By R. L. LaFevers
Illustrated by Yoko Tanaka
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Pages: 352
Lexile: 780L
Age Range: 9 – 12 Years
ABOUT
Theodosia Throckmorton has her hands full at the Museum of Legends and Antiquities in London. Her father may be head curator, but it is Theo—and only Theo—who is able to see all the black magic and ancient curses that still cling to the artifacts in the museum. Sneaking behind her father’s back, Theo uses old, nearly forgotten Egyptian magic to remove the curses and protect her father and the rest of the museum employees from the ancient, sinister forces that lurk in the museum’s dark hallways.
REVIEWS
“‘Frankly, I’m not fond of surprises, as the ones around here tend to be rather wicked.’ There are surprises aplenty in LaFevers’s spirited debut, a sort of Indiana Jones for girls and a perfect blend of mystery and humor. Set in turn-of-the-20th-century London, it involves 11-year-old Theodosia Throckmorton, who “assists” her parents in their Museum of Legends and Antiquities. But Theo is the only one who can tell when ancient artifacts arriving at the museum bear a curse—and as new acquisitions arrive, she makes it her business to secretly remove any lingering curses by using recipes she finds in her constant research. Her mother returns home from a dig with the Heart of Egypt, a scarab amulet that was used as a death marker for the Pharaohs. When the amulet goes missing, Theo’s search for it leads her to Lord Wigmere, the leader of an underground society that watches for magical artifacts entering England. The Heart of Egypt, it turns out, possesses a particularly nasty curse, ‘designed to weaken a nation, to make it easy to conquer.’ Crops begin to fail and a flu epidemic overtakes the nation. To break the curse, the Heart must be returned to the tomb from which it was taken—and, of course, it falls to Theo to recover the Heart. Loads of evocative Egyptian history and an oh-so-plucky, resourceful narrator make this the first volume in a series to watch.”
Ages 9-12. (Apr.)
—Publishers Weekly
“Intrepid Theodosia, age 11, narrates a fantasy steeped in invented and authentic Egyptology, clashing secret societies and pre-WWI European intrigue. Theo’s workaholic father runs the Museum of Legends and Antiquities, its inferiority complex (with the British Museum) assuaged by the artifacts that Mum ships from her excavation of Thutmose III’s tomb. Theo obsessively researches ancient Egypt, uncannily able to physically intuit and ameliorate curses and “black magic” intact in the ancient objects surrounding her. A complex plot involving the return of the bejeweled “Heart of Egypt” to its proper place in Thutmose III’s tomb pits Theo against evildoers bent on destabilizing Europe and seizing power. LaFevers overplays happenstance and Theo’s naivete as unreliable narrator to pass off bits of fortuitous plotting. Theo careens off to both Giza and the Valley of the Kings without her parents’ knowledge. Stock characters and a school of red herrings crowd the narrative; the cracking good tomb showdown rewards persistent-or unfussy-readers.
(Fantasy. 9-12)
—Kirkus Reviews
