The Witches of Sea-Dragon Bay — Sandra Forrester

This third in a series of magic and adventure novels, stars young Beatrice Bailey, apprentice witch, on another of her exciting adventures. The Witches of Sea-Dragon Bay takes Beatrice and her friends Cyrus, Ollie, and Teddy to a very unusual beach resort, where the waters are filled with sea serpents and monsters. As in the previous Beatrice Bailey novels, Beatrice is continuing on her mission to break the spell of Dally Rumpe, the evil sorcerer whose dark powers extend over many different realms. Beatrice and her friends travel in a hot air balloon to the eastern part of the Witches� Sphere, where Sea-Dragon Bay is located. Their balloon mysteriously deflates, and they need to be rescued by the Ghost Guard. Several other ordeals follow, all of them having mysterious causes. They include Ollie being trapped in a cellar flooded by rising tide, and Beatrice being stalked by an army of ferocious rats. Young readers will keep turning pages of this fast-moving tale, as Beatrice meets and overcomes a variety of mysterious and sometimes humorous challenges. (Ages 10�14)