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Summary: The Water Castle

An ancestral family castle in Crystal Springs, Maine, shrouded in scientific secrets and magical possibilities, becomes a refuge for a family in the midst of a crisis in Megan Frazer Blakemore’s science-fiction fantasy novel The Water Castle, recommended for ages 10 to 14.

The Story

Ephraim Appledore-Smith knows something is wrong. After a stroke renders his father non-responsive, Ephraim’s mother plans an impromptu trip to the family’s ancestral home in Crystal Springs, Maine.

Unhappy to be leaving the comforts of his life in Massachusetts and doubting any good will come of this “family vacation”, Ethan reluctantly accompanies his older brother Price and younger sister, Brynn on their journey to the small, remote town.

Arriving at the Water Castle, Ephraim and his siblings explore the ancient, and in Ephraim’s opinion, “haunted” edifice built by his relative, Angus Appledore, who believed he’d found the Fountain of Youth in the nearby springs. The trio learns that their ancestor started a lucrative water bottling business and constructed a renowned hotel and resort, which served as a respite for visitors far and wide. Unfortunately, a fire destroyed the hotel and put an end to the water bottling business while creating an embittered relationship with the powerful Wylie family.

When his mother announces they’ll be staying in Crystal Springs for an indeterminate amount of time awaiting changes in their father’s condition, Ephraim, Price, and Bryn enroll in the local school.

Seeing his chance to finally be recognized for his own talents instead of becoming the invisible middle child between a charismatic older brother and a brilliant younger sister, Ephraim decides to show off his city boy sophistication to what he’s sure will be a backwoods group of kids.

What he didn’t expect was to feel like a complete imbecile. Didn’t he know about the great Arctic explorer Robert Peary? How could he not know about the Van der Graaf generator? To his astonishment, Ephraim realizes all the students are actually faster and smarter than him. Could there be some truth to the stories of the town’s magical water?

Where once he scoffed at the idea of magical waters as powerful cure-all, Ephraim now believes it’s his mission to explore the castle for answers to where the water is hidden so he can help his father. After finding research notes dating back one hundred years and written in the hand of an E. Darling, Ephraim reluctantly enlists the help of Mallory Darling, the local caretaker’s daughter and his science lab partner, Will Wylie, the son of the Appledore’s bitter enemies. Although all three share an entwined family history of secrets, the three descendants set aside the past to pursue a hunt down unknown tunnels where they find a hidden lab and uncover a century old secret where magic and science collide.

Author Megan Frazer Blakemore

A graduate of Columbia University, Megan Frazer Blakemore debuted in the writing world with her young adult novel Secrets of Truth & Beauty. A former school librarian, Blakemore is now a faculty member at the University of Southern Maine where she teaches creative writing courses in the MFA program.

(Source: Megan Frazer Blakemore’s website)

My Recommendation

The Water Castle is full of “wondrous” surprises. Mixing science, exploration, magic, and mystery, Megan Frazer Blakemore writes a beautiful story that kept me eagerly turning pages. Beginning with a twelve-year old boy who is experiencing classic middle child symptoms, readers are introduced to a character who is at once resentful of his father’s failing health, and yet still reeling from the loss of the father he remembers so fondly.

Because of the credibility of Ephraim’s feelings during a family crisis, he becomes a sympathetic and very real character. Herein lies one of the author’s great writing strengths: she doesn’t rush the story and therefore takes time to develop characters with substance. Her deliberate character construction creates for reader’s an ability to understand and perhaps even relate to a character.

In addition to superb character development, there are the wonderful relationships between the characters. Bringing the three unique personalities of Ephraim, Mallory, and Will together burdened with the legacy of a hundred years of bitterness, it’s remarkable to see them break down barriers of misunderstanding and resentment as they become modern day explorers and scientists in search of answers.

Paralleling this relationship, are the 1908 diary entries of Nora Darling, research assistant to Dr. Appledore and friend to young Henry. Although separated by a hundred years, there are similar obsessions, issues of racism, and a fascination with science that crosses the time barrier and gives depth to the storyline.

Navigating between the past and present, readers glean information about the history of the Water Castle and its earlier residents which will lead to a surprising, unpredictable ending that is most satisfying. The 1908 story keeps readers engaged and helps to slowly unravel the mystery of the magical healing waters by providing clues so readers stay one step ahead of Ephraim, Mallory, and Will. And by staying one step ahead, the more advanced readers will understand the sophisticated end of this book.

Cleverly written to incorporate a wide array of subjects- history of the expedition to the North Pole, racism, arguments of science vs. magic, and questions about immortality, The Water Castle is a book for the curious adventurer in all of us. This is a smart science-fiction fantasy adventure with no boring moments. I highly recommend it for readers 10-14. For more information, see The Water Castle Teacher’s Guide.  (Walker Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Bloomsbury, 2013. ISBN: 9780802728395)

More Recommended Fantasy and Science-Fiction, From Elizabeth Kennedy

Fans of A Wrinkle in Time, the classic by Madeleine L'Engle, may also enjoy A Wrinkle in Time: The Graphic Novel, an adaptation of L'Engle's classic by Hope Larson. For an edition of the book with lots of extras, see the 50th anniversary commemorative edition of A Wrinkle in TIme.

Some of the enormously popular fantasy series for middle grade readers include the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, plus Rick Riordan's series Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Heroes of Olympus and The Kane Chronicles.