THE CLOUD SEARCHERS (AMULET #3) - Kazu Kibuishi

In part three of the vivid, beautifully-drawn Amulet series of graphic novels, Emily and company go in search - Star Wars-style - of a captain and ship to help them find Cielis, the city in the clouds, dismissed long ago as a myth, where the surviving stonekeepers retreated when the elves attacked.  Coming along for the ride is their former fiercest enemy, Prince Trellis - son of the Elf King, he was originally sent to turn Emily's powers to their advantage, but now works against his father (or does he?) - even while the gang is pursued by a new enemy determined to follow them on their quest ... and not only hunt them down, but destroy Cielis if and when its found.  I have to say (aside from the grade-A artwork, as always), whereas I found book two full of action and progressing the story nicely, this volume felt full of fluff and like an elongated TV episode instead of a fully-rounded story.  A fast read, as always, but it was a bit jarring to find myself not caring as much for the characters, and finding the build-up to the action sequences a letdown when said build-up didn't fully follow through.  Not done with the series, by any means; just wish this one had been ... more.  And more exciting.  **1/2

CANDY CORN MURDER - Lucy Meier

Halloween is fast approaching, and the good folks of Tinker's Cove, Maine have gone a little batty with preparations for the upcoming Giant Pumpkin Fest, which will include jack-o-lantern and pumpkin diorama contests, a boat regatta on the cove where all the boats are made of hollowed out pumpkins ... and the event reporter Lucy Stone's husband has been working on for months: a giant pumpkin catapult, adapted right from the Middle Ages, that Bill and his ne'er-do-well buddy, local yokel Evan Wickes, are sure will win the contest.  Lucy has no use for Evan - "Ev" - whom she feels is pretty much around to drink Bill's beer and be a bad influence on her visiting grandson ... but when she finds Ev's body in the trunk of a car, head bashed in, and Bill becomes the #1 suspect, it's up to Lucy to set things - and the state cops - straight.  This was my first Lucy Stone novel, even though it's 22nd in the series; I have book one on my Kindle but it's on a very long TBR list, and when I realized this edition hearkened back in time to reference the murder in book one, I was worried author Meier might reveal spoilers here.  Thankfully not; I finished Candy Corn Murder in a sickbed that felt more like a deathbed, and even though the murder didn't occur unto over halfway in the book (a BIG no-no for me, normally), I enjoyed Lucy (so nice to find an amateur sleuth in a cozy who's a grandma!) and her family and the very real feeling of Tinker's Cover and its citizens.  It's a well-constructed mystery that keeps you reading, and though I guessed a few things early on it was refreshing to find I wasn't totally right in my assumptions, after all.  Great fun from Ms. Meier, now more than ever anxious to revert back to book one and start from the beginning.  ****1/2

Note: I received a free ARC of this title via NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

ARAMINTA SPOOKIE 2: THE SWORD IN THE GROTTO - Angie Sage

I gotta say, as a grown man I am sort of grooving on Araminta Spookie.  Book two in the successful kids' series by Angie Sage makes me wish Araminta had been around when I was a kid; her adventurous, bossy personality, mixed with that of her mousy but spunky-when-she-needs-to-be best friend Wanda meshes perfectly, and here gets both girls into trouble when Araminta is determined to get Sir Horace - one of two ghosts in the house, the one who inhabits an old suit of armor - a gift for his upcoming 500th birthday.  A chance outing to a mushroom farm, where Araminta and Wanda spot a rusty old sword in a cave that starts Araminta plotting to come back and retrieve it for Sir Horace, gets the girls into all sorts of problems when they find themselves trapped in a dark, dank cave ... slowly filling with water as high tide comes in.  Without putting my finger on it, there is just something charming about the girls, Aunt Tabby, Uncle Drac, and the wacky mansion they all live in, combined with Araminta's thirst for adventure, that make these "kids" books as much fun for adults to read, as well.  Recommended, for either your young ones or the young one in you.  ****

GARGOYLE HALL: AN ARAMINTA SPOOKIE ADVENTURE - Angie Sage

Having read and liked the first in this series, My Haunted House, when receiving an ARC of this title I was curious to see how the series had perhaps grown or changed in the books since.  While I did like the first book, it also felt like the author was still trying to grow into her characters and setting ... and happily, with Gargoyle Hall, author Angie Sage seems to have embraced the Spookie world indeed.  Here Araminta is in full "detective mode," trying to figure out the recent strange behavior of her Aunt Tabby and Uncle Drac - not to mention Drac's bats - and in trying to investigate with her sidekick/best friend Wanda (one of the most lovable ditzes in kids' literature) gets herself into enough trouble that visiting great-Aunt Emilene actually talks Tabby and Drac into shipping her off to boarding school.  But upon her arrival at Gargoyle Hall, Araminta finds even bigger mysteries to solve; can she and stowaway Wanda learn the secrets behind the Beast of Gargoyle Hall in time to save the school?  I LOVED this book, Araminta and Wanda are a great duo kids and adults alike can embrace, the spookiness not scary enough to frighten younger readers but nicely dark and mysterious for kids.  Touches of humor make it enjoyable even for the "big kids" reading it as well, but most of all it's great to see that Sage has really grown into this world and her characters; I liked Araminta after the first book, but with this one I just think she and Wanda both are nothing short of awesome.  ****1/2

Note: I received a free ARC of this title via NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.