SuitabookPure dead magic
Debi Gliori
- Reading
- If the reader is uncertain about the darker elements, read the opening together and pause when the kidnapping, missing baby or gangster appear. Let the reader describe the mood before deciding whether to continue independently.
- Themes
- Family danger and responsibility: The Strega-Borgia family faces a kidnapping while Baby Damp is accidentally shrunk, sent by email and lost. The book?s stance on this remains unclear.
- Suspicion and trust: Titus and Pandora dislike their suspiciously cheerful and fearless new nanny. The situation invites attention to whether appearances and first impressions can be trusted, but no outcome is given.
- Gothic comedy and absurdity: The story combines a castle, witchcraft difficulties, a missing shrunken baby and a gangster in a bunny suit. The combination suggests deliberate comic exaggeration within a gothic adventure rather than a straightforward realistic threat narrative.
- Worth knowing
- Consider checking how comfortable the reader is with kidnapping, a baby being accidentally shrunk and lost, suspicious behaviour, and a lurking gangster. These may be played comically, but the balance between humour and fear is unclear.