What do you think?
Rate this book
Phyllis Wong #1
Phyllis Wong and the Forgotten Secrets of Mr Okyto
A junior Jonathan Creek-style mystery in which the clever and resourceful young magician, Phyllis Wong, helps solve numerous crimes including the thefts of a missing diamond necklace and the most valuable painting ever to come to the city.
Conjuring is in Phyllis Wong's veins. It was passed down from her great-grandfather who, before his mysterious disappearance, was one of the world's most brilliant and successful magicians. Now Phyllis lives in what was his grand old home, converted into a number of apartments, in the middle of the city with her father and her loyal dog Daisy.
When a series of incomprehensible robberies takes place in the city, Phyllis realises there is much more to the crimes than meets the eye. It may be baffling her friend Chief Inspector Inglis, but Phyllis is determined to find out more. Who is this thief? What does he want? And how is he achieving the impossible?
- GenresMiddle Grade
291 pages, Paperback
First published July 25, 2012
About the author
Geoffrey McSkimming
69 books25 followersGeoffrey McSkimming is the author of both the Cairo Jim and Joscelyn Osgood series, featuring an archaeologist and his flight attendant friend. Geoffrey's verse has been published in the NSW and Victorian School Magazines. He is currently working on a stage adaptation of Cairo Jim on the Trail to ChaCha Muchos (in conjunction with St Martins: THe Victorian Centre for Youth Arts), and a new Jocelyn Osgood adventure.
He has travelled widely in order to research for his books, including Egypt, Peru, Tanzania (including Zanzibar), Greece, Mexico, Turkey, Italy, Singapore and other locations.
He has travelled widely in order to research for his books, including Egypt, Peru, Tanzania (including Zanzibar), Greece, Mexico, Turkey, Italy, Singapore and other locations.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
March 7, 2020
I’ve been meaning to read this for years and I was super excited when I found it (mid last year) second hand - it started out a little bumpy! I’m not a fan of phonetically spelling out words to show that someone has a foreign accent/English is their second language but my irritation faded as I got to know more of the residents of the Wallace Wong Building and Phyllis herself, with her impressive knowledge of and performance of stage magic. As a big fan of kid sleuths, I also found the mystery engaging - it wasn’t an easy solve and I liked that this story incorporated a little actual magic with a whole lot of illusion.
June 29, 2013
Phyllis Wong is a feisty young magician with a flair for solving mysteries. She has inherited her love of magic from her great grandfather who was one of the world's most famous magicians in his day before he suddenly and mysteriously disappeared. She has a lot in common with him.
This is a lively, suspenseful and funny mystery, set in a big city. Phyllis has some great friends and her beautiful little dog, Daisy to help her along the way. I loved the characters, especially Chief Inspector Inglis and Clem. And of course Phyllis. This story had me turning the pages swiftly to the very end, and it was fascinating learning about the magic and the tricks. I am keen to read the next story in the series and find out where Phyllis Wong's magic takes her in the future.
A great read!
This is a lively, suspenseful and funny mystery, set in a big city. Phyllis has some great friends and her beautiful little dog, Daisy to help her along the way. I loved the characters, especially Chief Inspector Inglis and Clem. And of course Phyllis. This story had me turning the pages swiftly to the very end, and it was fascinating learning about the magic and the tricks. I am keen to read the next story in the series and find out where Phyllis Wong's magic takes her in the future.
A great read!
August 26, 2014
A very entertaining read from a very entertaining author. It became more absorbing as it went along, and the description of the magic performance shows Geoffrey McSkimming's passion for stage magic in its descriptive elegance. I think Phyllis Wong will be a much loved series for tweens and should appeal to many boys as well as girls, especially if they enjoy a good mystery. It's Agatha Christie meets Jonathan Creek for kids.
January 8, 2020
A magic moment in time
Awesome. A wonderful plot of thefts that seem impossible but the evidence is there of the loss of the item. Our heroine is a young girl, who in keeping with old family tradition, does magic. Perhaps not the wand waving one but it looks and feels like magic anyway. She is independent, clever and sure of herself.
Her first clue to something bad happening in the neighbourhood is the case of the missing bookend. The only problem is that there are still two of them and they look and feel identical. That is until a test is dome to prove that one is clearly a fake. Getting a tenant involved seems like a good idea. After all he is a high ranking police officer. A man with a scar, missing diamonds, her younger sidekick (who will do anything to get out of xylophone practice), an attempt to run them down and an early birthday present. How will this help her work out how the thefts were pulled of and for the next one. Is her theory correct or will the thief get away with it?
Awesome. A wonderful plot of thefts that seem impossible but the evidence is there of the loss of the item. Our heroine is a young girl, who in keeping with old family tradition, does magic. Perhaps not the wand waving one but it looks and feels like magic anyway. She is independent, clever and sure of herself.
