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Formats
Paperback Details
  • 09/2019
  • 9781097952779 1097952770
  • 176 pages
  • $6.99
Ebook Details
  • 04/2019
  • B07QNMGTVQ
  • 169 pages
  • $0.99
Ryan Cowan
Author
Mr. Moonbeam and the Halloween Crystal
Ryan Cowan, author
Elliott attends his third-grade class like any other boy, except that Elliott isn’t like any other boy. Endowed with magical powers, Elliott belongs to a secret world called Moonstone – and trouble is brewing. When the evil witch Noir steals The Halloween Crystal, it’s up to Elliott and his third-grade teacher, Mr. Moonbeam, to stop Noir from invading the non-magical world on Halloween night. But can Elliott learn to master his powers in time?
Reviews
A third grade schoolteacher, Mr. Moonbeam, moonlights as a witch and a guardian of humankind in this suspenseful middle grade fantasy. Primarily a guide for magical children like Elliott, who must hide in plain sight in the nonmagical world, Mr. Moonbeam is tasked by the goddess Enchantra with thwarting an evil being called Noir. Things look grim when Noir successfully steals the powerful Halloween Crystal and goes after his own estranged daughter, Sabrina, but then Elliott’s magic manifests as truth-seeing, which gives Mr. Moonbeam and his team of guardians a chance to foil Noir’s evil plans.

Though the first chapter sets up Elliott as the main character, he is quickly sidelined as the adults learn of the danger to the magical world and prepare to fight back. When Mr. Moonbeam prepares to sneak into Noir’s castle at the climax of the tale, Elliott is finally able to step into the story and use his magic to guide his teacher through the castle, but then is once again sent off to safety when Mr. Moonbeam finally goes to confront Noir directly. While a logical choice, it’s an odd one for a book aimed at younger audiences. The protagonist is a kind and admirable man, but some children may have trouble connecting with the story when their most obvious proxy is routinely whisked away from the action, playing a supporting role at best.

The writing is simple and, if sometimes a little repetitive, appropriate for a grade school chapter book. Elliott and Mr. Moonbeam are likable and good-hearted heroes, and both are willing to put themselves in harm’s way to stand up against evil and destruction and to protect the magical world they love. This fantastical battle between good and evil magic will please fans of classic children’s fantasy.

Takeaway: This magic-fueled battle between light and darkness will appeal to cautious young readers who wonder why kids in books are always left alone to save the world.

Great for fans of E.S. Ivy’s Miri Attwater series, Madeleine L'Engle.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: -
Editing: A
Marketing copy: B

2019 Indie Diamond Book Awards

2019 Indie Diamond Book Awards Semifinalist for Middle Grade, Young Adult, New Adult. 

Kirkus Reviews

In this debut middle-grade adventure, a young witch learns the value of teamwork and sacrifice from his favorite teacher.

Elliott Keene is a third grader in the small, nonmagical town of Wolf’s End. His parents, Greta and Christian, are witches from a magical place called Moonstone. They all live in the ordinary, human world under orders from Enchantra, Moonstone’s ruler, so that they can protect average people from magical harm. Sloan Moonbeam, another guardian witch, is Elliott’s teacher. He begins to suspect that Elliott is psychic, and he warns the boy that he must keep his powers secret, even from his best friend, Lucas. Elliott’s life grows more complicated when Mr. Moonbeam and his parents learn from Syballine, another guardian, that Noir, ruler of Moonstone’s Dark Lands, is hunting for the Halloween crystal—an artifact that would allow him to unleash a horde of monsters and potentially rule both Moonstone and the nonmagical world. Thankfully, Noir can’t enter Wolf’s End, but he has his sights set on kidnapping Syballine’s talented daughter, Sabrina. Mr. Moonbeam takes Sabrina into his care, placing her in his classroom, while the guardians hide the Halloween Crystal. Greta looks into the crystal and sees the Mossy Mansion on Rose Hill, so the magicians go there on a mission—but they seem to encounter Noir’s agents at every turn. Cowan’s middle-grade fantasy celebrates Halloween as both a colorful holiday and as a spiritual event; indeed, the plot revolves around stopping Noir on that night—a time when the “veil between the two worlds is paper thin.” Sabrina is a well-developed, egocentric character who notes that, “I’ve always gotten everything I’ve ever wanted.” But later, when Elliott complains about being an imperfect witch, his teacher says, “Nothing worthwhile comes easy,” a statement that remains valid beyond childhood. Cowan also engagingly reveres the seasons—especially fall: “Life is nature and nature is life.” A dazzling, creature-filled finale leaves possibilities open for further adventures.

