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Book Review

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Publisher's Note:

The Brothers Grimm meets Knives Out in this unexpected, hilarious, and wholly original fantasy-murder-mystery. The Lilac. The bard songs say that she’s the world’s most fearsome bounty hunter. That there’s no criminal she can’t catch, no mystery she can’t solve. None of that is true. Yet. In reality, the Lilac is just a kid, and the bard who wrote all that is her best friend, Dulcinetta. But the Lilac has set her goals on becoming the best bounty hunter in the Thirteen Kingdoms—and when a priceless artifact goes missing from the home of famed monster hunter Baron Angbar, the Lilac and Netta are eager to apprehend the thief and make a name for themselves. But when their investigation brings them to a dinner party at Castle Angbar, and they meet the Angbar family and their servants and guests—an unsavory group of nobles, mages, and assorted creatures, each more shady than the last—the Lilac begins to wonder if the reward is worth the trouble. And that’s before the dead body is discovered. Now, everyone is magically sealed inside the castle—and there is a murderer among them. If the Lilac wants to make it out with her reputation intact, it’s going to be up to her to figure out who the killer is. But everyone in the castle—even the Lilac herself—has secrets to hide, and as the walls literally start to close in around them, the Lilac worries that her first job as a bounty hunter may be her last……

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No One Leaves the Castle

by Christopher Healy

Reviewer: Jenny
Genre: Mystery
Recommended Age: 9+

Overall Book Review:

After discovering The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom, Christopher Healy became one of my family’s all-time favorite middle grade authors and one we frequently recommend. His imagination, sense of humor, and fantastic characters are familiar and every bit as good in this latest novel, No One Leaves the Castle. The complicated characters and relationships will keep you guessing the entire time. Healy also throws many surprises into this mystery to grab and hold the reader’s interest until the conclusion. Those who enjoy magic, adventure, and intrigue will love this story, and this novel will be added to my family’s list of highly recommended books.

Review of a Digital Advance Reading Copy copy provided by HarperCollins Children’s Books

Content Analysis: 

Profanity/Language: None

Violence/Gore: Many (48) brief incidents which are mostly comical including–reference to vampires and could’ve been slaughtered by them; character could starve to death; napkins folded into shape of hangman’s noose and seeing pictures of people eating animals; character joking about dying of anticipation; characters being worried about getting hurt or killed; reference to bashing people with a stick; character would rather hurt himself than let someone else win; reference to peeling hide from a carcass; many (absurdly funny) verbal threats; reference to bones being on the ground, small animals impaled on street signs and people wearing animal parts/fur; picture of a mace dripping with blood; pictures of people holding dead animals; character finding a dead body; reference to punching; reference to a giant sitting on and killing someone; animals biting someone; character accidentally hitting himself in the head; heard man’s leg break; character accidentally hurting someone; ogre smashing two men’s heads together and knocking them out; castle getting damage.

Sex/Nudity: Two brief incidents including a character asking a teen boy if he likes a teen girl; teen boy telling teen girl that he likes her.

Mature Subject Matter:

Death; war; theft; etiquette coach doing gross things.

Alcohol/Drug Use:

None

Overall Book Rating
Profanity/Language
Rating:
0
10
Violence/Gore
Rating:
3
10
Sex/Nudity
Rating:
1
10

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About the Reviewer

Jenny
I love being able to help busy parents who just don’t have the time to pre-screen all their children’s books and know how much I appreciate it as my sons have gotten older. I feel very blessed that my amazing husband makes it possible for me to be a stay-at-home mother to four amazing boys. When not reading or enjoying time with my family, I like baking, especially trying new recipes, and the occasional sewing project.

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