Rating: 
Summary: Great ideas in search of a novel
Review: As Amazon.com's review points out, this story overflows with imagination, and may turn out to be a great example of post-Harry Potter juvenile fantasy. Combining the classic trappings of a magical adventure with modern children's fascinations with computers and techonlogy, she has created a book that is hip, fast-paced, and very funny. The characters are clearly depicted with definite, individual personalities. It's a shame that the plot doesn't live up to the quality of the prose.While I enjoyed the book while reading it, I felt unsatisfied the second I turned the last page. It felt as if Ms. Gliori had so many good ideas, she was more concerned with cramming them all in rather than exploring any of them. From the start, we learn that Mrs. MacLachlan, the new nanny, is a former witch determined not to use her magic on her new job as nanny. Why not? Family parents Signor and Signora Strega-Borgia are currently separated, which is an important element to the story. Why? The reader is never given much real information, and that makes it difficult to become truly involved with the story. Ultimately, then, the book is fun, but slight. With its short chapters, it might make a good book for teachers to read aloud to their students in daily installments, but for me, it failed to come together to form a strong enough novel to impress me as much as the works of JK Rowling or Lemony Snickett.
Rating:
Summary: Magic, for Good or for Evil?
Review: Book Review
on
Pure Dead Magic
What would you do if your dad had been kidnapped? Your mother couldn't care for you? Your baby sister (if you have one) was shrunk and sent out onto the World Wide Web? And there were four gangsters that were hired to kill your brother? If you don't know, you're not the only one... Pure Dead Magic is about two children, Titus and Pandora, who are in a terrible situation. Their mother hires a nanny named Mrs. McLachlan because she is preoccupied with her witchcraft courses and her husband, Signor Lucianno Strega-Borgia, stormed out of the house all mad and got kidnapped by gangsters[.] Mrs. McLachlan is like a Mary Poppins. She feeds the family's three mythical creatures( Sab the griffin, Knot the yeti and Ffup the dragon) their food in the dungeon (a.k.a. the basement). But she can also cook French fries that are crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.
One night, after the children's mother was back from her witch courses Pandora went snooping in her spell book and found a shrinking spell which, she was going to use on Titus. But she tripped and pointed the wand at her sister Damp, who was shrunk and sent out on the web. The gangsters who kidnapped their father turn out to be their father's half-brother, who hires four gangsters to kill Titus! (Titus is twelve and as soon as he is thirteen he will inherit a fortune from his grandfather. The evil gangster uncle wants Titus out of the way so he can get the family fortune for himself.) Meanwhile, back at the house, Pandora's rat Multitudina has lost her baby rats which have scurried into the computer's modem! My favorite part in Pure Dead Magic was when Latch jumps out through the wall and yelled "GERONIMOOO![.]" and "BANZAIII![.]" so he can catch Pronto by surprise. In this book, nothing is so boring that you have to sit there while your mom is nagging you to keep on reading but, there is one boring part... It was when Titus was supposed to say his goodbyes and he had to say it in a bunch of ways. It was a good book, but if you like action than I DON'T recommend it. Have fun reading[.]
Rating:
Summary: Magic, for Good or for Evil?
Review: Book Review
on
Pure Dead Magic
What would you do if your dad had been kidnapped? Your mother couldn't care for you? Your baby sister (if you have one) was shrunk and sent out onto the World Wide Web? And there were four gangsters that were hired to kill your brother? If you don't know, you're not the only one... Pure Dead Magic is about two children, Titus and Pandora, who are in a terrible situation. Their mother hires a nanny named Mrs. McLachlan because she is preoccupied with her witchcraft courses and her husband, Signor Lucianno Strega-Borgia, stormed out of the house all mad and got kidnapped by gangsters[.] Mrs. McLachlan is like a Mary Poppins. She feeds the family's three mythical creatures( Sab the griffin, Knot the yeti and Ffup the dragon) their food in the dungeon (a.k.a. the basement). But she can also cook French fries that are crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside.
One night, after the children's mother was back from her witch courses Pandora went snooping in her spell book and found a shrinking spell which, she was going to use on Titus. But she tripped and pointed the wand at her sister Damp, who was shrunk and sent out on the web. The gangsters who kidnapped their father turn out to be their father's half-brother, who hires four gangsters to kill Titus! (Titus is twelve and as soon as he is thirteen he will inherit a fortune from his grandfather. The evil gangster uncle wants Titus out of the way so he can get the family fortune for himself.) Meanwhile, back at the house, Pandora's rat Multitudina has lost her baby rats which have scurried into the computer's modem! My favorite part in Pure Dead Magic was when Latch jumps out through the wall and yelled "GERONIMOOO![.]" and "BANZAIII![.]" so he can catch Pronto by surprise. In this book, nothing is so boring that you have to sit there while your mom is nagging you to keep on reading but, there is one boring part... It was when Titus was supposed to say his goodbyes and he had to say it in a bunch of ways. It was a good book, but if you like action than I DON'T recommend it. Have fun reading[.]
