Mallory Vayle and the Curse of Maggoty Skull by Martin Howard is a spooky middle-grade story with some great characters, including the titular wisecracking Maggoty Skull. As the novel opens, Mallory is at her parents’ funeral. Perhaps more confusingly, so are her parents. Looking down on their coffins, yet able to talk to Mallory. This does not faze Mallory; she is used to speaking to dead people. Mallory Vayle can talk to ghosts. What does faze Mallory is the arrival of a mysterious woman, who claims to be her long-lost Aunt. In a bewildering whirlwind, Mallory is swept up and deposited in the excellently named Carrion Castle. Things are only going to get stranger from there.
What Is Mallory Vayle and the Curse of Maggoty Skull?
It’s a fun children’s novel; a spooky mystery, with a comedy edge. There are also excellent, Edward Gorey/Addams Family–style illustrations by Pete Williamson that greatly add to the sense of gothic hanging over the book.
After traveling to Carrion Castle, Mallory wakes up to discover that the ghosts of her parents have gone missing. In an attempt to find them she uncovers a secret passage and a forgotten room. In that room sits Maggoty Skull – the skull of the victim of an evil necromancer. Maggoty tells Mallory that she too is a necromancer and that she has only begun to scratch the surface of her powers.
It transpires that Maggoty’s killer and the kidnapper of Mallory’s parents are one and the same. “Hellysh Spatzl” has stalked the halls of Carrion Castle looking for a way to return to torment the world once more. Perhaps Mallory will provide the tools she needs…
Why Read Mallory Vayle and the Curse of Maggoty Skull?
The story here is solid. It is, of sorts, an origin story. Mallory is learning what she is and, under Maggoty’s tutelage, she is learning how to master her powers. Powers that can be used for great evil (or wickedness as Maggoty might prefer it). Can she learn the skills she needs, and rescue her parent’s ghosts, all without succumbing to the temptations of magic from beyond the grave?
Finding out is great fun, not least because the verbal avalanche that is Maggoty Skull is highly entertaining. He’s a self-obsessed motor-mouth, who can’t not wise-crack and hurl childish insults. Your children will love him.
There are some genuinely hilarious bits in the novel when Mallory, who can actually speak to ghosts, ruins her aunt’s (who can’t) seances and psychic evenings. While Mallory is mistrustful of her Aunt, part of the story is about Mallory coming to terms with who she is and her new reality as an orphan. Despite this heavy theme, Martin Howard keeps things light. Even in the moments of sadness, there are laughs to be had.
The plot is exciting; Mallory has to take risks to succeed. She needs to trust the skills she barely understands. The star of the show, however, is Maggoty, an excellently conceived character, whose rudeness and cheek will have readers roaring with laughter. Mallory Vayle and the Curse of Maggoty Skull is the first book in a new series, with a second book promised. The novel ends with a little cliffhanger for us to wonder about. It’s all excellent stuff and I can’t wait to see what Mallory and Maggoty do next.
If you would like to pick up a copy of Mallory Vayle and the Curse of Maggoty Skull you can do so here, in the US, and here, in the UK. (Affiliate Links)
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I received a copy of this book in order to write this review.
