Meg Murry and her friends become involved with unearthly strangers and a search for Meg's father, who has disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government.

Magically transported to southwest China to find the final object needed to break the spell on the wizard Merlin's beloved penguin, Jack and Annie take a side trip to the world's largest giant panda reserve.

"When Mia first learned she had superpowers, there was one ability that always came rather naturally: freezing time and people! So, when she finally learns the secret to controlling it, she's excited to put her new skills to the test. But when she ends up accidentally freezing the entire town, will she find a way to make the clock start ticking again?"--

Eleven-year-old Olive finds herself drawn to the grimoire of the witches who built her house and tries to use its spells to uncover the house's magic and control the cats themselves, but the book is more wicked than it seems.