The Magic Spell

My Secret Unicorn #1

by Linda Chapman, Biz Hull (Illustrator)

With simple, heartfelt stories, My Secret Unicorn is the perfect beginning chapter book series for girls who love horses and magic. These books will make every young reader believe!

Do you know someone who has wished for a pony? Lauren Foster did just that. And when her family moves to the country, her dream finally comes true. Then she reads a story about a normal pony who turns into a snow-white unicorn when his owner reads a special spell. Lauren starts to wonder. Could her new pony Twilight really be a unicorn? Maybe ... just maybe.

Genres: Childrens, Fantasy, Unicorns, Horses, Middle Grade, Magic, Fiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Linda Chapman was born in Liverpool in 1969. She had many different jobs before becoming a full-time writer in 1999 including working as a theatre stage manager, a dog trainer, a bookseller, a nanny, a teacher and a research assistant. She has written over 300 books for children, some under her own name, others under different names and she often collaborates with other authors. She is currently writing books with Julie Sykes and they are co-authors on the NYT bestselling Unicorn Academy series as well as Mermaid Academy, Forever Homes and Pocket Unicorns. Linda lives in Leicestershire with her husband, three children, two horses and three dogs. She has written many different series including: My Secret Unicorn, Star Friends, Best Friends Bakery, Stardust, Skating School and, most recently, Magic Keepers and Moonlight Riders.

Reviews

[Sonja Rosa Lisa ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ich glaube, die Reihe hat inzwischen über 70 Bände. Dieses ist der erste Band und er hat mir sehr gut gefallen! Als Liebhaber von Pferdebüchern kommt man kaum um diese Reihe herum.
Mir hat hier besonders gut gefallen, wie die Realität mit der Fantasie verworben wurde. Die Geschichte spielt in der realen Welt, aber es gibt Magie und Einhörner, aber nicht jeder kann sie sehen. Perfekt für junge Leser/Innen! :)

[catherine ♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been so long since I've thought about this series but DAMN it was my entire childhood.

[⋆˚𝜗𝜚˚Tiara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Childhood❤️I was so obsessed with these books 🥹

[Abigail Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a review for the series as a whole.
As a child, this has been my very favourite series along with the Stardust series by the same author, and it remains one of my very favourites even now. It was the foundation of my reading for years and I read the books steadily over the 5 year period in which they were published. The books absolutely enchanted me, and while I can't say they made me believe horses could really turn into unicorns (I believed that anyway) they really fed my imagination.
Linda Chapman is a very talented children's author who can write engagingly for a young readership, but not patronise them. The pacing is quick, but amazingly she uses plenty of description to paint a very vivid picture in your mind. Her stories are an excellent example of how to explain to the readers how the character is feeling without making it tedious or leaving too much unsaid.
The enchanting illustrations by Biz Hull, really enhance the sense of magic and realism (you may not think it can do both, but it does). I was a little disappointed when the illustrator changed half way through the series as it gave the story a slightly more cartoonish feel, but I got used to it and the new illustrations do have their own charm.
As the series drew on, the stories got increasingly more imaginative, rather than petering into nothingness. I was enthralled whilst reading Moonlight Journey, as they travelled to Arcadia, the home of the unicorns, which is something I never thought would happen. As Lauren Foster grew older (albeit at a much slower rate than me) I got a sense of the slightly older age range these books were catering for, which I was pleased with as I was 12 by this time. The series ends in a surprisingly bittersweet way with the loss of a much loved character, showing that Linda Chapman is not afraid of bringing serious matters into a children's story.
Whether you're a young child who loves magic and adventure, or an adult reading it to your son or daughter or looking for escapism, I highly recommend this series.

[elisabeth]

das war mal mein leben

[Nicole M. Hewitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

My eight-year-old daughter absolutely LOVES the books in this series, so I thought that I should come and put in a review. The later books in the series are a bit hard to get your hands on (I had to order several of them from the UK - but shipping was no more expensive on Amazon), but it was totally worth it. My daughter has read the entire series in the past two weeks and she is now going back to read them all again. She also insisted that I read them too - I read the first six books in the series yesterday and I can see why she loves them. They are realistic stories with a magical twist which makes her feel like she could actually discover a unicorn at any time. What little girl doesn't love that idea!

[Rain | Angelina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know that as a child I loved these books!!
So yes, to dwell in some childhood memories, I will read them all again.
I can clearly see why I loved these books so much back then. The story is just so cute and amazing.

Note: I will listen to the whole series as audiobooks before sleeping, so I can sleep better yay (I feel like a kid again)
And yes, I will rate every single one here and no one can stop me hehehe

[Rylan Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think it was a great book I love animals and as so I love unicorns I have loved the series so far I love how it is mysterious and fun because I love unicorns and I also love this book!!!

[Kathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Geheimnisvolle Verwandlung" ist der 1. Teil der "Sternenschweif" Reihe von Autorin Linda Chapman.

Ich fand dieses Hörspiel wirklich süß. Empfohlen wird es ab 6 Jahren. Ich kann aber aus Erfahrung sagen, dass auch jüngere Kinder gerne zuhören. Die Sprecher*innen machen ihre Sache wirklich gut. Pferde- und Einhornliebhaber*innen kommen hier auf jeden Fall auf ihre Kosten.

Hier folgen noch einige Infos zum Hörspiel:
58 Min. / gehört bei Bookbeat

Die Sprecher*innen der Reihe:
Erzählerin: Annette Gunkel
Laura: Anita Hopt
Sternenschweif: Henry Dahlke
Mel: Maja Sommer
Jessica: Mona Friedel
Mrs Fontana: Anne Georgio
und viele weitere tolle Stimmen

Die Sprecher*innen bekommen 5 Sterne von mir.

Verlag: United Soft Media Verlag GmbH

[Amy Brauckhoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kindheitserinnerungen pur

[Char (lunarchar_) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Without being a total sap I have a collection of novels at home that I loved as a kid that I wish to pass on to my children when I have them. I felt like re-reading some so decided to start with this - the first proper series I loved.

[Anna Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nach nicht mal 45 Minuten bin ich durch mit dem Buch.

Alsooooo, nachdem die Bibliothekarin mich schon schmunzelnd darauf aufmerksam gemacht hat, dass das Buch für Kleinkinder ist, bin ich schon mit einem Augenzwinkern in das Buch reingestartet.
Als ich das Buch dann aufgeschlagen habe, war mir auch bewusst, warum sie mich ein bisschen belächelt hat: Die Schriftgröße ist ungefähr doppelt so groß wie die eines „Erwachsenenbuchs“. Deshalb bin ich auch förmlich über die Seite geflogen.

Das war die Buchreihe, bei der ich als Kind meine Liebe fürs Lesen entdeckt habe.
Und ich muss sagen, dass es mir auch heute noch gut gefallen hat hihi. Man merkt natürlich, dass es für Kinder ist, aber mir geht es dabei mehr um das Gefühl, das ich bekomme, wenn ich die Bücher lese - es ist so ein Flashback in meine Kindheit.

Ich denke ich werde immer mal wieder einen Teil so als „Snack für zwischendurch“ lesen (und dafür auch in Kauf nehmen, dass mich die Bibliothekarin auslacht hahaha).

[Annika Unterberger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sternenschweif was my childhood! I devoured the books in primary school and even picked one volume for my very first book report (my dad drew the most beautiful poster for the occasion 😘). This series also sparked my love for horses and is the reason I started riding. So, definitely recommend, especially for children who are just beginning to read.

—> 5 stars

[Ζωή Παππά · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read it to my six year old daughter and she loved it. It's a cute book.

[Abigail · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was really good and it was all about magic beautiful illustrations

[Halli · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have adored this book when I was 7 or 8 years old! Very cute and magical. I'd definitely recommend the series to young readers who love horses and unicorns.

[ania · Rating 4 out of 5]

Słowem wstępu pragnę zauważyć, że ciężko się ocenia książki dla dzieci mając prawie 20 lat, natomiast staram się zrobić to bardzo obiektywnie. Mam wrażenie, że zrobienie researchu na temat autorki zajęło mi więcej czasu niż przeczytanie tej 120 stronnicowej książki. I ten research mnie zaskoczył ponieważ po pierwsze okazało się, że Linda Chapman ma wiele autorskich pen names, a nawet jednym z nich jest Lauren Brooke czyli autorka serii Heartland. Jak to przeczytałam to myślałam, że spadnę z krzesła, tutaj nawiązując do drugiej uwagi - niewybitne przedstawienie swojej wiedzy na temat koni w tej książce. Jakby rozumiem, że jest to książka dla dzieci... natomiast sposób przedstawienia pewnej płaszczyzny jeździeckiej był conajmniej... osobliwy? To znaczy ciężko mi uwierzyć, że osoba która mimo wszystko w realnym życiu faktycznie posiadała konia, w 2000 roku rozpoczyna serię Heartland (która posiada całkiem profesjonalny żargon jeździecki) by potem w 2002 przedstawiać historię Lauren, która szczęśliwie zaczyna posiadać samotnego kucyka bez żadnego towarzystwa stadnego? Konie to jednak zwierzęta stadne, potrzebują w stajni chociaż jakiegoś drugiego kucyka czy krowy 😭. Może przesadzam, ale wydaję mi się, że jednak w książkach dla dzieci ważne jest stawianie wyraźnych granic i uczenia dzieci jakie przykłady traktowania zwierząt są dobre, a jakie złe - np. przedstawiona scena kupowania kucyka w ciągu 15 min brzmi raczej jak impulsywny akt, nie do końca przemyślany. To tylko są przykłady, (mam wrażenie, że brzmię idiotycznie bo nie potrafię ubrać tego dobrze w słowa) chodzi mi po prostu o to, że dzieci są dobrymi obserwatorami i szybko uczepiają się odbieranych bodźców co sprawia, że przeczytana historia w książce staję się dla nich czymś absolutnie normalnym oraz skłania ich do normalizowania danej sytuacji w ich światopoglądzie. (Tak dalej wiem, że to książka dla dzieci i raczej mają one tendencje do prostego zakreślenia fabuły)

