The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull

A bookish boy searches for his missing best friend in this spooky tale by the author of The House with a Clock in Its Walls On a country lane in snowbound 1950s New Hampshire, a car goes skidding off the road. Professor Childermass and Johnny Dixon escape unscathed, but their car is stuck, and they are forced to walk into town. Johnny doesn’t mind. A curious young man, he has fun anytime the professor takes him out, because he’s treated like an adult. Together they’ve gotten into all sorts of supernatural scrapes, and this winter night, they’ll face their toughest challenge yet. When Childermass suddenly vanishes, Johnny is the only one who can find him. The mystery is linked to a tiny skull taken from a child’s dollhouse, which seems to have powers too terrible to guess at. With the help of a crusty old Irish priest, Johnny chases the clues to his friend’s disappearance all the way to the rocky coast of Maine, where something evil hungers for revenge. From the author of the series featuring Lewis Barnavelt and Anthony Monday, the Johnny Dixon novels are charmingly old-school and shot through with suspense, and The Spell of the Sorcerer’s Skull may be the most chilling of them all. Johnny Dixon and Professor Childermass are visiting a New Hampshire inn and inside that inn is a clock. It & rsquo;s called the Childermass Clock. Inside the clock there & rsquo;s a tiny dollhouse room, an exact replica of the professor & rsquo;s childhood home. And, on one of the shelves in that tiny room is a tiny skull. And, inside that skull is something evil. In this third Johnny Dixon mystery, Johnny takes the skull to try to solve the murder of the professor & rsquo;s granduncle, but when he does, it unleashes dark forces that take the professor away. To get him back, Johnny and his friends Fergie and Father Higgins must race to the deserted islands off the coast of Maine. Little do they know the terrifying danger that awaits them there & hellip; & ldquo;Is there no end to the suspense John Bellairs can create? ... This is among his best and that & rsquo;s really saying something. & rdquo; & mdash;School Library Journal & ldquo;Brace yourself for a wild ride. & rdquo; & mdash;Kirkus Reviews When Johnny Dixon and his friend Professor Childermass discover an old heirloom clock, the terror begins. The professor suddenly vanishes, and Johnny is left to solve the mystery--alone. Inside the clock Johnny discovers a miniature room, a room exactly like the one in which a murder took place long ago. And from the inside the little room Johnny pockets a tiny skull with magical powers. But taking the skull is a terrible mistake--for dark demonic forces are unleashed the minute he picks it up. Enlisting the aid of his friends Fergie and Father Higgins, Johnny embarks on a harrowing chase to a deserted island off the coast of Maine--where he must confront something more terrifying than his worst nightmares. --back cover ---------- Also contained in: [Best of John Bellairs](https://openlibrary.org/works/OL3338229W) Johnny Dixon and Professor Childermass are visiting a New Hampshire inn, and inside that inn is a clock. It's called the Childermass Clock. Inside the clock there is a tiny dollhouse room, an exact replica of the professor's childhood home. And on one of the shelves in that tiny room is a tiny skull. Inside that skull is something evil. In this third Johnny Dixon mystery, Johnny takes the skull to try to solve the murder of the professor's granduncle, but when he does, it unleashes dark forces that take the professor away. To get him back, Johnny and his friends Fergie and Father Higgins must race to the deserted islands off the coast of Maine. Little do they know the terrifying danger that awaits them there .. When Johnny Dixon takes a tiny skull from a haunted dollhouse, demonic forces are released,capturing Professor Childermass and leading Johnny on a harrowing chase to a deserted island off the coast of Maine "Phooey! Phooey on winter and snowy white snow and jingle bells and walking in winter wonderlands!