Admittedly, I found the second book in this series to be more engaging than the first. The story picks up in Paris, where Josh, Sophie, and Nicholas Flamel are dealing with Sophie's newfound powers while running from John Dee and Niccolo Machiavelli. I'm starting to gain interest in the saga of Nicholas' wife, Perenelle, as she tries to escape from John Dee's prison in Alcatraz. However, I continue to have difficulty fully connecting with Nicholas Flamel as a wise mentor to the twins, as he usually seems to be unclear about how to solve many situations and relies on the help of other immortal beings. Overall, I'm thinking of reading the third novel in the series simply because it's called "The Sorceress" and I'm hoping it will tell me more about Perenelle Flamel.