Mimo wszystko przyjemny reread po 12 latach. Kupie resztę książek z tej serii.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nostalgia November Read #1

This was a nice quick read, though is clearly just setting up for the remainder of the series. Twilight and Lauren were nice, and I liked the book she was given and the secret meadow of flowers. Afraid I won't get around to reading anymore of them but this was a nice start to Nostalgia November!

For anyone out there, I am doing Nostalgia November, which is a month in which you read books from childhood that you remember loving! Feel free to join me! I've got a few lined up for this month although I will likely end up reading these into December (I think I've overextended myself!) I will also be reading other books this month not associated with Nostalgia November.

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have fond memories of the My Secret Unicorn series from my childhood. A Magic Spell is a wonderful introduction to the series and foreshadows some of the magical adventures still to come. It’s a sweet, wholesome and easy read - perfect for young readers or anyone looking for a bit of nostalgic comfort.

I really liked the pacing. It didn’t try to fit too much in at once and it leaves the reader wanting more. Sadly, I only own books 1, 7, 10, 11, 13, and 15. I’d love to get my hands on the missing ones, especially the sequel to see how the story unfolds from here.

[Persephone · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read this book since I was a child and it is still as cute as I remember.

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet again, Linda Chapman gives us another literary masterpiece. But genuinely I love this woman

[Nina :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ein toller kurzer Zwischenread um sich wieder ein bisschen wie ein Kind zu fühlen :)

[Sophie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Based on Linda Chapman’s own experiences with nannying a pony-obsessed little girl, My Secret Unicorn follows a young girl named Lauren and her pony named Twilight, who is secretly her unicorn.

Now, I enjoyed this book series as a kid. I recall reading each book when I was in Year 3. I decided to re-read the whole series again to see if it holds up, but I am afraid that it does not. First of all, there are the characters in the book series. Explaining the plot further, A nine-year-old girl named Lauren Foster moves with her family from the city to Granger’s Farm, where she meets a bookstore owner named Mrs Fontana who gives her a book about Arcadia and unicorns. After buying a pony named Twilight from an auction, Lauren finds out from her unicorn book that there are key ingredients and steps to unlocking her secret unicorn: a moonflower petal must fall when the first evening star arrives while she recites a “Turning Spell” and an “Undoing Spell” that can change him back to a pony. After this first time, Lauren only has to recite the secret spell without anything else. There is much more to the lore of the series, (like Arcadia itself, how the unicorn cycle works and the magic system) but that is a general idea.

Lauren Foster is a very flat and sometimes unlikable character. She has nothing that defines her besides being horse-obsessed, and she often makes brash decisions that cause more trouble than what is needed, such as arguing with Twilight or her friend Mel whenever they are stuck in a snowstorm or fire hazard. Not only that, but the book series also focuses too much on Lauren - almost at times pushing Twilight aside. For example, in Book #9 Snowy Dreams, Twilight learns about the time limit regarding Unicorns Friends where he will eventually have to choose between returning to Arcadia or staying with Lauren, but we only see this from Lauren’s point of view on how she feels rather than Twilight’s point of view.

Twilight is a boring character. All he is defined is as Lauren’s unicorn friend. Furthermore, because he is dull as a funeral service on 0.25x speed, I cannot grasp the relative importance of any of his problems – however few there are. It is not Twilight’s fault, though; he has an excellent setup to do something interesting. However, the book series is more worried about Lauren and her problems.

There is also missed potential with other characters. After reading Book #10 Twilight Magic where Lauren saves Jade, I thought the next book would have been about Lauren and Mel making friends with Jade and Monica, finally putting their rivalry to rest and getting to know them better. However, it did not do that. There is also a bully girl named Kate in Friends Forever, who excludes Lauren from her circle of friends when Mel reunites with them. While Kate does do some genuinely terrible things (such as moving the flagposts in a game of Capture The Flag), she does not have as much character as she should have. If Kate was more manipulative and gaslight Lauren and Mel into thinking they should not be friends, then she could have been a more genuine threat. There is also another Unicorn Friend named Michael who is one of the few people that knows that Twilight is a unicorn, but the series does nothing with him.

