With the Harry Potter phenomenon sweeping the globe, JK Rowling and her young wizard have reached icon-status with both children and adults. The book that kicked it all off was Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, sparking a frenzy in the playground and pushing both book and author to the top of the charts. It is this book that provides that basis for this cracking board game, providing perfect fodder for the Potter-starved as they await the next instalment of the boy-wizards story. To set the scene: imagine you are a student at Hogwarts and your first task is to solve a classic "whodunit". Was it Harry himself who conjured the Locotmotor Mortis Spell in the History of Magic Class? Or perhaps Draco Malfoy conjured the Forgetfulness Potion in the Transfiguration class? Or maybe Hermione broke the rules and conjured the Wingardium Leviosa Spell in Filch's office...
The aim of the game is to be the first person to solve the mystery, using the rolling of the dice and the "Hogwarts cards" to determine where their sorting hats move around the board, gradually eliminating all the options until the truth is revealed by the winning player.
Superb fun for the entire family, Mystery at Hogwarts is a modern day take on an old-fashioned board game, with plenty of twists of plot to keep the keenest of board-game players on their toes. And the real joy of this particular game is that you don't have to be a complete Harry fanatic to enjoy it, which means that mum, dad, siblings, grannies--anyone you can think of--can all sit down together to join in the fun.
But for the true fan this is a must: fantastic artwork adds a touch of class to the game board itself bringing Hogwarts to glorious, glossy life while the gaming cards feature images of the best-loved (and hated!) characters from the bestselling books, cleverly adding a new dimension to the legend of Harry Potter.
Mystery At Hogwarts makes a just about perfect gift for any child (or, let's face it, adult!) who loves the Harry Potter stories, providing great, classic entertainment for the whole family.--Susan Harrison
