Mystery of the Cupboard Book

Omri finally discovers the complex history of the cupboard which has the ability to bring plastic figures to life in this fourth book in the series.

His parents decide to move to the country. At first he's appalled that they would uproot the family just because this mother has inherited a cottage from a distant relative. Then it's his father's turn to be appalled - the cottage is a centuries-old Dorset longhouse with a thatched roof. And the thatch needs repairing - urgently. And at phenomenal expense.

Gradually Omri comes to suspect that the house has something to do with the mysterious cupboard he's locked up in a bank for safekeeping after it causes so many terrible problems in a previous book.

In a clump of thatch, he discovers a carefully wrapped journal written by a former owner of the house. As he reads the spidery brownish handwriting, he comes to understand the mind of an actress who lived by her wits and psychic abilities many years before. But who was so jealous of her sister that her revenge on her twisted to hurt those she loved.

A nice wrap-up to the series. Even though, on reflection, the story is somewhat contrived to take account of all the events in the previous books, it doesn't really feel that way while reading it.