Conrad's Fate

Title: Conrad's Fate
Author: Diana Wynne Jones

What it's about: Conrad lives in the town of Stallchester with his mother, sister, and uncle. When he is twelve, his uncle tells him that he's got a black cloud of bad karma around him, and that if Conrad can't fix his mistake from a past life within a year, he'll die. Conrad has to go to Stallery Mansion to get a job working for the Count who lives there in order to locate the person who he needs to off to fix his karmic problem. The mansion is an odd place, though, and it takes both Conrad and his new friend Christopher to figure out what's going on.

What I thought: This is another one of Diana Wynne Jones' Chrestomanci books. It takes place not long after The Lives of Christopher Chant, so we get to see more of Conrad and Millie. It's interesting to see Christopher from someone else's point of view. Conrad himself is a fun character to be narrator. The whole world of Stallery Mansion is very well-developed, and the grandness of it all means that the ending comes together in a big way. This is a confusing book at times, but it is a Diana Wynne Jones novel, and the confusion is part of the charm, I think. All in all, it's another fun book.

Overall: If you like the Chrestomanci series, then you won't want to miss out on this installment.