Queen’s mark

Here’s what you need to know about the queen’s mark: You don’t want it. Believe us, it doesn’t matter how cool or impressive it sounds. YOU DON’T WANT IT. Because the Queen’s mark does two things and two things only . . . and neither of them are pleasant.

One, it marks you as one of the Magnificent Twelve, one of the dozen twelve-year-olds destined to save the world from the evil Pale Queen—or die trying. (Yes, die, as in stop breathing, push up daisies, R.I.P., meet your maker . . .)

And two, it marks you as bait (i.e., a tasty little snack) for the Pale Queen’s minions. You might as well be wearing a sign on your forehead that says: KILL ME, MINION! Seriously.

To sum up: Sure, the queen’s mark might be a call to arms. But it is also, in essence, a death mark. So like we said, you don’t want it. Too bad Mack MacAvoy’s already been marked.