The Grand Tour, or The Purloined Coronation Regalia
This is a sequel to Sorcery and Cecelia and tells the further adventures of cousins Kate and Cecelia. The setting is England, sometime after the Napoleonic wars. The cousins are newly married to Thomas Schofield and James Tarelton and are on a wedding trip on the continent with Thomas’s mother, Lady Sylvia. Thomas and Lady Sylvia are wizards, and Cecelia is a journeyman sorcerer. From the beginning, strange incidents occur, starting with the delivery of a mysterious package. With the help of some of Lady Sylvia’s former colleagues from the League of the Pimpernel, the travelers eventually realize that there is a plot afoot to steal coronation regalia to use in the reconstruction of an ancient magic spell that would create an all-powerful emperor of Europe. They set out to foil the plot in a race against time and across Europe. It’s an action-packed story populated with historical figures like the Duke of Wellington and Beau Brummell. Young readers should enjoy seeing the clumsy Kate develop confidence as she adjusts to married life as Lady Schofield, as well as the descriptions of travel, shopping and social outings. These books are best read in order. Ages 12 and up.
