Keyholders #1: This Side of Magic

This Side of Magic is the first in a series of light fantasy chapter books set in Morgantown, a town on the border between the real world and the magical world, by the authors of the Publishers Weekly best selling BAILEY SCHOOL KIDS―a series of 50 books with more than 30 million copies sold!

"You are my chosen apprentices," said Mr. Leery.

Penny and Luke aren't sure they want to be apprentice Keyholders. A Keyholder's job, explains their neighbor, Mr. Leery, is to guard the border between the real world and the magical world.

But when they meet their "links"―magical helpers from the other side of the border―they change their minds. Penny's link is Kirin, a sarcastic unicorn. Luke forms a link with a clumsy baby dragon named Dracula.

And just in time! For the evil Queen of the Boggarts is determined to invade their world―and only the Keyholders and their links can stop her.

MARCIA THORNTON JONES enjoys reading more than anything else. As a teacher, her favorite part of the school day was sharing books with her students. It was that love of reading that drew her to writing. She wanted to write the same kinds of stories that she and her students enjoyed reading. One afternoon she mentioned to the school librarian that she'd always had an interest in writing. The librarian, Debbie Dadey, shared a common desire to write stories that would encourage reading skills while promoting a true joy of reading. The next afternoon, Marcia and Debbie met while their students were at lunch and began writing. That story, Vampires Don't Wear Polka Dots, became the first book in their bestselling series, The Adventures of the Bailey School Kids.

Marcia lives in Lexington, Kentucky with her husband, Stephen, and their two cats.

DEBBIE DADEY taught first grade before becoming a librarian. It was while teaching that she first realized how much she wanted to write a book for reluctant readers. Her first book, co-authored with fellow teacher Marcia Thornton Jones, was the result of a very bad day. Since then, Debbie and Marcia have collaborated on more than 125 books with sales of over forty million copies.

Debbie lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania with her husband, three dogs, and three children.