The Inside Story

Author: Michael Buckley

Pages: 288

Published: Amulet, May 2010

Genre: Fantasy/Mystery

Age group: Middle grade readers

Overall Grade: B+

Picking up where The Everafter War left off, sisters Sabrina and Daphne Grimm (aka fairytale detectives) find themselves in an enchanted storybook that serves as a historical record for every fairy tale ever written. However, while searching amongst the pages for the evil and cunning Master, who betrayed the family and has stolen a prized possession for them, the sisters must be careful. They must avoid the Editor and his crew of Revisors, who would love nothing more than to erase the Grimms from the pages of their book entirely.

My thoughts: I absolutely love this series, and whenever there is a new addition, I immediately get myself a copy. I was stunned after the last installment (major cliffhanging action), so I was super-excited to see how things ended up in The Inside Story, the second-to-last book.

There were, sure enough, some of the same qualities I loved from the rest of the books: the creative twist on fairytales, a slew of unique and funny characters, hearty wit, edge-of-your-seat suspense (even though it was a little slow at first), and a spellbinding new adventure full of twists and turns.

On the other hand, this book was simply missing something. Maybe it was the different setting or the absence of the usual characters of Ferryport Landing, but the book lacked that magical spark that pushed it from good to great, as seen in the other seven installments. Seeing as there will be one final book in the series, I can only hope that Mr. Buckley will tie up all loose ends and make the conclusion to one of my favorite series of all time truly magical.