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RUFUS AND THE DARK SIDE OF MAGIC
Marilyn Levinson
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GENRE: Middle Grade
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BLURB:
Fifth grader Rufus is unhappy when he has to attend a Samhain celebration with his mother, Grandma, and Aunt Ruth instead of going Trick or Treat with his friends. He’s thrilled when, later that night, his Uncle Hector shows up outside his window and offers to take him for a ride in the sky. Rufus’s family have told him that his uncle is evil and he should have nothing to do with Hector, but Rufus is enthralled by his uncle’s fabulous realm that includes a small zoo and a stable of horses. He’s less interested in learning about his uncle’s businesses that he, as his uncle’s heir apparent, will inherit one day. Then Uncle Hector tells Rufus he has to do something for him, something Rufus finds impossible to do. Uncle Hector wields his magical powers to force Rufus’s hand, but Rufus’s little sister finds out and encourages him to ask for help. It’s Grandma who decides what they must do, and it’s not something Uncle Hector ever thought would happen
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EXCERPTS (Please choose only ONE to use with your post):
Excerpt One:
Mrs. Brewster poked her head in the room to say it was time to come outside and watch the fireworks. We traipsed through the kitchen and out onto the Brewsters’ patio that faced their enormous backyard. Many adults were already in their seats, but Mr. Brewster, who wasn’t a witch, led us to the very first row. Then he went to talk to the men who would be setting off the fireworks.
The display was spectacular. We oohed and ahed as multi-colored bursts of light exploded in every conceivable shape. Ten minutes into the show, a band of yellow light more dazzling than any we’d seen so far spanned the sky. It arced over the Brewsters’ backyard and turned into a rainbow so brilliant I found myself blinking.
Silence fell. The fireworks died away. No one moved. All eyes were glued on the figure gliding through the air who came to stand atop the rainbow.
There could be no doubt he was a witch. He was dressed in black like us, except for his voluminous cape, which was bright red, the color of blood. He spread the cape wide, holding an end in each outstretched hand and bowed. A communal gasp—half-shock, half-disapproval—rose from the adults behind me. We stared, transfixed, as a young male witch fluttered about before coming to stand beside him.
“Greetings, my fellow sorcerers,” the older witch intoned. “We have come to wish you Good Samhain.”
His keen gaze sliced through the crowd seeking something, someone. A current coursed through me when his eyes met mine. He nodded, and I found myself nodding back.
Suddenly his right leg buckled and he stumbled. The young witch reached out to support him. Angry, the older witch brushed him away. His young companion vanished as awkwardly as he’d arrived.
Alone now, the older witch gave us a mocking smile as he and the rainbow faded from sight.
I was left thrilled, mystified, and frightened. Who was this powerful witch, and what did he want with me?
Excerpt Two:
Uncle Hector moved the chair he’d been sitting in and dropped onto the couch beside me. “Now Rufus, I think you have to admit that I’ve been very generous to you—teaching you spells; taking you to visit your little girlfriend.”
“I guess.”
“And I have every intention of leaving every penny I’m worth to you when I eventually depart this life.”
He waited until I nodded.
“You will appreciate my generosity more when you are older and realize it takes strength and cunning to make your way in the world.”
“So you’ve told me.”
Uncle Hector pursed his lips. He was clearly not pleased with my lack of enthusiasm. “Anyway, the time has come for you to do something for me.”
“Like what?” The butterflies in my stomach zipped around at top speed, making me dizzy and nauseous at the same time.
Uncle Hector smiled. It made him look scary. “It’s really a small matter, Rufus, or I wouldn’t ask you to do it. Especially since it’s something you can manage very easily.”
I gulped. “What exactly are we talking about?”
“Ah.” Sparks flew as Uncle Hector rubbed his hands together. “There’s a book of spells missing from my library. I’ve searched high and low for another copy—in bookstores all over the world—but I haven’t been able to find one.
“I don’t know what book you’re talking about.”
“Of course you don’t. Very few witches have seen Incantations Extraordinaires, much less own a copy. It contains spells, both extraordinary and horrific. Every spell is complicated and difficult to master.
“Many years ago I found a copy of Incantations Extraordinaires.” Uncle Hector glowered at me. “The very same day I acquired the book, someone stole it from me.”
“Who?” The word shot out before I could think. I hadn’t meant to ask. I knew the answer even before that horrible smile returned to his face.
“Your grandmother, Lavinia Haven. This was many years ago, before my magical powers had fully developed and I could protect it properly. Interfering witch!”
She took it to stop you from casting horrific spells.
“I suppose so,” Uncle Hector said as if I’d spoken aloud. I’d forgotten to shield my thoughts. “And now, when I’m at the top of my form, I require a wondrous spell, a spell that can only be found in Incantations Extraordinaires.”
I shrugged. “Okay, but you just said the book of spells isn’t in Grandma and Aunt Ruth’s shop.”
Uncle Hector tapped my head. “Think, Rufus. If the book isn’t in their shop, where would it be?”
“I don’t know. In their . . .?”
His piercing gaze forced me to finish my sentence. “House.”
“Of course! In your grandmother’s house, which is next door to your house. A house you go in and out of with great frequency.”
“You want me to steal the book?”
Uncle Hector shrugged. “To retrieve what is mine.”
“But—” The butterflies that flew around my stomach when I was nervous or afraid zoomed straight up to my brain. “I can’t! Grandma would never forgive me. Besides, I haven’t the slightest idea where it is.”
I suddenly felt a blinding pain in my head. “I think you’ll do exactly as you’re told—if you don’t want bad things to start happening to people you love.”
I slumped in the corner of the limo as Nero drove me to the corner two blocks from my house. What an idiot I’d been! Uncle Hector was everything Grandma had said and worse! He’d used me—showed me a few spells, took me to see Danielle—so I’d be impressed by it all and get him what he was really after—the book of powerful spells that Grandma had taken from him.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
A former Spanish teacher, Marilyn Levinson writes mysteries, novels of suspense, and books for kids. Marilyn’s middle grade novel, Rufus and Magic Run Amok, was an International Reading Association-Children’s Book Council “Children’s Choice.” A new edition, the first book in a series of four, came out in 2023. Rufus and the Witch’s Drudge, the second book in the Rufus series, was released in 2024. Her YA horror, The Devil’s Pawn, came out in a new edition in January, 2024. Soon to be published are new editions of And Don’t Bring Jeremy, which received six state nominees, and Getting Back to Normal.
Website: http://www.marilynlevinson.com
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Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Rufus-Dark-Side-Magic-ebook/dp/B0F7NW6DN4/
