Review by Booklist Review
Seth is stuck working at the Last Chance Hotel as a kitchen boy for an awful couple and their daughter, Tiffany, who lives to torment him. He longs to fulfill his dream of becoming an amazing chef like his father. The night a group of magicians gather at the hotel could be Seth's opportunity to show off his cooking skills, but that chance slowly slips away when Tiffany makes him cook up a dessert for Dr. Thallonius, who ends up dead. Seth knows his dessert didn't kill Thallonius, but the magicians have deemed him the killer, and he has to find a way to prove his innocence. Thornton sets the story entirely inside the Last Chance Hotel, giving this closed-room mystery a twist of magic. Though it's his place of confinement, the hotel is also Seth's only home, and there are plenty of secrets buried in its foundation. The murder mystery, powerful magicians, and Seth's love of cooking will appeal to a wide readership. A magical adventure with many intriguing elements.--Elizabeth Konkel Copyright 2019 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-7-Seth Seppi maintains a pitiful existence at the Last Chance Hotel; he's an abused kitchen boy in the space where his father once ruled as chef before he disappeared. Now Seth chafes at scrubbing pots and avoiding the notice of Tiffany, the owners' cruel daughter, hoping against hope that his cooking abilities will someday take him away from this isolated hotel. When a famous guest, one of an odd group of magicians assembled at the hotel, dies during dinner, poisoned by the special dessert Seth made for him, Seth's fate looks dire indeed. He sets out to clear his name, aided by his cat, Nightshade, and several members of the magical community. Can they unravel the crime and find the guilty party in time to save Seth from arrest? In this delightful Harry Potter-meets-Agatha Christie adventure, readers are presented with a classic locked room murder complicated by magic. As Seth and members of MagiCon-the Magic Constabulary-investigate the murder, Seth learns about the existence of magic, and the tensions within the magical society over reforms instigated by the now deceased Dr. Thallomius. Red herrings and sinister suspects abound as Seth alternates between fear for his future and thrill at each piece of magical history and lore he learns; history which may hit closer to home than he ever could have dreamed. VERDICT A well-crafted middle grade mystery with a touch of magic enhancing its appeal. Fantasy fans will find a lot to love here.-Nancy Nadig, Penn Manor School District, Lancaster, PA © Copyright 2019. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A parentless, put-upon kitchen boy is accused of murdering a magical hotel guest.Seth Seppi cooks brilliantly, but he'll never be a chef. Instead he's the overworked help at the Last Chance Hotel, abused by his "nasty bosses." Sometimes he sadly recalls the hotel's popularity in the dimly remembered days before his father's mysterious disappearance. Mostly, however, he washes dishes, even on nights like this, when some very special guests are due at the hotel. Tiffany, the daughter of Seth's employers (and Seth's chief tormenter) blackmails Seth into making a splendid dessert for the guest of honor, Dr. Thallomius, for which she'll claim credit. When Dr. Thallomius drops dead from poison, Tiffany promptly snitches: Seth made the dessert, so he must be the murderer! Seth's quest to clear his name is complicated by his realization that Dr. Thallomius and all the other guests at this bizarre party hail from a magical world. One of these odd peopleProfessor Papperspook in her multicolored, tentlike dress; tiny, scarred, dark-skinned Master Darinder Dunster-Dunstable; glamorous Angelique Squerr with her magical cane; or one of the othersmurdered the kindly doctor and pinned the blame on Seth. Thornton's prose can get clunky and characterization resorts to types, but the plot itself is a nifty, magical spin on the classic locked-room mystery. The book subscribes to the white default for characters not otherwise described.A charming, old-fashioned-feeling romp. (Fantasy. 9-11) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
