Does anyone remember this children’s book?

[Feetoflead]

I remember almost nothing about it (helpful 😄) except that I think it was about a child (or children?) from our world who ended up in an alternative magical world. There was a nice/good witch whose name might have begun with M, and a wizard who I think started out as the villain but it turned out was actually a good guy and in love with the nice witch. The only part of the story I can really remember with any clarity was a scene where the wizard protected the witch and the child(ren) from something by enclosing them in a magical bubble? It would have been late 80s when I first read it and I absolutely loved it so would love to find out what it was!

Worst witch?

Definitely not the worst witch although thanks for the suggestion

There is a series of these books if this rings a bell

First one -wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver_Towers

Barbara Sleigh wrote three books in the Carbonel series about two children and a witch’s cat.

I thought Beaver Towers too...
Had been wondering for years and years myself then asked on here about a year ago and got the answer straight away!

Thanks Soutiner, not beaver towers either (although Nigel Hinton came to do a talk at my primary school so I still have a signed copy somewhere - I remember being really scared by the witches revenge!)

Could it be a Diana Wynne Jones?

Beaver towers was bloody terrifying for a series aimed at youngish kids

@Findahouse21 yes! I still remember the part where Philip is home alone at night and sees the witches hand coming in through the letterbox and unlocking the door - gave me nightmares!

Witchend I’m pretty sure it’s not a Diana Wynne Jones as I still have most of hers and embarrassingly still read them from time to time 🙂

There's a book called the book of the brownies where they are protected by a magic bubble. Also the wishing chair books had a child being protected by a magic bubble and flown home in it I think.

Which Witch by Eva Ibbotson?

@Feetoflead

Nothing embarrassing about that.
I read the Diana Wynne Jones books I have quite frequently, along with Malcolm Saville, Monica Edwards, Chalet School...
Last night I reread the dark is rising.
Great books.

I'm probably way off but it isn't gobbolino the witches cat is it?

Not the Michael Molloy series? Time Witches, Witch Trade, Wild West Witches? I think these are early noughties, but the children are enclosed in a glass box at some stage if I recall.

Which witch? Arriman started off looking for an evil witch for a wife to produce a wizard heir so had a sort of BGT style competition. But then fell in love with white witch Belladonna. There was a little boy from an orphanage who got caught up on it and turned out to be a really powerful wizard.

Hi all, thanks for the suggestions- it wasn’t which witch (although I love that book!) or the gobbolino books, and the other ones posted don’t sound right either from a quick google. Beginning to think I imagined it!

Witchend- I re-read the dark is rising every year at Christmas 🙂 love the grey king too

Mr Majeika?

The box of delights?

Might have been one of the adventures within the Wishing Chair or Magic Faraway Tree books??

I'm just wondering if it might be one of the later ones in the Hagbane's Doom series, maybe Tergan's Lair or Feldrog's Sting? (not sure I'm right on the names, long time since I read them and don't have them to check) I think the children get enclosed in a bubble in one book. I haven't got the series still.

Oswain falls in love with the Ice Maiden in the series, but I don't recall either of them starting off being thought as bad. Surin does, I think, but he's not a magician.
Long shot, but thought it was worth suggesting.

I don't think EB would have had characters falling in love in her young children's books!

Lol - not in a raunchy way Bridget 😂
In a chaste 'wants to marry her' kind of way...!

Fairly sure it's not the Enid Blyton ones!

Sounds a not like a Wrinkle in Time?

Maybe the Magicians nephew?