Her first clue to something bad happening in the neighbourhood is the case of the missing bookend. The only problem is that there are still two of them and they look and feel identical. That is until a test is dome to prove that one is clearly a fake. Getting a tenant involved seems like a good idea. After all he is a high ranking police officer. A man with a scar, missing diamonds, her younger sidekick (who will do anything to get out of xylophone practice), an attempt to run them down and an early birthday present. How will this help her work out how the thefts were pulled of and for the next one. Is her theory correct or will the thief get away with it?
January 20, 2019
Nice. MIddle-grade reading, but very well done, good plot, and the MC is adorable!
Kiss
Gacela
Kiss
Gacela
February 23, 2020
Well you can't go far "Wong" with this book, and what a great title.
Entertaining, and light, full of good cheer, a nice break from reality, for a while.
Phyllis Wong #1
Geoffrey McSkimming #1
Entertaining, and light, full of good cheer, a nice break from reality, for a while.
Phyllis Wong #1
Geoffrey McSkimming #1
January 22, 2013
It started off well, with some quirky characters and an intriguing mystery. I was genuinely interested when the plot started to get going and I started wondering just how everything would be explained.
However, the denouement was less than satisfying. The thefts were explained, yes, but the culprit's motives, methods and a very left field factor pulled in right at the end were left completely obscure. I could forgive this retention of mystery if it did not seem like the author had just decided to wrap things up quickly, or is hoping that readers will stick around for a sequel.
That aside, some tough language puts this somewhat out of range of the target demographic (even adults won't know a couple of words), leaving it up to a few 10-14 year olds who don't mind a story that is slow to get off the ground, largely due to unnecessarily padded imagery and the cutesy perspectives of a dog who never actually contributes to the story.
However, the denouement was less than satisfying. The thefts were explained, yes, but the culprit's motives, methods and a very left field factor pulled in right at the end were left completely obscure. I could forgive this retention of mystery if it did not seem like the author had just decided to wrap things up quickly, or is hoping that readers will stick around for a sequel.
That aside, some tough language puts this somewhat out of range of the target demographic (even adults won't know a couple of words), leaving it up to a few 10-14 year olds who don't mind a story that is slow to get off the ground, largely due to unnecessarily padded imagery and the cutesy perspectives of a dog who never actually contributes to the story.
July 18, 2014
Rating: 2.5
This book was okay, and I actually enjoyed quite a lot of it. But I also skim-read a lot of it, and felt myself tuning out a bit when Phyllis was performing her magic tricks, and then again when she was revealing how she had actually done them. Also, the ending of the novel was just a bit too weird for me... And not at all what was expected!
Still, this was an okay novel, and I can see a lot of middle-years readers enjoying it. Hopefully they'll like it more than I did!
This book was okay, and I actually enjoyed quite a lot of it. But I also skim-read a lot of it, and felt myself tuning out a bit when Phyllis was performing her magic tricks, and then again when she was revealing how she had actually done them. Also, the ending of the novel was just a bit too weird for me... And not at all what was expected!
Still, this was an okay novel, and I can see a lot of middle-years readers enjoying it. Hopefully they'll like it more than I did!
June 26, 2014
A fun read. Phyllis is a cute feisty character with loads of personality and also very clever. I think kids would really like this story. I zoned out when they started describing magic tricks. I am not a fan of watching magicians doing tricks so reading about magicians doing tricks was like having teeth pulled. So I just ran over those bits! Enjoyed the rest tho.
August 22, 2014
I think that it is for younger children, as it has a very clear storyline, and not much excitement. Phyllis Wong is a magician, and a problem-solver, and solves the mystery. The book is quite exciting in the first few chapters, though becomes boring and less-interesting in the ending. It is a bit cheesy, though it has some 'realistic' things about it. Would recommend it for 6-9's.
June 11, 2015
This was a really solid start to what promises to be a fantastic--in more than one sense of the word--series from an author whose Cairo Jim books I grew up reading. There's a beautifully eccentric cast of characters, each with their own quirks that really make them come alive. This was a joy to read and I'm looking forward to getting on to the rest of the series.
May 25, 2012
Our Junior book club read this and thoroughly enjoyed it! We gave it 8/7/8/6/5/10/7
A great read for young magicians and secret sleuths! Phyllis Wong is a wonderful little character and I enjoyed meeting her and her companions. This is a wonderful one to recommend to clever readers 8-13 :)
A great read for young magicians and secret sleuths! Phyllis Wong is a wonderful little character and I enjoyed meeting her and her companions. This is a wonderful one to recommend to clever readers 8-13 :)
September 9, 2012
A good fun read for 8 ups. There are a few challenging words in there, so it would have to be a good reader at age 8. There is magic & mystery and friendship. Good stuff .
November 20, 2013
A fun, easy read. Bonus points for the magic show where Geoffrey McSkimming's wife performed the tricks used in the book.
August 25, 2015
It is an interesting book about a girl how to find out the thief using magic ways.
April 10, 2016
Such a fun book! So clever and well-written - very pleased to have read this book.
January 26, 2015
great book to read,always had me wanting to read the next page
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews