Here we have another adventure from the Palace Library. It was just as wondrous as the first book with a fair bit more danger.

I loved that the children were able to visit the Library of Alexandria, dangerous as it was. That library is the ultimate dream for a bibliophile: to visit that great and terrible source of knowledge which was tragically lost in our world.

The tales of Ancient Egypt have always been fascinating to me, finding out how they lived, what they learned back then. It makes me wonder just how much more knowledge we'd have if the Library hadn't burned.

The adventure was thrilling and so tense in parts that it urges you to continue reading, to read and read until you've finished the tale. Some parts were a bit squirm inducing, such as when Henry is locked up and being questioned by the soothsayer, but not so much that I would keep the book from any child interested in it.

I found the ending to be very good in that it was a interesting ending, definitely one that left me wanting to read the third book (out sometime this year I hope!), but I was sad too because it left the story at a point with so much potential, so many questions and feelings that I felt a bit out of sorts after finishing it.

This is an amazing adventure story for young people. I was alternately entertained and worried about how Grace, Eleanor and Harry would make through their time in Ancient Egypt and Rome. We learn about a special scroll and meet the Phoenix of two time periods. We find out who burned the Library of Alexandria, well the author's version anyway. It is a lovely second book and I look forward to further stories.

I really love this series and I think middle graders will too.

Amazing. Loved the first one and this one was just as great.

Loved that the story was in the Ceasar and Cleopatra era.