Mary Cunningham has done it again. She has once again captured my attention for days on end and kept me blissfully unaware of the rest of the world as I read her latest children’s adventure Cynthia’s Attic: The Magic Medallion. In The Magic Medallion, twelve-year-old best friends Gus and Cynthia are transported back to 1914, to a traveling circus with uncomfortably friendly lions, cynical clowns with painted smiles and a family of mysterious gypsies who has lost their fortune. Cynthia and Gus are the gypsy family’s only hope for retrieving the stolen medallion.

 

The suspense in this book is substantial. At one point, a lion stretches its paw between the bars of its cage and reaches out for one of the girls and I found myself holding my breath. When the girls are unexpectedly transported to 1934 and tumble into a mad, rushing river inside a cave, it’s a nail-biting experience, ever for an adult reader. Each scene is carefully and vividly described with wonderful concrete images to hold a child’s attention. The details allow the reader to smell the straw on the circus grounds and feel it crunch beneath their boots, and to hear the rushing waters of the river in the cave to such an extent that a young reader will not want to put this book down.

 

Loosely based on her own childhood friendship, the Cynthia’s Attic series describes the adventures of these two time-traveling girls in a fast-paced blend of history and fantasy. In Cunningham’s first book, Cynthia’s Attic: The Missing Locket, Gus and Cynthia find a magic trunk with costumes that transport them back to the time of their grandmothers’ childhood. The Magic Medallion takes place one week later. Cunningham’s next book in the series, Cynthia’s Attic: Curse of the Bayou, will be out soon, and I can’t wait. It’s rumored that Curse of the Bayou has one of my favorite character types: the ghost pirate! The Missing Locket also has a ghost. Louis was the son of a steamship captain who died on a trip with his father. The Cynthia’s Attic series is published by Echelon Press Publishing. DSD

 

A bit of magic and their own imaginative minds transport the girls back in time, where they become entangled in a mystery involving their grandmothers, Clara and Bess. Gus and Cynthia find themselves immersed in the search to find a missing locket that once belonged to Clara and Bess’ Aunt Belle, a Paris ballet dancer who mysteriously disappeared on a ship bound for New York. Along the way, they meet some interesting characters like Andre, Belle’s possessive beau, and Louis, the boy ghost that walks the ship’s deck. The twists and turns in Mary Cunningham’s spellbinding book are peppered with the hilarious antics of Gus and Cynthia. The believable dialogue and interesting story line will be embraced by young readers, and parents will appreciate the values and lessons subtly presented to their children through Cunningham’s well-crafted words. Her pre-teen characters come to life on each page as we all discover together what growing up really means, and the power that lies within each of us. The girls and their journey are such great fun; it will leave readers anxious to join Gus and Cynthia for more adventures!  

Melinda Richarz Bailey, Author, Murder At The Oaklands Mansion