Teen wizards Nita, Kit, and Dairine are asked to mentor contestants in the Invitational, a science fairlike spell competition for brilliant younger wizards, but Nita and Kit's mentee is an arrogant jerk. Though entertaining, the competition plot never builds much tension, making the sudden events at the climax seem like an unearned rabbit-from-a-hat; confusingly, Nita's prophetic visions apparently won't pay off until future volumes.

Gr 7 Up-In this 10th installment of the "Young Wizards" series (HMH), Kit, Nita, Dairine, and their wizard friends return for more interplanetary adventures. Every 11 years, Earth's wizards hold the Invitational, a prestigious competition in which young wizards compete to craft and execute the perfect spell. The three young protagonists are each invited to mentor a young wizard in the competition, and each ends up facing unique challenges. Among them, Nita has a complicated vision that could change everything, and through a series of events, the stakes quickly become much higher than winning a contest. The story is slow to develop and heavily hinges on knowledge obtained in previous installments. Everything comes together in the end, though, to create a well-thought-out climax, with a satisfying resolution. Recommend this series to young teens who devour books about magic and wizards. VERDICT This is a solid addition to the series; purchase where there are fans of the previous volumes or kids looking for "Harry Potter" read-alikes. Candyce Pruitt-Goddard, Sno-Isle Libraries, Marysville, WA

The long awaited tenth book in the Young Wizards series focuses on the Invitational, an intense competition for young, hotshot wizards. Wizard partners from the previous books, Kit and Nita, are brought in to mentor a talented but cocky young man named Penn in the competition. Penn is so sure of his spellcasting skills and his appeal to young women that he nearly brushes off the valuable aid of the mentors. Nita's sister Dairine mentors another young wizard, the sheltered Mehrnaz. At first glance, Mehrnaz's parents seem to be simply overprotective, but as Dairine looks further into the family dynamics, she notes that they may be sabotaging Mehrnaz. As the three-week Invitational unfolds, each finds themselves tangled in matters involving far more than the competitionthe whole solar system is at risk in a finale that sets up the next book in the series.Readers have been waiting quite a while for this entry in the Young Wizards series, as book nine was published in 2010 and the first book, So You Want to be a Wizard (Harcourt) was released in 1983. There will be quite a bit of adult interest in the title as well, as Duane has a significant fan base that is passionate about this series. Readers new to the series will not need to have read the previous titles to enjoy this book; the strong narrative allows it to stand alone. This is a highly recommended purchase for libraries serving older teenagers and adults.Sherrie Williams.