Perdita and Honor Cargill are a mother/daughter writing partnership and the authors of the series Waiting for Callback. Originally from the Scottish Highlands, Perdita spent many years as a lawyer before turning to writing fiction. Honor, having recently graduated from Oxford, is working on fiction and non-fiction writing projects as well as studying for a masters degree at the Courtauld Institute of Art. They both live in London.

Katie Saunders knew she wanted to be an illustrator when she had a picture published in Twinkie Magazine at the age of five. Katie worked as a teacher before becoming a full-time illustrator. Katie lives in Kent with her partner, two children, two cats, and a crazy sausage dog named Rolo.

Gr 2-4-Bea Black is on a school trip to Cadabra Castle, and she and her friends are expecting a magical time--they are witches, after all. Their first activity is a scavenger hunt, where they must learn to work together and get along. Later, they discover the castle is haunted by a ghost, and Bea is teamed up with Blaire, who she does not get along with. The story is structured like a diary, but the frequent, short entries--sometimes just minutes apart--make it feel choppy. A more cohesive approach with one or two entries per day summarizing events would have improved the flow. Additionally, many pages include footnotes that are quite small; integrating them into the main text with a different font or emphasis could have made them easier to follow. Black-and-white doodle-style illustrations appear on every page, adding personality and energy to the story. The magical adventure is engaging, and the characters feel relatable, making this a fun read despite its structural drawbacks. VERDICT A fine purchase for large libraries and where magical books are especially popular. --School Library Journal

Publisher: Tiger Tales

Pub date: 2025-02-11

Length: 128 pages