Not to mention, the magic system in the series (as well as keeping Twilight a secret) gets increasingly inconsistent and contrived. For example, in Friends Forever Book #7, Twilight is turned into a unicorn in broad daylight in a clearing where anybody could see what was happening, but nothing comes of this. Another example is Book 13# Moonlight Journey, where we finally get to see Arcadia, but much of Arcadia feels unexplored, underdeveloped, and the illustrations make Arcadia look bare and boring. It does not help that the book series rushes over all the fantasy elements like they are not much of a big deal, which undermines the magical value of what we are experiencing. What is Arcadia, and who are The Unicorn Elders? Who is Sidra? Twilight already knows this, but how? How did Mrs Fontanta learn about unicorns? Who invented the Keeper Of Magic system with the magic resources in the first place? Moreover, why can’t we be clued in too? Things feel missing in the book series! It fails to introduce, build or set up any of the concepts.

However, my biggest problem with My Secret Unicorn is that Twilight and Lauren’s relationship does not feel genuine. Sure, they spend plenty of time together, but their scenes feel more forced rather than natural - and the dialogue often feels like the characters are saying what they are expected to say, rather than wanting to say it. For example, Lauren often says that she loves Twilight as both a pony and a unicorn, but because they cannot communicate with each other when Twilight is a pony and only share their most intimate scenes when Twilight is a unicorn, it makes her statement meaningless. Several books will tell you that the success of this duo is due to them working together, but you will quickly see that Twilight does not need Lauren at all. There are times when Lauren is disadvantaged because she does not have magical powers like Twilight, and it feels like the conflict could have been easily solved if Lauren was written out entirely. I am okay with Twilight being an independent hero, but when the book series tells me Lauren and Twilight need each other, I call nonsense on that nonsense! Lauren is treated with much more scene time than she deserves, which ultimately makes the story weaker, despite her lack of strengths or advantages making her useless.

Nevertheless, my last problem with My Secret Unicorn is that I do not understand why Lauren cannot tell anymore about Twilight? If you look at fantasy/supernatural stories regarding secret identities and objects, you realise that they do not keep secrets for the same reason – their reasons need to make sense to the story. For example, Fetlocks Hall kept its unicorn side secret because it wanted to keep itself away from prying eyes and the potential villains could do if that happened – and that made sense because it was a well-respected school with high fees and A-standard students. In My Secret Unicorn, we are never told or shown why Lauren has to keep Twilight a secret. There is nothing at stake if she does since there is no villain or massive threat, there is a memory wipe potion introduced in Book #3 so there is no more prolonged tension in the story. Lauren at the end of the series is given the position of Keeper Of Magic where she has to help and look over other Unicorn Friends (which is barely explained and raises far too many questions) which ruins the point of keeping unicorns secret, to begin with.

Even if we assume that keeping unicorns secret is to protect Lauren’s friends and family, telling certain people would help with that. There are several times where Lauren struggles strictly because no one knows that Twilight is a unicorn, and if she told certain people, it would make her life 10x easier. When you go off of tropes of a genre, but those tropes go against the particular story you’re telling, it feels lazily thought-out.

To conclude, this has been one of the most disappointing childhood revisits I have ever had because My Secret Unicorn does not hold up very well in my eyes. It has unlikeable and underutilised characters, rushed pacing that overlooks essential beats, and an adventure that lacks fun. Everything is hollow, offensive, or unpleasant. I honestly never expected myself to dislike “My Secret Unicorn” before re-reading it. It had a fun idea, but it failed in its execution.

[Victoria Simcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very fun book to read with my daughter. We both enjoy magical stories and the fact that this one is about a pony that turns into a unicorn...well what can be better then that, especially for a young girl who loves and dreams of horses. This is the first in a series of books and they all tend to have a moral lesson to learn from.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my ABSOLUTE FAVOURITE book series as a child, and I'm still in LOVE with it at 18!! It is PERFECT for children and full of magic. Seriously, I love this series so much that my copies are very worn and torn.

[Bobbie J · Rating 5 out of 5]

coooooollllllllllllllll

[Kristy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My daughter loved this book! It was a fun one for us to read together before bed and while anxiously waiting for school to start! She can't wait to get the next one from the library!

[DESTINY FLEMINGS]

TO ME IT IS A GOOD BOOK SO FAR...

[Noelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I like The Magic Spell because it was exciting. I like books with animals in them. And I love unicorns."

[Sanya]

pretty much a series for younger kids (ages 6-10, maybe) but it used to be my favorite :)