Magic Below Stairs

From Goodreads:
“Young Frederick is plucked from an orphanage to be a footboy for a wizard named Lord Schofield in Victorian England. Is his uncanny ability to tie perfect knots and render boots spotless a sign of his own magical talent, or the work of Billy Bly, the brownie who has been secretly watching over him since he was little? No matter, for the wizard has banished all magical creatures from his holdings. But Billy Bly isn't going anywhere, and when he discovers a curse upon the manor house, it's up to Frederick and Billy Bly to keep the lord's new baby safe and rid the Schofield family of the curse forever.”

~~~~~

I've been a fan of Caroline Stevermer's work for a long time. Ever since I read Sorcery and Cecelia, written by Ms. Stevermer and Patricia Wrede, another of my favorites, I've enjoyed her light tone and Victorian-esque settings. When The King Comes Home is also excellent. For years, I've pined to read Magic Below Stairs, the only Stevermer novel I couldn't get my hands on and that my previous library didn't seem inclined to order. But my new teeny library had it! Oh, the happiness!

Magic Below Stairs feels like an oblique continuation of Mairelon the Magician, which was also written by Patricia Wrede, but in tone and quality, it is to Mairelon what The Hobbit is to The Lord of the Rings. I have found that many times an author who is writing a novel for children or about children will often write down to them in a mildly condescending tone, as from a superior adult who has experienced it all and is now handing a piece of candy to a very deserving lad or lass along with a pat on the head. Kind, but misguided. Children aren't stupid. They can easily climb to the author's level as long as the author makes it accessible.

AHEM. I'll climb off my soapbox now.

Magic Below Stairs has that faintly superior tone, unfortunately, but the story is charming and enjoyable, so it's easy to overlook. It was also a very fast read, which helped immensely. This story is well suited for tweens who are just beginning their forays into fantasy.


Gentle Reader Alert: I found nothing of concern.

&nbsp