SECRETS OF THE UNDER-UNDER WORLD: TIME

In this installment of Whatever’s middle-grade fantasy series, a tween girl unravels a mysterious past and aims to thwart a villain’s fiendish plot.

Sam, a girl who has experienced the wonders of an alternate magical dimension called the Under-Under World,doesn’t know what to make of the “jelly bubbles” that pop up on the little beach near her home. Each contains an image—one depicts an unknown girl in tears. With help from her great uncle (“Gruncle”), a renowned scientist caring for her and her little brother, Darby, while their guardian aunt is away, Sam learns that these bubbles have somehow captured images from the past. They may be able to tell Sam what exactly happened on the sinking ship in the incident that killed the siblings’ parents years ago. Meanwhile, The Sister, Sam’s enemy from her visits to the Under-Under World (the “most magical place ever”) is on Earth, plotting and spying on Sam. The nefarious woman, who loves jelly donuts and explosions, hopes Sam will lead her to the secret passage to Under-Under (she’s brewing an evil plan that Sam must nip in the bud, as it entails obliterating the Earth aboveground). As in the preceding installments, Whatever’s third series outing shines with a zestful cast: The Sister’s multilayered scheme includes confusing Sam and Gruncle for sheer psychological torment; time-obsessed Gruncle fills the siblings’ home with clocks; and Sam’s Under-Under friend, Boyo, communicates by “wiggling his fingers.” While indisputable peril looms over both the aboveground and Under-Under, humor continues to drive the series. This novel’s villain, for example, isn’t particularly good at snooping, as she leaves copious evidence of her presence including an empty jelly-donut box and the lingering aroma of cyanide (her best-loved fragrance). The author rounds out this tale with educational morsels (linking the bubbles to falling debris from a Ghost Moon consisting of orbiting clouds of dust) and mystery, as Sam vows to solve her parents’ unexplained deaths.

Lovable and energetic characters power this wonderfully diverting story.