This magical follow-up to Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms continues Stuart's amazing adventures--with more enchantment, more surprises, and more thrills. When we last left 10-year-old Stuart, he had just recovered his great-uncle Tony's long-lost magic workshop. Now all the priceless tricks are on display in the Beeton Museum--and Stuart is junior curator of the exhibit! But another mystery awaits Stuart: Where did the great magician hide his will? Only by entering the magic world of the workshop can he find the answer. But as the mechanisms whisk him off on increasingly incredible adventures, the puzzles become harder and harder to solve…and the stakes higher. With even more page-turning action, this second book in the exciting middle-grade series does a magic trick of its own: it's even better than the first!
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“Stuart Horten, 10, is back for a second mysterious adventure.. . .it's still rollicking good fun and often engagingly suspenseful, perfect for a quick read or entertaining read-aloud.” --Kirkus Reviews
"Children will delight in Stuart's adventures-which are infused with humor, and clamor for the next installment.” -- School Library Journal
“Evans does a clever job of getting all that happened in Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms (2012) into the first couple of pages of this sequel, so readers can get the backstory out of the way and start the new adventure. And adventure it is. Stuart Horten, who found his great-uncle Tony's magic tricks in the previous book, now must use those tricks to locate his will. Once again there are plenty of clues to figure out, puzzles to solve, and codes to break. The fun is enhanced when May and June, along with sister April, join the search. Old and new fans will find this good Booklist
About the Author
Lissa Evans's route to children's fiction author is perhaps as roundabout as Stuart's adventures in Beeton. After a brief career as a doctor of medicine and then in stand-up comedy, Lissa became a comedy producer, first in radio and then in television, before turning to writing. Her first middle grade novel featuring young Stuart, Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms, was short-listed for the Carnegie Medal, the Costa Book Awards, and UK Literacy Association's Children's Book Award. It was also long-listed for the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize and the Branford Boase Award. Lissa lives with her family in North London.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Last month I fell in love with Stuart Horten and the other delightful characters in Lissa Evans Horten's Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms: Magic, Mystery, & a Very Strange Adventure. I couldn't wait to read the second in the series, and I hoped that it would hold up, because there's always the danger that the second one won't.
There are ways in which this 2nd book is better than the first. There's more excitement and adventure which is something that always make a book better to my kids. However I do think that it lacks some of the charm that made me fall head over heels with the characters in the first one. Since I had read the first book, the warm feelings carried through, if that makes sense, but for that reason and to insure that you get the whole background of the fun story, I'd definitely recommend that you read the first one first.
In Horten's Incredible Illusions, we get more of April (and even May and June), the nosy triplet girls next door who make perfect partners to Horten's plans (even if he wouldn't necessarily agree).
This book picks up pretty much exactly where the first one left off. Uncle Tony's illusions have been found and are on display at the Beeton Museum. Stuart has been asked to be a junior curator, and of course April is there beside him every step of the way to cover the story. As they are trying to figure out the magic tricks, they uncover a message from Uncle Tony that they have to decipher. On top of that, Stuart gets a strange call from someone wanting to buy the tricks. But first, Stuart has to find Uncle Tony's will to prove him the rightful owner.
Finding the will requires mastering each illusion, and when he does that, he's transported to a magic place where he has to solve a puzzle to get back out and also to collect a part of the clue.
This is a story full of action and suspense, surprises, suspending reality and lots of magic. I highly recommend these two books to lovers of middle-grade fiction of all ages.
There are ways in which this 2nd book is better than the first. There's more excitement and adventure which is something that always make a book better to my kids. However I do think that it lacks some of the charm that made me fall head over heels with the characters in the first one. Since I had read the first book, the warm feelings carried through, if that makes sense, but for that reason and to insure that you get the whole background of the fun story, I'd definitely recommend that you read the first one first.
In Horten's Incredible Illusions, we get more of April (and even May and June), the nosy triplet girls next door who make perfect partners to Horten's plans (even if he wouldn't necessarily agree).
This book picks up pretty much exactly where the first one left off. Uncle Tony's illusions have been found and are on display at the Beeton Museum. Stuart has been asked to be a junior curator, and of course April is there beside him every step of the way to cover the story. As they are trying to figure out the magic tricks, they uncover a message from Uncle Tony that they have to decipher. On top of that, Stuart gets a strange call from someone wanting to buy the tricks. But first, Stuart has to find Uncle Tony's will to prove him the rightful owner.
Finding the will requires mastering each illusion, and when he does that, he's transported to a magic place where he has to solve a puzzle to get back out and also to collect a part of the clue.
This is a story full of action and suspense, surprises, suspending reality and lots of magic. I highly recommend these two books to lovers of middle-grade fiction of all ages.
By Bucky Swider
Format:Hardcover
I haven't read the book myself (yet!), but we picked it up at the bookstore on a whim. My son is on the spectrum, and it's usually hard for him to try to follow books with a plot, but he won't put this down! He needs to read 20 minutes each night for homework, and I have trouble getting him to move on. He told me "I can't wait to see what the next illusion is!". I just ordered the first book, (Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms: Magic, Mystery, & a Very Strange Adventure) along with the "Stuart Horten" book...although reading through these reviews, I fear the latter may not be a kid's book. I guess I'll find out....
By Edith Evans
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I bought it for my YA reader who enjoys this type of story, and I got stuck waiting in the car one day and started reading it. I enjoyed it, too! Well written, developed characters and a bit of quirkiness. I picked up the other Horten's story and read it, too!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
An appealing mystery/adventure story
Horten's Incredible Illusions is a well-written and beautifully presented story with appeal to a wide range of readers (aged 8 - 12). Read more
Published 3 months ago by Leonie McNair
4.0 out of 5 stars
As good as the first book
Equivalent to its original British publication title of Big Change for Stuart, this is the sequel to 2012's earlier Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Jason Kirkfield
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fun Read!
Horten's second adventure does a nice job of continuing the story. It's appropriate for just about any age (I'm 46 and my son, 9, loved it! Read more
Published 7 months ago by Preacher
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