Her parents hope that a Greek vacation is just what the doctor ordered for Penny. She’s not getting along at all with her older brother, and she’s so unhappy that she dreads going home – she mopes around and, more importantly, doesn’t eat. Since her mother studied the Classics in university and her father’s mother was from Crete, Penny’s parents decide to bring her to Greece on a special vacation – without her brother.

Penny’s finally learning to relax and enjoy herself her a bit when her parents take her on a tour of the ancient Minoan Palace at Knossos – home of the fabled labyrinth of the Minotaur – but then something strange happens. Penny inexplicable finds herself imitating the beginning gymnastic vault – as the tourists disappear and a crowd cheers fiercely and the dust flies in the bright sunshine and a huge bull charges toward her....

What follows is a first-rate adventure by one of Canada’s most popular writers for young people. Set evocatively in the beauty of Greece and drawing on the mythology that country is so famous for, Taylor spins a rollicking story centred on “the deadly dance,” the ancient tradition that sees young people defying death to dance with furious bulls – all for the amusement of others.

As Penny is thrown into this world, she finds herself not just learning how to stay alive, but learning things that will help her once she gets home – if she ever does.

* Finalist, Rocky Mountain Award, Alberta Young Readers' Choice Award