A fun, rollicking, and funny story about Javi, an extraordinary sandwich-maker, who accidentally brings historical figures to life, including the fearsome pirate Blackbeard, through a magical table. Now Javi must team up with his friends and sister to defeat this threat, as well as discover the secret of his unusual school. Reminiscent of Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, this story will both entertain and teach kids about interesting historical figures. ( )

Time Villains is a 2022 Lone Star novel. The cover is super cute, but I don't think it reflects the age of the reader. It does reflect that the novel is a lot of fun!

Javi enjoys an interesting life. His sister, Brady, who is much younger is super tough--he's adequately afraid of her. His best friend is super smart, so he goes by Wiki. His dad is a bit unusual, and we never meet his mother because she's away on a trip. He goes to school is an old-fashioned castle, which is strange for America. The teachers are equally eccentric. There's a scary forest that no one ventures into, but Javi, Brady, and Wiki are comfortable messing around there. Needing a new kitchen table, Javi's dad takes them shopping and buys an antique table. Brady loves the table and talks to it; only Brady, Javi and Wiki can hear it.

Javi absolutely loves cooking and preparing a themed evening with food and decorations. He doesn't necessarily excel at school, but he loves one assignment that the students get every year: what three people would you invite to dinner? Each student has to prepare the food and decorate the table, and then explain what dinner was like. Therefore, it takes planning a meal, making it, setting the table for the theme, and then imagining what the conversation would be like with those three people. Wiki suggests people to Javi and Javi returns the favor by creating the meal and taking the pictures for him. Remember the table? Well, it listens to the guest list and invites these people. Unfortunately, Wiki doesn't explain who one of the guests is. This particular guest isn't someone you want in your home.

When one of Javi's guests escapes, the adventure ensues. Javi, Brady and Wiki need to fix this problem. As they run about trying to capture their guest, they also discover many secrets that exist at their school. It's really a fun book; possibly it's a little ridiculous, but it is entertaining. Suspend your disbelief and sit back and enjoy this rolicking story. ( )