Common Sense Media Review
By Carrie R. Wheadon
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Mild magical fantasy has sweet and quirky characters.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
In TWILIGHT HAUNTINGS: ENCHANTER'S CHILD, BOOK 1, Alex thought her magic Hex cards were a secret from everyone but a boy named Benn in the market who sells lemons and her young foster brother, Louie. But her cruel foster sister Zerra found out and decided to Name her to the sentinels, which would send her directly to prison for the rest of her life -- the standard punishment for having magical abilities. Alex reads danger in the cards the moment before the sentinels arrive and flees with Louie and the family's pokkle (a cross between a parrot and a gecko). They descend from their clifftop town into a valley full of citrus. Here they are safe from the sentinels, but not from creatures called the Twilight Hauntings, magical beings that prey on enchanters and their children. It's not long before Alex and Louie are spotted by one of the feared hauntings, a giant hawk who wants to eat them for breakfast.
Is It Any Good?
Quirky characters and mild magical adventures make this story from the author of the Septimus Heap series a winner for younger fantasy fans. There's also a sweetness to Twilight Hauntings, too, that you don't often see in stories battling oppressive kingdoms. It's embodied in Benn's grandmother, Nella. Benn is friend of the main character, Alex. Throughout the story, Nella takes in everyone who comes to the door of her quaint country house -- even a strange old man and a thorny teen boy who appears to work for the enemy. Nella feeds them homemade breads and jams, gives them advice, and fends off one of the most pernicious of the hauntings, a Grey Walker, by sealing the house up against it every evening. She also knows what Alex should do to keep herself safe, but Alex is not the type of character to run away from her problems.
Near the climax of Alex's adventures, two more matronly figures emerge, one of whom is quite good at knitting octopuses. They also have answers for Alex and Alex's long-lost father, the quirkiest character in the story -- or maybe that's the king, you decide. The ending sets up a new, very big problem for Alex and her father, leading us to more magical adventures in the series.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the different kinds of families in Twilight Hauntings. Benn is raised by his grandmother and Alex is brought up in a foster family. How often do you see different kinds of families in the books you read?
How is the magic here the same or different from other fantasy books you read? What do the Hex cards do? What don't we know about the magical world yet?
Will you read more books in the Enchanter's Child series?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic ) , Adventures , Family Stories ( Siblings ) , Friendship
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Katherine Tegen Books
- Publication date : March 31, 2020
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 12
- Number of pages : 368
- Available on : Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 29, 2025
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