The second and probably the best book in the Cornelius Trilogy has our young dynamic due battling their wits against Hugo Rune and his fairy helper Arthur Kobold. But this time Murphy has the re-invented ocarina and the a-z of the forbidden zones. The portals that lay unseen in London’s streets that lead to another dimension in you will, an inner earth where the Hidden King of the world resides. It’s a treasure hunt that’s all profit for Murphy and his bestest friend Tuppe. The thing is that Hugo Rune, has been kidnapped by the Hidden King and Cornelius must rescue is real Daddy from a certain death. But as we all know with Robert Rankin, things are never quite as they seem on the surface. Just when you think you know where something is going, then a tangent so big comes along and takes you elsewhere. To use the cliché roller-coaster would be a crime. It's much bigger than that. You have so remember that this is Cornelius Murphy and he is the stuff of epics, so he demands an epic story. And boy does he get one here! Reviewed by David V.Baker | 
