Ursula Vernon, the creator of the Dragonbreath series, has another winner with Castle Hangnail! This book is twice the length of the Dragonbreath books for twice the fun.

Castle Hangnail is a proper ‘evil’ castle, full of dark dread because it is in need of a new master or mistress. If a new master does not come forward soon the Board of Magic will decommission the castle. Bedecked in a silver vulture necklace, 12 yr. old Molly knocks on the castle door to fill the position. Majordomo, the castle’s guardian, answers the door questioning whether 12 yr. old Molly is or should be the new mistress. He has his misgivings about her qualifications, but Molly does have an official invitation in her possession. There are five tasks the Board of Magic insist the new master must complete. Molly starts by looking for a book of spells in the castle’s library so she can prove she is a wicked witch. Soon, Molly discovers a spell for turning a cow into a dragon. She substitutes a word here and a hair there and is able to turn a local farmer’s donkey into a dragon.  The old cranky farmer makes up his mind to retire from farming and move to the big city to live with his daughters. This fulfills two of the tasks Molly needs to complete.

When the Castle Hangnail’s plumbing falls apart, through no fault of her own, Molly , as master of the castle, must get it repaired. The plumber’s bill is enormous. Molly enlists the help of the moles living under the castle’s grounds. The moles search for hidden treasure (36 old coins and 9 glass bottles, etc.) in exchange for some of Molly’s magic. Meanwhile, a real estate developer tries to buy the castle from Molly. No way. Two days later, the real estate developer breaks into the barn. Molly catches him trying to light matches and set the hay on fire. Molly’s shadow spell causes him to run away in fear.

Now three of the four tasks are completed. Suddenly, Evil Sorceress Eudaimonia shows up to claim the castle for herself. It was her invitation Molly gave to Majordomo, after all. Molly and her castle’s five minions ban together to fight off Eudaimonia. Molly uses her dark shadow to terrify Eudaimonia and take over the castle once and for all. The Board of Magic installs Molly as the master of Castle Hangnail.

Now all Molly has to worry about is whether or not her parents will let her stay there. After all, Molly is only 12 yr. old, but Molly’s friend and minions have a plan for that.

Fast paced, always wondering what will happen around the next corner, and minions that include: a pair of Minotaurs (Angus & Cook), a talking sewing stuffed doll (Pins) with a pet goldfish, and a talking walking suit of armor (Sir Edward), helped out by the castle’s bats and moles make for an exciting read!