The Winkleys: A Test of Magic (Paperback or Softback)

When thirteen-year-old Sarah Winkley and her younger brother, Jason, visit their Aunt and Uncle in Elora, Ontario, they expect a peaceful summer. Instead, they are thrust into a magical conflict hidden deep within the Gorge's caves.

Sarah's powers-including time manipulation and telekinesis-suddenly awaken, drawing the siblings into a world of ancient secrets. Discovering a hidden Rainbow Garden and Aeolyn, a magical dwarf who becomes their guide, they learn that this magic runs deep in their family bloodline, tracing back to their ancestor, Sarah Jane McPherson.

But a dark history is resurfacing. Schrank, a ruthless developer serving a shadowy Dark Lord, is tearing up the landscape and deliberately sickening the surrounding environment to lure Aeolyn out. From a mysterious journal found in the attic to spying devices disguised as business cards, the Winkleys uncover a conspiracy that spans generations.

Aided by their Cousin Margie Lloyd, the siblings must quickly learn to challenge Schrank and the evil forces coming against them. The stakes are dire: a total lunar eclipse is rapidly approaching, a celestial event that will grant the enemy peak power and leave Aeolyn vulnerable.

Can Sarah master her new abilities in time to stop the dark powers? For the Winkleys, the fate of everything rests on this life and death Test of Magic.

Peter Mansell is a writer based in Alexandria, Ontario, originally from Waterloo Region. He spent 35 years teaching drama and many more involved in community theatre and the arts, encouraging young people to trust their imagination and find their voice. After a lifetime devoted to story, he published his first novel at age 80.