I loved Bellairs as a kid and was curious how he held up, hoping that his work would be more ‘young adult’. Well, it’s definitely a kid‘s book, but fun to relive with memorable characters. The exciting elements of the plot were all crammed into the end, with the supernatural elements thrown in without any establishment. I do plan to give ‘Spell of the Sorcerer’s Skull’ a go, though, as that’s the one I remember the most fondly.

I've been meaning to read a Bellairs for years. Can't say I see the need to read on. Very dated with a boring, messy, convenient resolution to the plot.

Yet another fun read about the 1950s. :D

I remember loving this one as a kid. It hasn't stood up as well as some of the other things I loved as a kid. It feels so dated at this point. I think the main appeal to me was the Edward Gorey covers (damnit they did not need updating-Gorey is timeless!) and I suspect the fact that the protagonist worried a lot, about everything.

I've just reread two, but they're super male oriented books. The only speaking female characters are old women in bit parts. Even the nice ones either 'nags' or flaky. And the adult male characters are condescending or downright rude to them. I guess that didn't stand out because it was a normal thing in 80s kidlit. (And not as abnormal as I'd like now.)

I really don't remember the reference to Hebrew being used in evil spells or the casual throwing out about how the guy have done something weird in his will 'like leave his money to a cat hospital or the KKK.' REALLY WTF. He's not condoning it because he has a character mention about a family being awful and a parent was a member, but still, why would you casually toss that out when there are a thousand not offensive weird things.

Re-read: November 2019!

Loved just as much as I did the first time I read it. It's a perfect autumn read. :)

John Bellairs continues to improve as a writer, and the second in the JOHNNY DIXON books. As with previous books, there is a nice mix of mystery and spookiness. This time, Johnny is trying to find a long-lost will left behind by an eccentric millionaire. Of course, things are never easy for poor Johnny, and pretty soon he's in the need of help from The Professor. This book has some genuinely creepy moments, and Bellairs does a nice job of getting into Johnny's thoughts and motivations. Bellairs continues to impress me with his consistency, and I honestly can't believe no movie studio or TV producer hasn't snapped up the rights to Bellairs catalogue -- it seems like such a perfect fit! (Of course, they'd probably screw it up . . . but I'm sure Bellairs' heirs wouldn't mind some money thrown their direction!)


Highly recommended!

Like all of Bellairs gothic children's books, this is simultaneously cozy and truly creepy.

I do love John Bellairs, but this installment was decidedly meh. I got to the end and then thought to myself "Wait. Was there a climax moment? Did something important happen and some point?"