A tale with plenty of spooky trappings and valuable lessons for young people.

Moonbeam Children's Book Award

Moonbeam Children’s Book Award for Pre-Teen Fiction, Ebook (Bronze) 2019

Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite

There is good magic and bad magic all around us and when witches and warlocks plot their battles, good against evil, anything can happen, especially on Halloween. Elliott is a boy growing up in a non-magical world. But he has the potential to do magic. Both his parents and his teacher, Mr. Moonbeam, have magical powers. But Elliott’s magic seems to be out of control. He never knows when something he thinks will happen, like throwing a book at the mean girl at school, Allison. He only thought about it; he hadn’t actually intended for a book to go flying into the back of Allison’s head. With magical powers out of control, how is Elliott ever going to learn? With the king and the gentle guidance of his wise teacher, Mr. Moonbeam, Elliott learns a valuable lesson, that “Each mistake is a learning opportunity and life is full of mistakes, or learning opportunities.”

As a retired teacher myself, I have to admit I can see the markings of a teacher-written masterpiece in this work. Perhaps that’s what makes this story so genuine and complete and a powerful tale for young readers to enjoy. Author and teacher, Ryan Cowan’s novel, Mr. Moonbeam and the Halloween Crystal, has all the ingredients of a great adventure: magic, witches and warlocks, dragons and mermaids, and so much more. The plot develops at a rapid pace, keeping the reader on the edge of their seat, waiting for the next unexpected twist. The characters are both believable and lovable, except for the evil characters, which are believable, but certainly not lovable. With great dialogue, narrative and character description, the reader is thoroughly immersed in this story from beginning to end.

As an author, I know that sometimes the most difficult thing to do is choose the right name for each character. Ryan has chosen wisely. In particular, his choice of Mr. Moonbeam for the teacher whose light and magic shines its greatest underneath the light of the moon which breaks the darkness of night. Noir is French for the color black but is also associated with crime fiction and all things evil and is the perfect name for the evil warlock who threatens the stability of many worlds on Halloween with his evil magic. The other names were also well-chosen, but these two specifically stood out as being symbolic of the good versus evil plot of the story. A great read.

Reviewed by Judge, 7th Annual Writer's Digest Self-Published eBook Awards

"This story is wonderfully written and flows beautifully.  I loved that in addition to a fun story and excellent fantastical detail, the sentences are also given great attention while they aren't complicated, they are beautiful.  I felt a great fondness for the main character right away and appreciated how well and quickly the reader is able to relate to Elliott.  All the characters are so well drawn and individual it was wonderful to read this adventure with no question about who was who, and to hear their individual voices and characters that also felt realistic.  I appreciated that for third graders they felt realistically depicted and their actions and motivations and choices felt like they lined up with how they each are as people, and as part of this group on their journey, and as young kids too.  The plot of this book is very creative and engaging.  I think it creates a wonderful sense of magic and fantasy, while also having that sense of quick paced plot that I love reading in fantasy novels but I also think will work really well when giving this story to younger readers.  It's a great way for them to get into the genre and Cowan manages to pack a lot of world-building into the book without it ever feeling too heavy or like too much." 

News
02/16/2020
Reviewed by Judge, 7th Annual Writer's Digest Self-Published eBook Awards

"This story is wonderfully written and flows beautifully.  I loved that in addition to a fun story and excellent fantastical detail, the sentences are also given great attention while they aren't complicated, they are beautiful.  I felt a great fondness for the main character right away and appreciated how well and quickly the reader is able to relate to Elliott.  All the characters are so well drawn and individual it was wonderful to read this adventure with no question about who was who, and to hear their individual voices and characters that also felt realistic.  I appreciated that for third graders they felt realistically depicted and their actions and motivations and choices felt like they lined up with how they each are as people, and as part of this group on their journey, and as young kids too.  The plot of this book is very creative and engaging.  I think it creates a wonderful sense of magic and fantasy, while also having that sense of quick paced plot that I love reading in fantasy novels but I also think will work really well when giving this story to younger readers.  It's a great way for them to get into the genre and Cowan manages to pack a lot of world-building into the book without it ever feeling too heavy or like too much." 

