He was dressed, as usual, in black, wearing fur to keep out the cold. Lord Ashcombe, the King’s Warden, dismounted. His horse, a veteran of many battles, seemed unfazed by the bonfire. Slowly, the man maneuvered his mount through the mud. Or, more probably, when he saw the king’s carriage burning in front of the supply wagons. Riding ahead of our escort, he’d come back when he saw his men had stopped outside this farm. And everyone would be happy, and we could say, ‘An honor to see you again, Your Majesty,’ instead of ‘Goodness, Your Majesty, I hope you didn’t want your carriage back, because it’s sort of on fire!’?” “Why wouldn’t you listen? Why? Just another couple hours and we’d be back in London in a nice dry room, meeting the king. A pair of them had dismounted and were now soothing the four draft horses they’d cut loose from our carriage. “Now there’s a thing I never seen before,” he said.Īhead of us, twenty of the King’s Men waited, stunned, atop their warhorses. Their father, chewing absently on a piece of straw, considered the flames. “Oh, Christopher.”īehind us, a farmer, his wife, and two young daughters leaned against a wooden fence, cattle watching nervously from a distance. Sally stood next to him with her head bowed, palm covering her eyes, auburn curls falling across her face. The heat drove away the late winter’s chill, but I wouldn’t have felt it anyway. “I told you,” he said, staring at the slowly crumpling carriage, our boots sinking in the mud. The frame turned charcoal black, while inside, the stuffing in the seats gave bright flashing bursts as buttons popped off the upholstery. Fire raged across its body, the silk curtains fluttering through the windows in smoking tatters to the road. This book is full of page turning action, with twists and turns along the way.The carriage burned with a bright orange flame.

Armed with the knowledge he has gained from his master,Ĭhristopher sets out to get to solve the greatest mystery of all. When a mysterious and dangerous cult begins to murder the city’s apothecaries, including Christopher’s master. The friendship between the boys is well written and enduring. Christopher’s sidekick and best friend is Tom, the baker’s son, who is a willing participant in Christopher’s adventures and experiments. Master Benedict is a compassionate father figure and mentor to the young boy, who eagerly learns everything he can about potions, puzzles, codes, and books. The hero in the novel is Christopher Rowe, an orphan who is apprenticed as an apothecary to Master Benedict Blackthorn. Kevin Sands writes a well-rounded book that includes mystery, suspenseful action, history, science and exceptional friendships.

The main character has codes to crack, secret doors to open, and vast conspiracies to foil. Set in London 1665, and a world of orphaned children, apothecaries and secret alchemists, this is a perfect page-turner for middle school students.

The blackthorn key series books