Official Review: The Witch of the Spring by Tom Blanton

[Mbrooks2518]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Witch of the Spring" by Tom Blanton.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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In The Witch of the Spring: An Arthur and Marya Mystery, the second in the series by Tom Blanton, teenagers Arthur and Marya are excited for Marya to return to Coronada Springs, Texas to spend Christmas with her grandmother and visit Arthur. However, their fun is interrupted when the 400-year-old book they discovered the previous summer is stolen from Don Pedro, the man they gave the book to. Don Pedro calls on the Texas Rangers, and Arthur and Marya assist Sergeant Victor Morales with the investigation. They soon discover a legend about a spring that was cursed by a witch. They also uncover a possible connection to the Aztecs. Will Arthur, Marya, and Sergeant Morales find the book? What was the thief's real motive? And who is the witch of the spring?

This book combines mystery, magic, and a little bit of history to create a fun and exciting story that quickly jumps into the action and keeps a fast and steady pace throughout. It is listed as a young adult book, but I think readers of all ages will enjoy this story. I certainly did, and I plan to buy the previous book and future installments in the series.

This book can be read without reading the previous one, but there are a lot of references to events in the first book. While I never felt confused, I did sometimes feel like I was missing something because it wasn’t fully explained. Mostly though, I was just intrigued and left wanting to read the first book.

The characters were my favorite thing about this book. All of them were well written and believable, and there was a nice variety of personalities. The dialogue was also realistic. I only wish that I’d been able to get to know Arthur’s other friends better, but hopefully they will be seen more in future books.

One thing that bothered me, and was my least favorite thing about the book, was Marya’s disbelief that the mystery could involve Aztec myth. Given the descriptions of their last adventure, which they both said involved magic, I was surprised that she was so unwilling to believe.

The main problem with this book is the editing. I found a lot of punctuation errors, such as misplaced commas and missing quotations. However, they were not so frequent that they interrupted the flow of the story. Another minor issue was that there were some moments where I wasn’t sure who was speaking.

I am taking away a star for the problems I mentioned, but they were minor, and I really enjoyed the story despite them. The author also included some informational notes about various things in the story at the end of the book and an Aztec pronunciation guide, which I appreciated. With all of that taken into account, I am rating this book 3 out of 4 stars.

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The Witch of the Spring
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[Chigo Nwagboso]

Thanks for a detailed review and recommendations. I'd really want to read this intriguing book to find out answers to those questions.

[AvidBibliophile]

Antique books, cursed springs, witches, myths, AND some Texas Rangers?! What a mysterious tale of magic and discovery in my own home state. Loved your review!

[Saint Bruno]

Yeah, I love characters that well developed and relatable. Thank you for your awesome review and recommendation.

[Prisallen]

This sounds like a good book for the YA age group. Thanks for your wonderful review!

[Raluca_Mihaila]

I love supernatural books, and the Aztec connection makes the book even more appealing. Nice review!

[nikechi]

I'm not really a fan of fairytale books but the reviewer convinced me that it's a nice book so I might give the book a try.
Thank you for such an awesome review

[Eutoc]

Reading books laced with errors could be a draft e on the reading flow. I guess I'd wait for an updated version.

[Mbrooks2518]

Antique books, cursed springs, witches, myths, AND some Texas Rangers?! What a mysterious tale of magic and discovery in my own home state. Loved your review!

I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for reading and commenting!

[Mbrooks2518]

Thanks for a detailed review and recommendations. I'd really want to read this intriguing book to find out answers to those questions.

Yeah, I love characters that well developed and relatable. Thank you for your awesome review and recommendation.

This sounds like a good book for the YA age group. Thanks for your wonderful review!

Thanks for reading and commenting!

[Mbrooks2518]

Reading books laced with errors could be a draft e on the reading flow. I guess I'd wait for an updated version.

I love supernatural books, and the Aztec connection makes the book even more appealing. Nice review!

I'm not really a fan of fairytale books but the reviewer convinced me that it's a nice book so I might give the book a try.
Thank you for such an awesome review

Thanks for reading and commenting!

[Sushan Ekanayake]

I love this sort ot magical fantasy. But it seems that it is quite difficult to read with its flaws in editing. Thanks for the descriptive review

[Kasun Perera]

I love magical fantasy books. Your review intrigued me. Thank you

[Ellylion]

Sounds like a great YA book! Aztec mythology would be an interesting topic to explore. Thanks for your great review!

[Mbrooks2518]

I love this sort ot magical fantasy. But it seems that it is quite difficult to read with its flaws in editing. Thanks for the descriptive review

Sounds like a great YA book! Aztec mythology would be an interesting topic to explore. Thanks for your great review!

I love magical fantasy books. Your review intrigued me. Thank you

Thanks for reading and commenting!