Mythical Beasties? Bring 'em on!

"Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull is about Kendra and Seth Sorenson, siblings whose grandparents are caretakers of a preserve of magical animals. They go off to spend time with their grandparents, unaware that the place they live is a magical preserve. Grandpa Sorenson gives Kendra and Seth clues as to the truth of what Fablehaven is and they figure out his riddle to learn of the magical world around them. The whole time Seth and Kendra have been at Fablehaven, their grandmother has been mysteriously missing. We later find out she is a chicken, and it takes the considerable magic of a witch named Muriel to restore her to her actual form. Seth is so fascinated with the mystical world that he does not heed the rules of his grandfather and gets himself into trouble by exploring beyond the protected bounds. They find themselves needing to work together to vanquish the foes that have been released on Midsummer's Eve.

Fablehaven is a fantasy lovers dream. It is so chuck full of fairies and witches and satyrs and magical milk producing cows that even the biggest fantasy junkies will get their fix. The story is exciting and unpredictable and the characters, except Seth, are fun to read about. Seth is just one of those characters that you love to hate. He just does everything wrong... not because he can't help it, but because the stupid kid chooses to do what he shouldn't in almost every situation. If I ever have a kid like him I am putting them up for adoption. In any case, it is a wonderful work of fantasy that will engage any reader who picks it up.