Gr 2–5— The Star Friends Mia, Lexi, Sita, and Violet, and their magical animal companions, are back for a new adventure. As the town gets ready for a scarecrow competition, a local developer stirs up discontent with his plan to build a new housing development on a beautiful cliff top overlooking the ocean. Even though the townspeople are against it, the developer refuses to reconsider. Meanwhile, the Star Friends and several other town members seem to have come down with a bug that is making them unusually sleepy. The girls become suspicious that it's not an illness at all, but dark magic. With their animal companions, they must use their magical abilities to figure out who is behind the spell. With black-and-white illustrations peppered throughout and an interesting magical world complete with cute animals and a small-town setting, this story makes for a satisfying mystery. VERDICT Purchase for larger collections where the other ten books in the series circulate well.