Since this series is so popular, my eight-year-old asked to get some from the library, so we checked out a few. I picked up this one, book #8, and read through it. The writing was extremely poor. I counted the statement, "Morgan nodded," six times in three pages, even though each page has very few words. Can't the author or an editor see such a glaring flaw? And there were many more flaws, extremely contrived dialogue being the worst offender.

The story was weak, and the characters were thin and hard to like. I can't see how this series became popular. We won't be checking them out again.

The only possible virtue of this book, the first and only one of the series we've encountered, is that it's perhaps light enough to encourage little ones to read for themselves. I agree completely with the reviewer who pointed out that the author seems to know little about history, science, or the English language; I'd add to that list logic. The heroine Annie is an airhead, though she's portrayed as the one who seizes the initiative; her favorite word is "Wow." Her brother Jack, though far more prudent, is forever saying "Oh, man." This is junk food, with empty mental calories. I'm sure that parents can do better and not have to settle for this dreck.