The Problem Child (The Sisters Grimm, Book 3)

From School Library JournalGrade 4-6–Sabrina Grimm, 11, and her 7-year-old sister, Daphne, are still on the trail of The Scarlet Hand, which has kidnapped their parents. On the way to rescuing them, the sisters meet their likable Uncle Jake, whom they had never heard of before. Granny Relda had arranged for everyone in town to forget him after he inadvertently broke the spell that kept a deranged Little Red Riding Hood in the asylum. The book is loaded with cameos by fairy-tale characters, including Prince Charming as playboy turned sleazy politician. Although they will delight fairy-tale fans, some of the most interesting figures get short shrift. Puck, who combines magic with mischief in a way that both attracts and repels Sabrina, disappears from the action early on. Granny Relda's gentleman friend and every tale's wicked wolf is resurrected only at the end of the novel. Still, there is plenty of plucky Sabrina, nurturing Granny Relda, and Daphne. The end leaves plenty for the next book to resolve. Each chapter starts with a menacing silhouette, and black-and-white full-page illustrations add more macabre details. Recommend this to anyone who is craving a bit of dark humor rolled up with whimsy and adventure._–Tina Zubak, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA_ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Product DescriptionA third installment in this much-talked-about new series of mysteries set in a modern-day fairy-tale community The sisters Grimm, intrepid detectives of fairy-tale crime, come face to face with their parents' kidnappers, the mysterious organization of Everafters who call themselves The Scarlet Hand. One of them turns out to be the world's most famous fairy-tale character and the other an unstoppable killing-machine known as the Jabberwocky. Without Mr. Canis (aka The Big Bad Wolf) fighting at their side, the girls have little hope that they'll be reunited with their mother and father. That is until their long-lost Uncle Jake returns home with stories of a weapon, now destroyed, that can kill the Jabberwocky. The girls must find the pieces so the deadly blade can be reforged, and in the process butt heads with some of the most powerful Everafters in Ferryport Landing. Will the sisters Grimm save the day? "Adventure, laughs, and surprises kept me eagerly turning the pages." --R.L Stine, author of the Goosebump series