The Demon’s Watch
Written by Conrad Mason
David Fickling (eB) £12.99
ISBN 978-0857560292
At the heart of the Middle Islands
Tina Massey
Invisible Assassin:
The Malichea Quest,
Written by Jim Eldridge
ISBN: 978-1408817193
Jake is working as a Junior
Communications Officer in a government department. His life becomes very
complicated when he stumbles across the discovery of a hidden book which
appears to hold an important secret about the future of the world. The plot unfolds to reveal that there are
more books, forming a whole library of hidden knowledge. Each book is guarded by a person or an
organisation, and it’s a dangerous task as Jake’s book and story bring danger
and at least two deaths. This is an exciting spy story which reads like a James
Bond thriller. Jake starts as an
unlikely hero but rises to the occasion to outwit his enemies. The plot moves
quickly, with intriguing twists and turns, and keeps the reader guessing
throughout. The characters are real and
the style is direct and accessible. A very readable adventure story!
Liz Dubber
Talina in the Tower
Written by Michelle Lovric
Orion (eB) £9.99
ISBN 978-1444003383
Michelle Lovric’s latest Venetian
tale is a dazzling mix of magical creatures and fantastical deeds. Resourceful, and sometimes wilful, children
frequently feature in her children’s novels, and Talina is no exception. Taken
by her guardian to live in a remote Venetian tower when her parents
mysteriously disappear, Talina must muster all her guile in order to defeat a
wolf-like breed of Ravageurs who are filled with “baddened magic” and have
epicurean appetites. Befriended by a
colony of cats and aided by her friend Professor Marin’s clever concoctions,
Talina journeys to the isle of the Ravageurs to rescue her parents and save Venice from impending
peril. The narrative moves along at a
cracking pace and is brimming with inventive detail. A hallmark of Michelle’s
Venetian tales is the anecdotal & historical information about Venice which the reader
gathers on the way, with further informative detail in a useful appendix. At
the heart of this absorbing adventure lies a tale of justice and compassion in
the face of cruelty. The richly
embellished language with its comic touches and anthropomorphic characters
makes this a highly satisfying read.
Elaine Chant
The Paradise
Trap
Written by Catherine Jinks
Quercus (eB) £6.99
ISBN: 978-0857386731
The Paradise Trap
perfectly illustrates how your dream holiday can turn into your worst
nightmare. Marcus is horrified when his Mum, Holly, buys a caravan at Diamond Beach Coco ,
Holly’s childhood friend, and her rather eccentric family, Marcus thinks things
may not be so bad after all. That is before he and Coco ’s
son Eddison find a cellar beneath Marcus’ caravan, a cellar with many doors
leading either to everyone’s dream holiday, or their worst nightmare. I really enjoyed this original story. There
is no contrived plot device to get rid of the parents, who are fully involved
in the adventure, adding quirky behaviour; embarrassment for the children, but
laughs for the reader. Their expertise complements the children’s ingenuity to
overcome the many obstacles to their escape. The story moves along at a
thrilling pace, with short exciting chapters making it fun and easy to read.
Any book where the villain is an evil child-eating Siren and the hero is a
genius gamer, has to be worth reading.
Jane
Hall
Agent 21: Reloaded
Written by Chris Ryan
Red Fox (eB) £5.99
ISBN: 978-1849410083
A former SAS officer, Ryan is now
an established writer of both children’s and adult fiction which draws on his
real-life experiences. In this sequel to Agent
21, we catch up with Zak Darke, 14 years old and an orphan, recruited to a
secret government agency to infiltrate situations unsuitable for adult
operatives. Presumed dead by his remaining family after his previous mission,
we find that Zak is alive, and about to be deployed once more. His task this
time is to plant an explosive device on an African ship that will be carrying
diamonds used by the terrorist organisation, Black Wolf, to launder dirty
money. As you would expect, there are plenty of twists, turns, surprises and
gadgets to keep the reader engaged with this page-turner. There are unexpected
allies and resurrected villains in the mix as well. The USP of all Chris Ryan’s
action novels is, of course, that Ryan has really been there and done that. No wonder,
then, that the book is filled with technical and operational detail. So if you
want to learn about AK47s, the bends and STARS (Surface to Air Recovery
Systems) extractions, you’ve come to the right place. Stella
Maden
The Chronicles
of Harris Burdick
Edited by Chris Van
Allsburg
Andersen £14.99
ISBN:
978-1849394086
Fifteen
years ago a mysterious author named Harris Burdick handed in a collection of
beguiling pictures to a children’s publisher and then disappeared completely.
