The MacDevon and Fergus, his dog, are old. For years they have lived together in Castle Keep, a tower rising from the waters of the loch, surrounded by the mountains and hills of the Scottish Highlands. The landscape too is old and they share their home with one of the Old Things of the world - the Boggart. Centuries old, the Boggart has always lived with the MacDevon clan. One morning the Boggart finds himself alone. The MacDevon, the last of his line, and Fergus pass away. The Boggart, a mischievous creature, always playing tricks and practical jokes, no longer has anyone to tease and begins to mourn the passing of his companions.

Emily and Jessup Volnik live three thousand miles away in Toronto. Facing the prospect of a city-bound summer holiday they hear that their mother has inherited Castle Keep from the MacDevon. And so they begin their long journey to discover their new inheritance - a true Scottish castle and all it contains. And it contains the Boggart! They travel with their parents to Scotland and meet Tommy Cameron who lives at the side of the loch that contains Castle Keep. Tommy knows about the Boggart, but the Volnik family are not destined to stay in Scotland and, looking for a comfortable place to sleep, the Boggart finds a cosy corner in one of the pieces of furniture chosen by Emily to be shipped to Toronto.

Finding himself in Toronto, the Boggart is soon up to his old tricks with new friends to tease and play tricks on. But his new home is a modern city, not the old haunt of Castle Keep, and Boggarts and modern technology are a recipe for disaster - and that is what the Boggart creates! At school with Jessup, he causes mayhem in the ice hockey game. Halloween is a real surprise for the Boggart - but nothing to the surprise the Boggart has for the Volniks! The Boggart causes mischief at home, at Robert Volnik's theatre, Maggie Volnik's shop and the city of Toronto itself suffers at the hands of his mischief.

Despite discovering the delights of ice-cream, fudge-sauce and pizza, the Boggart becomes increasingly homesick for Castle Keep, the mountains and the loch. Discovering the existence of the Boggart it is up to Emily and Jessup and their friends - The Gang of Five - in Toronto and Tommy in Scotland to get the him safely home. With the aid of their beloved computers, they devise an ingenious way of transporting the Boggart back to his Castle Keep home.

I loved the Boggart! Anyone who has been a fan of Susan Cooper's writing for any length of time must, like me, have been keenly awaiting the arrival of The Boggart. For me it was the first new book I had read since Seaward, eight years or so earlier. I loved it. I particularly liked the mix of the Old World and Old Magic that permeate Susan's other works and the modern technological world of the computer and the city of Toronto.

For anyone who has never read Susan's books before, this is an exciting and enjoyable way to begin the tremendous voyage of discovery of Susan's other books, including the Dark Is Rising series. The Boggart is funny, touching and contemporary. Growing up as I did with the Dark Is Rising books, The Boggart marks a distinct departure in the settings and characters of her previous work. But this is a fantasy novel and as Susan herself states, that is where she is best at home when writing.

You can read more about Susan Cooper on writing The Boggart here.