Lively, witty, unpretentious , THE FACE IN THE FROST takes us into pure nightmare before we know it - and out the other side. This is authentic fantasy by a writer who knows what wizardry is all about - Ursula K. Le Guin

What a whimsical fantasy! Prospero and Roger Bacon are two wizards, friends for many years, who are suddenly confronted by a nameless horror. The two set out to figure out who's behind the weird happenings and try to stop it.
The writing is very descriptive, frequently funny, and a delight to read. I've read that Mr. Bellairs wrote this in a sort of homage to JRR Tolkien, though it's more of a Tom Bombadil type of story than LOTR. There are some horror elements, some contemporaneous elements, and just a good gentle story. It's a short read but well-worth it for any fantasy lover. ( )

When Ursula Le Guin called it "unpretentious", she got that right. This is much like John Bellairs' other books, except that there are no children in it, and no fun local colour, either. The plot is incoherent, the evil somehow great but easily defeated by a bunch of buffoons. The book does offer some funny magical predicaments, as well as a humorous magical house. I think Bellairs read "The Sword in the Stone" with enjoyment, and decided to make his wizard resemble T. H. White's Merlin, but without the pathos. ( )

The Face in the Frost is by author John Bellairs who specialized in writing spooky tales for young readers. This story totally enchanted me with it’s magic, humor and adventure. The main character, Prospero and his best friend Roger Bacon are elderly wizards in a fantasy land. When a series of supernatural manifestations begin to haunt Propero’s home, the two friends set out on a quest to discover the source of these evil occurrences. On their journey they encounter ghosts, wild beasts, and nightmares of all types, yet these wizards fight back with their magic staffs and chanted spells. They never give up, and their humor never deserts them.

Although this book is for children, and the plot is fairly simple, this author has a wonderful way with words, mixing whimsical fairy tale language and strange inventive wizard words into the flow of the narrative. There isn’t much in the way of violence instead the author creates a sense of danger by bending reality into nightmare scenes and keeping our two wizards in a constant state of dread.

A very short novel of less than 200 pages, The Face in the Frost was a delightful way to spend an afternoon and introduced me to a couple of very lovable wizards. The writing is a blend of dark Gothic and fanciful lightness that at times is spooky and at others silly. I wish I had read this when I was young because I know I would have been totally caught up in this magical tale. ( )

Bellairs is best known for his children's books, with an added boost recently from The House With a Clock in Its Walls being released as a movie.

This isn't a kids' book. Not that it contains any inappropriate content, and there are undoubtedly kids who would enjoy it.

This book, though, is aimed at adults who will enjoy the wordplay, the humor that rests on familiarity with things kids the age of Bellairs' usual readers haven't read yet, being aware of who the "other" Prospero is and recognizing the name of Roger Bacon, and...but no. Wait. Kids would enjoy the transition from the comic beginnings to the terrifying opponent.

The basic story isn't remarkable. Two good wizards discover evidence of an evil wizard at work with dark intentions, and set out to stop him. What is remarkable is graceful, elegant, and extremely funny use of language and familiar literary imagery to create a delightfully original and absorbing story for adult readers.

I have a deep and abiding love for this story, and its author, and, weirdly, for the discovery that the women's Catholic college he taught English at for a year, and was deeply unhappy at, was in fact my own alma mater--and that he was fondly remembered there as a good, likable, interesting guy--not by the English department, but by the history department. And specifically, the chair of the history department, who was my adviser.

It's the sort of whimsy that's entirely appropriate for John Bellairs. Who, yes, really was a good, likable, interesting guy.

This story is highly recommended and a lot of fun.

I bought this audiobook. ( )