What makes 11-year-old Balthazar's eccentric family of magicians unusual is the fact that they actually have magical powers. Only Balthazar lacks the family talent. So when the entire family except Balthazar disappears during a local dinner theater performance it's up to him to find them. To try to free his loved ones Balthazar must work with some questionable characters, including a long-lost lunatic uncle, three enigmatic senior citizens and the loathsome Pagan Fistula.At the center of these disappearances is a force so evil that the world's most preeminent magicians cower before it. What hope could a ragtag crew of misfits have against it? This wildly imaginative debut novel uses magic, humor and high adventure to reaffirm some fundamental family values.