the narrative gets going, the novel hits some good notes. It is fast-paced and intelligently written, but the real strength is in the characterization, with even minor and one-off characters being fully fleshed out. As with their previous titles, there is a heavy influence of the arts throughout. Music and works of art are referenced, and the people responsible for those works also play a part in the narrative. These references will hopefully stimulate interest in great paintings and music and send teens off to the stacks looking for more information. While the siblings' previous books were written for middle grade, this series is firmly YA. The Calder twins are now in their mid-teens, there is some strong language, and mature situations are implied. VERDICT A slow start gives way to a very strong first installment in this promising new series; purchase where fantasy is popular.—Erik Knapp, Davis Library, Plano, TX