I can't believe no-one has written a review of this wonderful book before this. This, as Dido Twite might say, is monstrous good. As a professional writer, I stand open-mouthed and slack-jawed before Joan Aiken's talent. This is as good as writing gets. Her wizardry with language, the sheer scale and vividness of her imagination, and her ability to construct plots and characters simply dazzle. All the Wolves of Willoughby Chase books are great, but this one is a scorcher. If you're a Dido Twite fan (and who couldn't be?), you'll find her in top form here. Aiken takes the most disparate elements (Brazil, Celtic lore, Arthurian legend, a monstrous Guinevere transformed into fat evil Queen Ginevra, a wandering wise man, Aurocs, volcanos, smatterings of Latin, a stolen lake, and, of course, the indomitable Dido and weaves them into a seamless story that never ceases to amaze. If you haven't read the earlier books (start with Black Hearts in Battersea), order them as well, then order all the later ones. J.K. Rowling must hang her head in shame every time she hears Aiken's name. This is how books for children and adults are written. A classic series with one of the great characters in English fiction. Croopus!