That is what Chris Van Allsburg would like us to believe. Although his style is
so distinctive, it is hard not to conclude that the hand behind the
illustrations for the Burdick sketches was also the perpetrator of that fabulous
picture book, Polar Express. In this
edition of the Burdick mystery, Allsburg has compiled fourteen stories from
major names in the writing world, like Jon Scieszka, Lois Lowry and Stephen
King. Each of the tales was inspired by one of the pictures and the brief
evocative words that accompany them. There is no end to the way in which these
can be interpreted but such classics as ‘Uninvited Guests’, ‘The Seven Chairs’
and ‘The House on Maple Street’, in the hands of these authors, deal with the
loneliness and unease which often pervades modern life and leave us wondering,
like the HB enigma, what exactly is real in this world.
Richard Monte
Crow Girl
Written by Kate Cann
ISBN: 978-1781121214
Lily is a victim in school,
bullied by the girls and ignored by the boys. One evening she escapes into the
woods and feeds some crows. This event is the beginning of her new life! Her
Grandma changes the physical Lily, but the crows change her mentally. Lily
begins to tame the crows so that they follow her and come when she calls. Using
their natural behaviour, they become her allies. Her life is transformed by her
relationship with the crows; she achieves the boyfriend of her dreams and the
bullies are routed. This is a classic tale of a bullied loner who turns the
tables on her tormentors. At the end of the story, there is the feeling that
Lily is relishing her revenge and the reader is left with the niggling feeling
that the bullied is turning into a bully herself, and enjoying it! This is a
good discussion point for readers about the causes and nature of bullying and
what the response should be. This is quite a short story-labelled “dyslexic
friendly”- that entices the reader on, in order to find out what happens. It
ends rather abruptly, so for any real resolution, the reader would need to read
the two sequels Crow Girl Returns and
Crow Girl Rises.
Pat Thompson
Crow Girl Rises
Written by Kate Cann
ISBN: 978-1842999936
One of the Barrington Stoke
specialist books for young people with dyslexia, this book is also a short,
punchy read for any teen. Picking up where its predecessor, Crow Girl left off, this book follows
the next stage of Lily Stansfield’s transformation from bullied outsider to
self-confident protector of others. Using her bond with the local crows, who
she has befriended, Lily puts paid to the bullying ways of the Parkway Girls
once and for all. Along the way, she earns the adoration of the girls she
protects, discovers a talent for costume making, and acquires a boyfriend who
admires her cleverness and difference to others. Lily doesn’t change herself in
order to fit in, she simply makes the most of the person she is to find
creative outlets and like-minded people. Cann delivers a pacey and compelling
read in very few pages, and in direct, straightforward language. She also puts
over very successfully the message that if young people play to their strengths
and find their happiness, they can transform their lives.
Stella Maden
The Seeing
Written by Diana Hendry
Bodley Head (eB)
£10.99
ISBN: 978-0370332130
This is a fabulous book, set in
1953, just eight years after the end of WW2. The prologue sets an intriguing
scene, whose relevance is only revealed at the very climax of the story. The
tale itself opens with a meeting at school, and a subsequent friendship,
between Lizzie and the strange Natalie and her odd young brother Philip.