11/15/2019
Kirkus Review

In this debut middle-grade adventure, a young witch learns the value of teamwork and sacrifice from his favorite teacher.

Elliott Keene is a third grader in the small, nonmagical town of Wolf’s End. His parents, Greta and Christian, are witches from a magical place called Moonstone. They all live in the ordinary, human world under orders from Enchantra, Moonstone’s ruler, so that they can protect average people from magical harm. Sloan Moonbeam, another guardian witch, is Elliott’s teacher. He begins to suspect that Elliott is psychic, and he warns the boy that he must keep his powers secret, even from his best friend, Lucas. Elliott’s life grows more complicated when Mr. Moonbeam and his parents learn from Syballine, another guardian, that Noir, ruler of Moonstone’s Dark Lands, is hunting for the Halloween crystal—an artifact that would allow him to unleash a horde of monsters and potentially rule both Moonstone and the nonmagical world. Thankfully, Noir can’t enter Wolf’s End, but he has his sights set on kidnapping Syballine’s talented daughter, Sabrina. Mr. Moonbeam takes Sabrina into his care, placing her in his classroom, while the guardians hide the Halloween Crystal. Greta looks into the crystal and sees the Mossy Mansion on Rose Hill, so the magicians go there on a mission—but they seem to encounter Noir’s agents at every turn. Cowan’s middle-grade fantasy celebrates Halloween as both a colorful holiday and as a spiritual event; indeed, the plot revolves around stopping Noir on that night—a time when the “veil between the two worlds is paper thin.” Sabrina is a well-developed, egocentric character who notes that, “I’ve always gotten everything I’ve ever wanted.” But later, when Elliott complains about being an imperfect witch, his teacher says, “Nothing worthwhile comes easy,” a statement that remains valid beyond childhood. Cowan also engagingly reveres the seasons—especially fall: “Life is nature and nature is life.” A dazzling, creature-filled finale leaves possibilities open for further adventures.

A tale with plenty of spooky trappings and valuable lessons for young people.

10/24/2019
Mr. Moonbeam and the Halloween Crystal by Ryan Cowan

BOOK REVIEW

    Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite

    There is good magic and bad magic all around us and when witches and warlocks plot their battles, good against evil, anything can happen, especially on Halloween. Elliott is a boy growing up in a non-magical world. But he has the potential to do magic. Both his parents and his teacher, Mr. Moonbeam, have magical powers. But Elliott’s magic seems to be out of control. He never knows when something he thinks will happen, like throwing a book at the mean girl at school, Allison. He only thought about it; he hadn’t actually intended for a book to go flying into the back of Allison’s head. With magical powers out of control, how is Elliott ever going to learn? With the king and the gentle guidance of his wise teacher, Mr. Moonbeam, Elliott learns a valuable lesson, that “Each mistake is a learning opportunity and life is full of mistakes, or learning opportunities.”

    As a retired teacher myself, I have to admit I can see the markings of a teacher-written masterpiece in this work. Perhaps that’s what makes this story so genuine and complete and a powerful tale for young readers to enjoy. Author and teacher, Ryan Cowan’s novel, Mr. Moonbeam and the Halloween Crystal, has all the ingredients of a great adventure: magic, witches and warlocks, dragons and mermaids, and so much more. The plot develops at a rapid pace, keeping the reader on the edge of their seat, waiting for the next unexpected twist. The characters are both believable and lovable, except for the evil characters, which are believable, but certainly not lovable. With great dialogue, narrative and character description, the reader is thoroughly immersed in this story from beginning to end.

    As an author, I know that sometimes the most difficult thing to do is choose the right name for each character. Ryan has chosen wisely. In particular, his choice of Mr. Moonbeam for the teacher whose light and magic shines its greatest underneath the light of the moon which breaks the darkness of night. Noir is French for the color black but is also associated with crime fiction and all things evil and is the perfect name for the evil warlock who threatens the stability of many worlds on Halloween with his evil magic. The other names were also well-chosen, but these two specifically stood out as being symbolic of the good versus evil plot of the story. A great read.

    Formats
    Paperback Details
    • 09/2019
    • 9781097952779 1097952770
    • 176 pages
    • $6.99
    Ebook Details
    • 04/2019
    • B07QNMGTVQ
    • 169 pages
    • $0.99
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