Title: The Supernatural Pet Sitter: The Magic Thief
Author: Diane Moat
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Book Blurb:
Every animal can talk to you. You just have to know how to listen.
Pepper Neely is better at this than most, especially because she is in charge of pet sitting all the familiars in her neighborhood. A familiar is a pet magically linked to a witch or warlock. As a gnome, Pepper is no stranger to spells and sorcery. She also knows that, despite their special name, familiars aren’t all that different from regular animals. They get anxious when separated from their people, so Pepper uses her special gnome powers to calm them down. She watches Cranky the high-strung ferret, Frank the laid-back parrot, King Arthur the elderly tortoise, and many others.
Then, something terrible begins happening to the familiars. Someone is stealing their magic! It not only prevents Pepper from communicating with them but breaks their magical connection with their people. When King Arthur’s magic is stolen, his owner’s powers stop working too. Pepper can sense that the tortoise is very scared.
In order to protect the animal’s magic, Pepper decides to track down the culprit. With the help of her best friend, Luna, and her brother, Jax, Pepper fights to protect all of the special pets.
My Review:
Pepper Neely is not your typical thirteen-year-old girl. She’s a gnome who, in her spare time, pet sits for all the familiars (magical pets for witches/warlocks) in her town. She can communicate with animals and takes care of these pets when their owners are away. It’s only when she gets a phone call from a frantic warlock that Pepper realizes someone is stealing local familiars’ magic. Now, with the help of Pepper’s best friend and witch, Luna, and her brother Jax, Pepper tries to figure out who’s doing this dark magic and save the familiars. Will she be able to stop the magic thief in time or has Pepper put herself in mortal danger?
I loved this book! Filled with a magical world trying to co-exist amongst humans, it reminded me of Harry Potter but with gnomes, witches/warlocks, wood sprites and even werewolves. There’s family drama, supernatural elements, life lessons and a mystery to solve all rolled into one story. There’s plenty of action and the characters are fully developed. I’d rate it PG because there’s certain situations in which younger readers might not understand. Overall, a clean fantasy adventure both boys and girls (and adults) will enjoy. I highly recommend and can’t wait for the next installment in this series!
Favorite Character: Pepper. I love everything about her from her inner thoughts to her impulsive nature but it’s her love for animals that endears her to me. She cares not for herself but does anything she can to help those pets she sits for. Her caring spirit and her loyalty to her best friend, Luna, bursts from the page and I chuckled to myself each time she got in “trouble”. A true thirteen-year-old in every sense.
My Rating: 5 stars
Buy it now:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34320532-the-supernatural-pet-sitter
Author Biography:
Diane is a Tennessee transplant, animal rescuer, and nurse. Dog Gone is her debut novel, born from years of hearing animal rescuers say about animal abusers, “If only I could get my hands on that person…” Diane is assisted by her many rescue dogs.
Social Media Links:
Website http://www.dianemoatauthor.com/
Twitter @DianeMoatAuthor
Reviewed by: Mrs. N