Carnival of Lost Souls

Carnival of Lost Souls book cover
The boy wove through the crowds of the carnival shoving his way to the sideshow tents Darkened pathways swarmed with fire-eaters sword-swallowers and contortionists but the boy would not be tempted from his mission to see the legendary and most feared of them all the Amazing Mussini Whispers pulsed around the tent like the lightning bugs filling the dark summer sky with tiny bursts of light The line quickly thinned the boy’s body tingled as an Asian girl her neck covered in tattoos escorted him to Mussini He stumbled toward the great magician His throat tightened as he made his request eyes heavy with awe I’ve come to hear the secret The magician waved him closer Mussini grinned from under his black top hat He offered the boy a deal for the secret he wanted to hear was the most expensive of them all The boy tried to steady his hand as he signed the contract Thick ink oozed from the tip of the pen like tar or blood The aged paper cool to the touch held the sour stench of death The boy squinted at the contract the words swirling fast a contract on his soul to be collected in fifty years time to enjoy his secret time before Mussini would
Carnival of Lost Souls

Carnival of Lost Souls

For one charismatic kid, the dangerous world of the Forest of the Dead becomes the setting for the ultimate escape trick in this exciting debut novel.   Jack Carr has been shuttled from foster home to group home to foster home his entire life. The only constant has been his interest in magic, especially handcuff escapes like those mastered by his hero, Harry Houdini. When he’s placed with the Professor, however, he feels like he’s finally found a home—but his new guardian is hiding a dangerous secret.   Years ago the Professor bartered his soul to the undead magician Mussini, and when the payment is due, he sends Jack in his place. Jack must travel with Mussini to the Forest of the Dead, a place in between the real world and the afterlife, where he’s forced to perform in Mussini’s traveling magic show. If he stays in the Forest long enough, he’ll die himself. To find his way home, he’ll have the help of Mussini’s other “minions”—kids stolen just like Jack—and his wits, nothing more. Can he follow the example of his hero, Houdini, and escape the inescapable?

About This Book

By: Laura Quimby
Illustrated by:
Published by: Abrams
9-12Age Range
5.2 AR
298Pages
FantasySubject
750LLexile
7-8 hoursReading Time
PGuided Reading
PFountas & Pinnell
38DRA