After all the hype about being 'the next Harry Potter', this book proved a bit disappointing. It's a sort of cross between Harry Potter and the old 'smuggling' novels like Du Maurier's Jamaica Inn and Falkner's Moonfleet, in which the vicar always turns out to be the bad guy. But I'm not sure how much the gothic undertones really fit that milieu - the magic seems a bit out of place among smugglers and pistols. The other thing is that, if you're comparing it with Harry Potter, the characters aren't as engaging or well worked out - there's a lot more description and details but somehow it doesn't quite hit the spot. My daughter quite enjoyed it, though, so I'm giving it 3 stars.