I really wanted this to be fantasy. Devil in the title, wizard in the first chapter - I wasn't crazy for expecting fantasy, was I? But it's really not. It's the story of Tom, a boy in the 16th century who finds himself plucked from his crappy country existence into a only slightly less crappy life on the streets of London, where he befriends Moll Cutpurse and aspires to become an actor. The whole plot was pretty predictable and the writing only so-so. Maybe I would have enjoyed this more were I still part of the intended age group, but I suspect I'd have been searching vainly for fantasy even then. ( )

RGG: Author of the Alex Rider Adventures has written a good story with plenty of sense (if a bit over the top) about life in Elizabethan England.

Tom Falconer was mainly a slave to the Slopes and one day one of the queen's agent was sent to find Tom and bring him back to London to meet the queen. This is all because the queen finds out that Tom, practically a slave, is her grandson.

This is book is a great book filled with action and adventure. ( )

Tom Falconer, a young orphan of mysterious origins, is plucked from the clutches of a greedy innkeeper by one of Queen Elizabeth's spies. But the agent is murdered by the notorious highwayman Ratsey and Tom finds himself alone and bewildered in London. A mysterious Dr Mobius recruits Tom to play an important role in a play to be performed in front of Queen Elizabeth. The play seems a bit dodgy, but Tom doesn't suspect that he had been trapped in the middle of an international conspiracy against the Queen's life. The book is a bit far-fetched - one might have suspected that at the beginning when John Dee works real magic and a talking cat makes an appearance - but lively and engaging. Horowitz has done his research and brought in all sorts of Elizabethan gossip and rumour to amuse us.

Anthony Horowitz is the screenwriter of one of my favorite shows, Foyle's War. I was surprised to discover that he has only written one adult book and many popular children's and young adult books. His most popular series is the Alex Rider series which focuses on a young espionage agent. In fact they just recently released a movie based on the first novel. This book is a stand alone, an adventure set in Elizabethan England. It is much better than I expected. It's very good for what it is, not quite a full novel, but more than a younger reader. It is short and moves quickly. It has just enough adventure, danger, and humor to keep kids interested. I thought some of the humor was unnecessary (like why is meeting Shakespeare always supposed to be funny in fiction?) But the action scenes were written well, and I must admit to enthusiastically staying up late to finishe the book last night.

Horowitz adds a bit of historical note at the end, which is nice. It would give a kid a chance to read more about the true characters of the book if they were so inclined. I, for one, would be interested in finding out more about Moll Cut-purse... but not so much about Gamaliel Ratsey... he sounds like a jerk. ( )