The sixth volume in this early chapter book series once again stars science-loving Freddy von Frankenstein, monster big brother, F.M., friend Binsa, and were-cat sister, Riya, who live in a palace on a supernatural mountain in Nepal. In this volume, Freddy and company ponder evidence and conclude that a magic force in the mountain is drawing “fantasticals” like sprites and yetis to their palace. They want to discover why this recently started happening—but to do so, they must venture into the mysterious tunnel beneath the palace. Along the way, Freddy and Riya get into an argument over whether the sensor technology he invented is better than her tiger senses, and then a magical wind steals their voices. They work together to overcome their fears, differences, and communication challenges to find the mountain’s secret—and secrets about both Freddy and Riya that change the way they look at themselves.
As with the rest of the series, there’s also plenty of action, excitement, and STEM interest along with gentle social-emotional lessons about being oneself, friendship, and more. The book does assume that readers are familiar with some of the characters from the other books, however, but that’s all the more reason to read the entire series. Binsa plays a more minor role in this volume and her trans identity is never mentioned here (as it was in the fourth and fifth volumes), but readers who met her earlier may appreciate that her trans identity is completely incidental in this installment, as she continues her work as Freddy’s dad’s lab assistant.
A fun addition to the series.