Natalie lost her father during the war and this event has set in train a
bizarre series of events where she and her brother, who has apparently got
second sight, claim to see into peoples’ hearts and to discover if they are
undercover Nazis waiting to spring into action. Despite her doubts, Lizzie is
almost hypnotised by Natalie. Philip begins to make new friends including an
artist, who Natalie has “identified” and she goes her own way to “eliminate the
enemy”, with tragic consequences. It is a story on many levels, about
friendship with a dominant and manipulative person and about a child, for
Natalie is still a child, who was so traumatised, when quite young, by the loss
of a parent in war, that she devises her own way of getting revenge, using her
own brother’s dubious powers. It’s
brilliant!
Pat Thompson
Body Blow
Peter Cocks
ISBN 978-1406327281
Eddie Savage, 18, is recovering
from the gunshot wounds and trauma of his first foray as a criminal
intelligence agent. Bored in hiding in Stoke-on-Trent, he readily takes on
another undercover job in Spain
disguised as Pedro Garcia, a Spaniard who will be of use to the infamous Kelly
gang. Eddie/Pedro has been rapidly trained in the Spanish language and deadly
combat. Though his looks have been expertly altered, Eddie risks discovery as
it was he who put former gang-leader, Tommy Kelly, behind bars (in the first
title of the series, Long Reach).
Tommy’s brother, Frank, even madder and less predictable, now runs the
operation. The rapid pace, real locations and explosive violence propel the
reader on while quite complex characters and underworld routines make for
credibility.
Tina Massey
Grisha Book 1: The Gathering
Dark
Written by Leigh Bardugo
Indigo (eB) £8.99
ISBN: 978-1780621104
This is the first of The Grisha Trilogy and we are introduced
to two orphans, Alina and Mal, somewhere in Russia . Alina discovers a power that takes her into
the world of the Grisha, the kingdom’s magical elite. The Darkling is the
leader of the Grisha and Alina is attracted to him but knows she must discover
how to unlock her power if she is to save her country and help Mal. The
characters are very strong and the story is fast with lots of intrigue and
excitement. This will really appeal to teenage fantasy fans that will be
looking forward to the sequel.
Ingrid Fox
Burn Mark
Written by Laura Powell
ISBN 978-140881522 9
The ‘burn mark’ is the dark
bloodspot marking a witch. Glory, a young trainee witch of a once-powerful
coven, strives to keep her ability secret as a violent criminal family try to
pressure her into marriage so that they can use her to dominate the whole of
east London .
Meanwhile Lucas, son of the Inquisition’s Witchfinder General, proud to be a
twelfth generation Witchfinder, is appalled to discover his own burn mark.
Lucas and Glory join forces to combat threats from gang members engrossed in
gang warfare, their own families and finally a secret cult of witch haters. The
two allies must learn how to control their gifts, whilst trying to infiltrate
the gangs and to avoid capture and torture. A most unusual novel which sets 20th
Century London criminals, a modern day Inquisition, and the problems of adulthood and being different into complex patterning. At
its heart is a concern for people and compassion for others. Surprisingly
credible, a thoughtful and authentic read.
Tina Massey
Velvet
Written by Mary Hooper
ISBN: 987-0747599210
This is another wonderful story
from a writer of great historical fiction.
The Victorian heroine of this story, an orphan called Velvet, is rescued
from her exhausting job in a steam laundry to become a lady’s maid for the well
known clairvoyant Madame Savoya. Velvet cannot believe her luck and she easily
adapts to her new life, completely believing that Madame’s amazing powers are
quite genuine. As time goes by Velvet becomes aware that there are a great
number of fake mediums operating in London
and she begins to wonder if Madame might also be a fraud, extorting money from
the rich and vulnerable to maintain her expensive lifestyle. Thank goodness
Velvet has a good friend who is a policeman! Although Madame Savoya is a
fictional character it is well known that the Victorians were very interested
in spiritualism and many prominent people, like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,
regularly attended séances. The author has woven a great deal of accurate
historical details into Velvet’s story, but thankfully this does not weigh the
story down.
Jan Lennon
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