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Summary: This book begins on a winter evening with Johnny and Professor Childermass spending the night at a small inn in New Hampshire. While they are sleeping, Johnny hears a weird sound from the closet. When he goes in, he finds a clock with a small room inside. He suddenly trips and knocks a tiny skull, the size of his thumbnail, out of the dollhouse-like room in the clock. Johnny decides to keep the skull. When they reach home, Johnny finds he still has it.
Over the next few days, the professor is unusually quiet. When Johnny goes to check on him, he discovers the professor is missing! When Johnny speaks with Father Higgins, a close friend of the professor, they decide to write to St. Anthony, asking him where to look for the professor. When they check for a reply, they find a small note that says: "Where the bays run together. A great reckoning in a little room."
Father Higgins soon cracks the code, and he, Johnny, and Johnny's friend Fergie (Byron Ferguson) set off for Vinalhaven Island. When they reach the island, they decide to visit another island not far from Vinalhaven. Upon reaching the second island, they find a mysterious chapel in the island's center. While Fergie and Father Higgins go off visiting other parts of the island, Johnny stays at the chapel. Suddenly the chapel turns into a large Victorian house. Inside is Professor Childermass, about to be killed by an evil spirit. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Father Higgins appears out of the woods, carrying a crucifix and invoking a charm. The Victorian house disappears, leaving the Professor safe and sound.
American Booklister's Pick of The Lists
School Library Journal: "This is among his best and that's really saying something... imaginative, exciting, and literate."
Amazon.com: * * * * *
Behind the Books: A Closer Look at John Bellairs: * * * *
