Kindle Edition Amazon Rona Gallery Category:  Fantasy Publisher: Coombe House ISBN-10:  0473220303 Type: Fiction Pages: 210 Copyright: Dec 2013 ISBN-13: 047322030X Price: $3.50 (eBook) Two cousins must save Wellington from evil wizards who seek to wake a taniwha the size of a mountain. Alec finds a magical book, “The Wizard’s Guide to Wellingtowne,” lying in the corridor of Wellington Airport. But it doesn’t help answer his questions. Where is his father? Where is Perrin, the mysterious English cousin they were supposed to be meeting? And, most importantly, am I going mad, or is someone playing practical joke? Perrin arrives at “Wellingtowne Airport” only to discover, Ike, her cantankerous wizarding guide had disappeared. She has been warned abut the dangerous city of “Wellingtowne,” but when she sets out to find her missing uncle she has no idea just how dangerous it is going to get. “Bad men watch you.” Two cousins from different worlds must rescue Wellington from wizards who wish wake a very dangerous taniwha. (A beast from New Zealand mythology a little like a wyrm or old-fashioned dragon). Excerpt Alec peered down the walkway outside the airport bookshop. He wondered if his father would arrive the way he often did, sneaking right up to him and complaining with mock-seriousness, “Alec, you jumped. You should have been looking harder.” Today Alec stared so hard his eyes watered and a small patch of midnight blue inched across the grey carpet. Strange. He shook his head and tried not to listen to his annoying little sister, Miss Whine-And-Get-My-Own-Way Molly as she emerged from the airport bookshop. “But Mummy, I want it – and look, it’s got fairies, and Mummy, pleeeease . . . ” “The traffic’s not that bad,” Mum said ignoring Molly and checking her cell phone for perhaps the hundredth time. “I can’t believe your father isn’t here. He promised to finish work early so we could all meet this mysterious cousin Perrin when he arrives.” She looked up at the arrivals screen and sighed. “And now Perrin’s flight’s running half an hour late.” “Just great,” Alec said. He’d wanted to spend time with his dad at his dad’s place. Alone. With no little sisters and definitely no cousins. But when he’d complained all he’d got was a firm, “You’ve never met any of my side of the family and it’s about time you did. Believe me, you’ll be surprised.” Molly squealed and pointed past the cafés and the glass wall, to a landing aircraft. “Is that Perrin’s plane now?” she demanded, almost stepping on a flash of midnight blue against the dull grey carpet. Hadn’t he seen that before – creeping slowly towards him? No. It was just a book. On its cover a glint of setting sun shimmered over a midnight blue Wellington harbour. Nobody else seemed to notice anything strange as they walked around or skipped over the book as if by accident. Curious, Alec picked it up – the thick yellowed pages crinkling noisily under his fingertips, smelt of sand and sulphur and the sea. Definitely not an ebook. Not even holographic. And yet on the cover sunset-tinted clouds caught on the fancy gold lettering – Ye Goode Olde Wizarde’s Guide to Wellingtowne – and skidded away. A sinister shape slid through increasingly inky water. Blue-grey, it might have been a whale, but it looked more like some kind of dragon. Alec shivered.

A fun read
A friend lent me this book. What fun I had on this adventure with a clueless boy whose father is missing and a grumpy know-it-all girl. Magic abounds with legends and lore of Wellington & New Zealand. I look forward to more aventures with Alec, Perrin, and A. J. Ponder.

Debbie Cowens Goodreads
I thoroughly loved reading about Wellingtowne, the magically unstable hotspot of Wellington. The well-known landmarks and geography of Aotearoa's capital make a fanastic setting for a magical adventure. I would have really loved this as a kid and reading it as an adult made me quite nostalgic for Wellington.

Mrs Bee stood out as my favourite chjaracter and she had most of the best lines, including her quote on the back cover, "You cannot trust anything this book says, it's all far too exciting to be true."

The protagonists Alec and his cousin, a young wizard (or 'zid') Perrin are likeable heroes to follow on their adventures rescuing Alec's dad and trying to thwart the Coterie of bad wizards' plan to wake the taniwha. Personally, I would have liked the villains to be a bit more menancing and scary, especially Big Nose, but the delightful word-play in the setting (for example, a fairy Ferry) and mix of mythical creatures and colourful characters in the world make it a highly fun, page-turning adventure.

Angela Oliver Goodreads
A fun and fast-paced adventure novel set in New Zealand's own capital city, Wellington. Unfortunately for this book, I read it very quickly over a two day period whilst attending a convention in the aforementioned city, and could not give it the concentration it truly deserved. However, I enjoyed the storyline, the little quirks of the characters/plot and the creativity. It reminded me a little of Diana Wynne Jones. Children aged from 7-11 should devour this book.