Rating: 
Summary: Delightful!
Review: I am so glad to have "discovered" Pure Dead Magic and it's sequel, Pure Dead Wicked by Deb Gliori. I have been recommending them to everyone who will listen! A delightful combination of the elements of the Harry Potter books, the Lemony Snicket books and the Artemis Fowl books. Great for both children and adults who love a good fantasy story that is a bit on the irreverent side.
Rating:
Summary: Pure Dead Magic
Review: I loved this book. It was funny and thrilling at the same time. A giant spider, 13 rats in a computer, a baby lost on the internet, a drunk mother, a thug in a bunny suit, a kidnapped father, a witch nanny, and a dragon are some of the many things in this book. I also reccomend Pure Dead Wicked.
Rating: 
Summary: Pure dead fun
Review: I read this book at approximately the same time as Amelia Atwater-Rhodes's "Shattered Mirror," and was struck by the turgidity of one and the originality of the other. This book manages to portray junior gothicism with tongue planted firmly in cheek. Signor Luciano Strega-Borgia vanished a month ago, prompting his household to deal with the situation. Signora Strega-Borgia is now working on her witchcraft course, and as a result the young children Titus (12), Pandora (10) and baby Damp (1 1/2) in the care of a new nanny. What else has happened? A henchman in a bunny suit, the baby getting uploaded onto the Web (fantasy for 2001!), the monsters in the castle (including a yeti, griffin, dragon...), a frozen grandma in the basement, and some delightfully over-the-top villains. Indeed, this book may appeal to fans of Lemony Snicket, given that the lead trio (boy, girl, baby girl) is quite similar. This book, while equally amusing, does not possess the despairing tone but rather a darkly upbeat manner. There's also a bit of tech humor. Unlike the Harry Potter series, and like "Artemis Fowl," this book fully acknowledges modern technology, enjoyably inaccurate as the idea of losing a little sister on the modem. At the same time, we are granted more traditional items such as the attempted murder of a character by his evil conniving brother. The lead trio is plenty of fun, smart and gutsy kids who have enough of an edge to be above-average. The villains are... well, villains. They don't really amount to much more, but the bunny suit is worth it. That is not to say this book is flawless. A few bits of potty-humor spring up that got a bit tiresome, and there are some plot holes that you could throw a basketball through (such as the call for help). However, because of the quirkiness of the plot many readers may simply shrug and say, "Hey, it's fun." Overall, an original fantasy. Hope the next two books are written!
Rating:
Summary: Dead Magic Equals Humor
Review: Imagine this: you are one of the three children of the Strega-Borgia family: Titus, Pandora, or Baby Damp. Your father has recently "vanished" and now your mother has to return to Witch's School in order to financially support the family. You and your siblings are being "watched" by a recently hired nanny, a dragon, and other creatures of the dark. Baby Damp gets lost within the World Wide Web and the lipstick-wearing spider has to rescue him. Later, it is revealed that Mr. Strega-Borgia was kidnapped by his evil brother, because he wants the family inheritance. The simplistic plot is adorned by tongue-in-cheek humor that children ages 9 and up would think is hilarious. More pure dead humor is on the way from this author as this tale continues in a trilogy.
Rating: 
Summary: I was disappointed
Review: Maybe I'm just too old for this book (it is rated for 9-12 year olds). There was a section that was so funny I had to stop reading long enough to catch my breath. But there is a lot of material that I can't see being intended as funny, it's just in there to be gross on purpose. The writing isn't great (though I might have over looked it when I was 9), incomplete characters, faulty forshadowing, unexplained/unexplored material. I'm not convinced the humorous material justifies reading the whole book. In fact, I recall wondering at points "am I actually sitting here reading this?" followed by wondering "WHY am I reading this?"
Rating:
Summary: I was disappointed
Review: Maybe I'm just too old for this book (it is rated for 9-12 year olds). There was a section that was so funny I had to stop reading long enough to catch my breath. But there is a lot of material that I can't see being intended as funny, it's just in there to be gross on purpose. The writing isn't great (though I might have over looked it when I was 9), incomplete characters, faulty forshadowing, unexplained/unexplored material. I'm not convinced the humorous material justifies reading the whole book. In fact, I recall wondering at points "am I actually sitting here reading this?" followed by wondering "WHY am I reading this?"
Rating:
Summary: Harry Potter meets Lemony Snicket in a high tech setting...
Review: Not! Someone's just trying to trade on known entities. This book is okay, but the comparison to Harry Potter and Lemony Snicket's writings only does harm. I came away disappointed because my expectations had not been met. Now, if they had just mentioned that it's a nifty little book.... The Addams Family meets Mary Poppins is a misnomer of the worst kind. Worthwhile idea, but poor construction doesn't give it the edge it really needs. It will remain a cute, but little-taken-out library book for the rest of it's existence.
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