The Sisters Grimm #5: Magic and Other Misdemeanors by Michael Buckley

My name is Sabrina, and someone's been stealing magical objects from witches. Also, the new mayor, The Queen of Hearts, has levied new property taxes that will force most humans to leave the town, and the former mayor, Prince Charming, has disappeared. I don't see how Grandma will ever raise enough money to save our house, and I have mixed emotions about Charming's absence. And to make matters worse, Canis is finding it harder and harder to keep the Wolf inside. However, Grimms have been solving mysteries for centuries, and that's what Daphne and I need to do now. We're afraid the three stolen objects might be used together, but we can't predict the consequences.

As with the other books, there is a main conflict, the theft of magical items in this case, blended with the lesser conflicts. The new mayor and sheriff have upped the tensions with their hatred of humans, another example of a novel addressing prejudices. I wasn't crazy about the introduction of time travel into the series. Over the previous four books, the series set guidelines and limits for magic, so time travel was an unexpected twist that broke the rules the author had already established. I felt like the author could have developed a more "realistic" conflict (based on the past books) instead of taking an easier path with time travel. With all that being said, I still enjoyed the book. Sabrina and Daphne were a bit rebellious and got themselves into sticky situations. Puck has always been an amusing character in the stories, and seeing him in the future added a new twist. Overall, this was another entertaining book, and I recommend you give the series a shot.