Ember Spark and the Unicorn's Secret: Volume 3

Ember Spark and her best friend, Arno Whisper, are apprentice vets to magical beasts. When Ember's pet nibblesqueak, Forty Winks, begins to behave oddly, Ember and Arno investigate and find themselves whisked off to the Amazon rainforest. The villainous Tabitha Bone is using magical beasts in a dreadful way in order to make money. With the help of another apprentice vet, Tuggety Vine, can Ember and Arno stop Tabitha's dastardly plot and rescue the precious creatures?

Ember Spark and the Unicorn's Secret is the third novel in the Ember Spark series. While I have not been fortunate enough to read the first two books, this did not spoil my enjoyment of this lovely adventure story at all. The author provides enough background information for the first time reader and the story is engaging from page one.

The characters are delightful and the magical world conjured up by Ms Elphinstone is beautifully drawn. We meet winged unicorns, a frost phoenix, griffins and dragons along the way. Ember and Arno are great friends, but in this novel their personalities clash and they have to find a way to overcome their differences and work together as a team to defeat the evil Tabitha. Both characters show great bravery and determination as they carry out their dangerous quest. Forty Winks is a fabulous character in his own right, playing a huge part in helping the children succeed in their endeavours.

This would make an excellent class reader; the introduction of the idea that animals can be abused in the pursuit of profit would make an interesting topic for discussion. At its heart, however, this is a fast-paced and exciting adventure story, so well written and perfectly accessible to boys and girls aged seven and over. The accompanying atmospheric illustrations by Kristina Kister are a great addition to the book. Highly recommended - I'm now off to read books one and two!

224 pages / Reviewed by Beverley Somerset, School Librarian

Suggested Reading Age 7+