I love the Library Series! We recommend this book to our middle grade readers all the time. It is spooky without being scary. The kids love that the books do not have to be read in a specific oder after number 1. DJ is always a bight with me and our other booksellers.

Great follow up to the first book. I've read a few of MacHale's book's and recommended them as fun and fascinating reads to kids who love adventure and the supernatural. This one involves strange goings on at a school. so many unexplained events... Kids are going to love the mystery in the stories. Lots of plot twists and strong interesting characters to get into. This is a book in a series. So if buying for a collection, get them all!

This was the best book I've read in awhile. It was a page turner for sure! The characters were in depth and the plot was captivating. I recieved this ARC in return for an honest review!

*I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.

This is an awesome kids fiction book!! We get to follow along with a widely diverse trio of thirteen year old kids that get to finish the stories that are ongoing in the hidden library. Their methods are just filled with age appropriate endeavors, events, and twists in the story line that will really keep a middle grade reader hooked until they find out what happens next. Perfect for any sex as each character gets a chance to shine at some point in the story. Great for fantasy adventure fans. I really enjoyed it so it gets 4/5 stars.

The library exists outside of time, and Marcus is a agent of the library just like his biological dad was before him. It is Marcus' job to finish writing peoples stories, that usually means there are disturbances out in the world and once Marcus figures out what is causing the disturbance and corrects it, than the person at the center of the disturbance story can be finished. The disturbance this time is centered in a middle school in Massachusetts, but Marcus needs help so he recruits his best friends Theo and Lu to come along with him, but it is a race they must finish before the black moon rises or the disturbance is permeant, and the story is finished all wrong.

This is a awesome book, full of action and suspense, but what will keep you reading just one more chapter and one more and one more and one more and on and on is the twists and turns that you will never see coming, every time you think you know who it is or who is doing it everything will change. That is so cool, I love the chance to guess but never knowing until the end who actually is who and actually did what, and Mr. MacHale is one of the best at this. Now I just need to go back and save up for book one so I can let you all know all about Surrender The Key: The Library Book 1, so stay tuned.

As Marcus is eating breakfast, he feels his key to the library getting hot. He runs from breakfast to the bathroom where he uses the key and arrives at the library. He discovers that he has another story to complete. Marcus isn't sure he wants to finish the book. Lu and Theo goes into this story to help him finish it. In this story,, windows are breaking and other unusual things happen. Marcus has to find out who is doing this and stop it before it gets worse. Will he be able to?

The novel is a mystery that needs to be solved. It surprised me at times while reading it. I didn't realize until later when I had not finished reading the book how much I wanted to know how it was going to end. Even though I didn't read the first book of this series, I was able to read it and understand it. I enjoyed reading it immensely.

Let’s talk covers for a minute. There has been a bit of ranting in the book world about publishers changing the look of a series cover mid-series. I also have had some issues with this lately and it appears to be happening even when the second book comes out, like this series. The cover I have here is the one that came on Netgalley, and I really love it. It matches the cover of the first book (which they also changed the name of?) but when you look on Goodreads and Amazon there is a totally different cover which I don’t like at all. I’m pretty sure that it is the cover I will be stuck with when it arrives in the mail tomorrow. I’m really hoping I will be surprised though and see this one. (Heavy sigh)

Cover issues aside, this second installment in this middle grade series is just as awesome as the first. There is just the right amount of scary, mixed in with suspense and action that will keep you on the edge of your seat if not hiding under your blankets at night. There are a couple of slow spots in the middle, but otherwise you will have trouble putting this book down.

Marcus continues to try to help finish the stories in the library with the help of his friends Theo and Lou. This one involves witches and spooky, scary things happening in a middle school far from where they live. It is also a little bit of a mystery with them needing to find out who is causing all of the trouble. I really enjoy the friendship between these three and how they always have each others backs. They are also quick thinkers and can get themselves out of a jam without adult help. They are also the type of kids that can earn the trust of other kids quickly, which they really need in this story.

I love the library in this series that is full of books that contain unfinished stories both from the past and the present. It is the library agents job to complete the story. The fact that the library is between dimensions allows the kids to travel from one place to another with out losing time in their own world. A little confusing at times but D.J. Machale makes it work, even when Marcus and his friends don’t completely understand it themselves.

A great scary story perfect for a cold October night. I don’t know how many books in the series there will ultimately be, but I am certainly hoping that there will be many many more to come.

Everything Is Just Right

Everything about this book struck me as well balanced and appealing. The kids are solid and engaging. The plot is just twisty enough, but straightforward. The premise is clever but not fussy or overly complex. The pace is fast but nicely varied. The writing is crisp, descriptive, and effective, without being too simple or overdone. Humor is mild and amiable without being silly or farcical. As I say, just solid across the board.

There are a lot of series out there that have kids jumping in and out of books. They have to finish books, or fix changes being made in classics, or get the plots back on track, or find a missing character, or otherwise straighten out some problem in the narrative. I mean there are a lot of such books for middle graders. Once you add an enchanted library the numbers really multiply. That's sort of what you have here, but not a lot of attention is wasted on setting up and maintaining and elaborating on the premise. It's cleaner than that. Here, the kids are presented with an unfinished book and have to fix whatever is keeping the book from reaching a satisfying resolution. So, the whole book/library thing just provides a frame that allows the story to begin. Then, each book in the series consists of an episode that has a beginning, a middle, and an end.

In this volume the kids have to travel, (through a magical portal in the Library), to a middle school that is the scene of weird and possibly supernatural incidents. Who's responsible, and why? There is an investigation, action, creeping evil, and lots of lurking and hiding and figuring out, culminating in a big action scene. Sweet.

Much of this works because of our three hero kids. The leader, Marcus, is smart, resourceful, and very relatable. He's amusing, and slightly bemused by the whole deal, but hasn't been loaded up with quirks or attitude. He is a solid and grounded hero. His pals, a shy slightly geeky guy and an independent and feisty gal pal, are restrained, realistic and independent. They are all smart and perceptive, they work well together, and they have personality and style. They do not wear out their welcome as characters. The kids they interact with while conducting their investigation all feel like normal kids, just with a paranormal problem, which actually makes the book more interesting than if every character were over the top.

The upshot, for me, was that this was an attention grabbing, entertaining, upbeat, and sometimes gripping read. The tone was consistent, the story was focused and well told, and the whole project felt professional, well-crafted, and good-humored. A very nice middle grade fantasy/adventure find.

(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

I enjoyed book 1 and enjoyed book 2 even more. This book had enough suspense without going overboard. Sometimes middle-grade books get too involved is side plots that the main story gets lost. The book kept me engaged in the story and excited for book 3.