By Royal Command, by Mary Hooper

By Royal Command, by Mary Hooper
Young Adult, 2008
At the House of the Magician series, Book 2

from fantasticfiction.co.uk:
Lucy has become a firm fixture in the household of Dr Dee, a real-life figure who was court magician to Queen Elizabeth 1. Lucy, in return for saving the queen's life, has been told that she is to work as a spy for Her Grace and that she is to remain with the Dee family and await further instruction ...And then Lucy hears unexplained cries in the Dee house, and finds a young girl imprisoned there. What is Dr Dee doing? Lucy means to find out. This is a thrilling historical story, full of intrigue and royal plots and counter-plots, from the acclaimed Mary Hooper.

Mary Hooper is one of those authors you can always count on for a fun and well-written read. While I prefer some of her other books, (At the Sign of the Sugared Plum or The Remarkable Life and Times of Eliza Rose), this series still holds up to her name and has been an enjoyable read. Lucy is one of those characters that's real - you don't love her too much for her to be unrealistic as you spend chapters with her shaking your head when she messes up or rooting her on when she finally succeeds. I like Tomas too, although sometimes he feels a bit distractive, but then boys usually are.
What I also love is Hooper's ability to take a risque topic and make it squeaky clean. You can always recommend any of her books to anyone without worrying, although I recommend most of her works for around age 14 - 16. (This is, of course, a recommendation - my husband in his late 20s is enjoying this series as well!)
Don't forget, of course, to start with At the House of the Magician, book 1 in the series.
Graded a B.

(I don't have trackgeek's grade yet - he's busy reading Dune, by Frank Herbert, a first for him.)