This is a great audiobook with some music and different actors doing character voices. (I often dislike "full cast" audio, but this was an exception.)

I listened to this with my 8-year-old. She found some parts scary, though I'm sure they were intended to be silly. I'm talking bout the homunculus being a cannibal and eating villains. Overall, we enjoyed it and will continue reading the series. Note: my daughter is obsessed with the Mysterious Benedict Society series and I'm glad to get her into something different, so I forgive this book its weaker moments.

This was originally written in 2008 and it shows. There are some cringe bits, particularly when the carnival workers are being described and the narrator says things like, "They were little people, which is a polite way of saying midgets," etc. (The chapter is called "A Polite Way of Saying Weird".) There's also a part where Cass says Yo-Yoji would never have a bar mitzvah because he's Japanese -- fair enough, but nowadays I think we'd recognize that a person can be Jewish and Japanese.

On the other hand, this series was ahead of its time in that Cass has two grandpas who are a couple and it is treated as unremarkable (though gay marriage was not legal throughout the US until 2015). ( )

Another one my daughter and I read together. We've been having a great time with this series. ( )

Full Review

If you reading this it too late. No really. There no backing out now.
A fun mystery fill to the brim with actions. The character development between the main characters is great. The new character coming in to the story is done well. Yo-Yoji is a likable character.

I didn't like how the bad guy from the midnight sun are brought up at the beginning and don't appear again until the end. The middle consists of them finding the homunculus. which is fun and interesting.

Points

Writing: 4/5 - The writing take time getting use to for it to be enjoyable.

Characters: 5/5

Plot: 5/5 - A straight forward plot.

Total: 14/20

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3/5
I liked the first book better because there were so many new things to get used to. The new writing style of the author made it funnier and more engaging.
The deal with this one was that it was too similar to the first one. Everything seemed same. Including the jokes. Althouh there were some good elements, but nothing was good enough for adult readers. I don't know about children though. ( )

Cas and Max-Ernest are still fighting the evil Midnight Sun forces while now trying to get themselves initiated into the Terces Society. And track down a homunculus.
A fun-enough sequel to the first book. I think I would have thought the series immensely clever as a kid (as does Charlie, who insisted I read them). ( )