How many times have you been so enchanted with a book that you wished you could step right into it and never come out? More than once, probably. But, what if you could literally transport yourself inside a story? Would it be as magical as you imagined? Or would there be hidden horrors in the book's world just like in your own? If you had the choice between living in a fairy tale and residing in your own time, which would you choose? For Meggie Folchard, heroine of Cornelia Funke's Inkheart series, these are not merely hypothetical questions.

In Inkheart, Meggie learns about her father's special ability to read characters into and out of stories. Before long, she discovers that she also has this dubious gift. Although Meggie is enchanted by the idea of entering her favorite story, she soon finds out how dangerous it can be to trade places with fictional characters. After escaping a band of villains from a storybook - also called Inkheart - she suppresses her "gift" to ensure a quiet, peaceful life for herself and her family.

A year later, when Inkspell opens, Meggie is getting restless. Life is good surrounded by her family and friends, but the words of Inkheart have been whispering to her, beckoning her to its world. When her friend Farid appears with troubling news - his master, Dustfinger, has returned to his own story, not knowing that old enemies are right on his tail - Meggie knows her world will collide with Inkheart's once more. Soon enough, Farid knocks on her door, begging her to read him into the book. Meggie agrees on one condition - she gets to go, too. Farid reluctantly agrees, and the two are sucked into the magical, storybook world.

Meggie is fascinated by her surroundings - fairies twinkle past her, water nymphs gaze at her from watery depths, fragile glass men sparkle in the sunlight - which are just as described in the book. They are not the only occupants populating Inkheart, as Meggie soon finds out. Her enchantment with the fairy tale fades as she faces each new horror: the lands are full of blood-thirsty wolves wandering the forest; pale White Ladies reaching greedily for the souls of the dying; and warring princes with hosts of vicious thugs searching for her, the girl-witch with the magical voice.

Meggie's only consolation is knowing that her beloved parents are safe at home - or so she thinks. When rumors circulate of a strange, injured man dying in a gypsy camp, she recognizes her father's description. The superstitious folk mistake him for "Bluejay," a Robin Hood-like figure who steals from royalty and gives to peasants; soon there is a price on his head as well. Not only is Meggie hunted by enemies, but everyone she loves seems marked for death as well.

Desperate, she turns to Fenoglio, Inkheart's author. The writer has been living peacefully in his own book for a year, reveling in the marvels of his creation. Meggie's warnings alarm him, and Fenoglio vows to revise the story into a less threatening tale. His words only seem to complicate matters; soon, Fenoglio is cowering in the shadows with the rest of his outlaw friends. When Meggie and her parents are imprisoned in the castle of the devious Adderhead, she knows the fate of the land rests in her hands. Can she summon the power of words one more time to save the lives of those she loves? Or will the story that has gotten away from its own author be the death of her and all she holds dear?

Although Inkspell has a lot of the magic and excitement of its predecessor, I didn't enjoy it quite as much. Still, it has a swift plot, with plenty of twists and turns to keep the action going. Character development doesn't suffer - familiar cast members are explored more fully, while new ones contribute local color and intriguing subplots. The majority of the book takes place in the land of Inkheart, which gives the book a fun, magical setting. In fact, I only have two beefs with the book: (1) My favorite character, Elinor, spends most of the book locked in her cellar. Although she is with Darius, nothing develops, and not much happens, and (2) I didn't like the ending. I can't explain without giving things away, but I just wasn't satisfied. There is another book coming out, so maybe it will tie up all the loose ends, but still ... the book's conclusion just didn't sit right with me. Other than that, it was a fun, fast-paced read.

Grade: B

Have you ever loved a storybook character so much that you wanted to pluck him out of the pages of his book and set him smack dab in the middle of your life? Or admired a heroine so completely that you wanted to jump right into her story and watch her in action? If you have - and who hasn't? - you might want to have a little chat with 12-year-old Meggie, star of Cornelia Funke's Inkheart. You see, Meggie knows all about storybook characters coming to life ...

Let me explain. Meggie's father, whom she calls Mo, is also known as Silvertongue. Why the strange name? Because when Mo reads aloud, he can pull people out of their stories. Of course, sometimes when someone comes out, someone or something may get pulled in. For this reason, Mo has kept his secret from his daughter, Meggie, refusing to ever read aloud to her. While this seems a little strange, Meggie never suspects a thing until one dark night when she spies a stranger outside her window. Her terror turns to suspicion when her father invites the stranger inside, greeting him as an old friend. When the two hole up in Mo's workroom, Meggie eavesdrops on their strange conversation, a conversation that revolves around a mysterious book and an evil villain who will stop at nothing to capture Mo and his magical voice.

Suddenly, Meggie finds herself in a situation more terrifying than any she has ever read about in her beloved books. On the run with her father, she demands the truth he has kept hidden from her. Out spills the story of a magical world peopled with fairies, trolls, and a vicious monster named Capricorn. This fairy tale world lives inside a book called Inkheart. The trouble is, some of the story's characters - including Capricorn - have come out of the book and into the modern world. Anxious to return, the villain and his henchman are hunting for Mo, the only one who can read them back into their story.

Although Capricorn and his "Black Jackets" have been terrifying real people for years, the police can't help. So, it is up to Meggie and a ragtag group of people - fictional and non - to take on the evil men, save Mo, and restore Inkheart's people to their proper place between the covers of a book. But their mission will not be simple or easy. As Meggie soon finds out, fictional characters can create just as much trouble outside their books as they can inside.

This novel enchanted me from the first pages. I loved the idea of books "whispering" to people and "luring" them into stories, as though the books themselves were live, animate objects. After this alluring beginning, I was hooked. The story is somewhat predictable, but contained enough twists and turns to keep me eagerly reading. I cared about the characters as well, from brave Meggie to her kind father to lively Fenoglio to brave Farid. You can't help but like them in all of their flawed complexity. Overall, Inkheart is a charming, magical read, just beware of reading it aloud. You never know what could happen.

Grade:A

Note:I struggled with whether or not to label this book a "Clean Read." It doesn't have any explicit sex or a lot of curse words, but there are hints about Capricorn's doings with women and a handful of hells and damns. So, I'm labeling it clean, with a little reservation.