Author: BookNook

“This book was astonishingly good. The way it was written was amazing.”

About the book

The third and final adventure in Benjamin Read and Laura Trinder’s magical Midnight Hour series!

‘A fantastic magical adventure featuring a cast of Ghibli-esque characters, a feisty heroine and a hedgehog. I loved it.’ M.G. LEONARD, author of BEETLE BOY on book 1′

Fans of Nevermoor will love this’ THE BOOKSELLER on book 1

‘I haven’t enjoyed this kind of caper so much since Harry Potter’ NEW STATESMAN on book 1

‘Pure delight’ THE GUARDIAN ON BOOK 1

Emily is locked out of the Midnight Hour, and things have grown dangerously dark in Victorian London.

Her friends and family are on the run from the terrifying Midnight Hunt, while the foul Make Britain Dark Again party schemes to break the spell that keeps both worlds safe. It’s going to take more than just Emily’s big mouth to fix this one. But how’s a girl meant to save the day (and night) when she’s all out of snacks and her possibly-magic pocket hedgehog is hibernating?

The ingeniously-plotted finale to the much-loved Midnight Hour trilogy, which began with The Midnight Hour and The Midnight Howl

A hilarious, spooky adventure full of genuine scares and belly laughs! Coraline meets A Wrinkle in Time: all the makings of a modern classic

When Frank John Davenport inherits a small fortune from a dead grandma he didn’t know he had, and instructions to look after his grumpy grandpa, he’s determined to do exactly that. On the internet he discovers a list of things for elderly people to do before they “kick the bucket” (aka the Bucket List), and knows that this is the perfect list of activities for a wacky grandson and his grandpa to attempt. What could possibly go wrong?

The thing is, Grandpa Frank isn’t interested in bonding with his grandson, only in getting a quiet villa somewhere in Spain. Luckily Frank persuades him that a peaceful hot-air balloon ride will be a lot more exciting—especially with a “light” breeze and an unwelcome stowaway called Brenda! After the ordeal, Grandpa Frank certainly thinks he’s lucky to be alive. Throughout their adventure, Frank discovers that although money will buy you swimming and parkour lessons, nothing can truly buy happiness except for love.

I think this book is a great choice for 6-9-year-olds. If you like funny stories about friendship then Grandpa Frank’s Great Big Bucket Listis definitely for you. I would also recommend it to fans of Jeremy Strong’s books but this one is even better.

Like the sound of this book? Why not pop in to the shop during half term week (Sat 12th -19th Feb) and guess the number of biscuits in the jar to try and win a copy? The winner will be announced on 21st Feb.

Marina Minnow is an ordinary girl with an extraordinary imagination. In the quiet seaside town of Merlington, people rarely pay attention to her tales. But one day, one of Marina’s ‘tall tales’ becomes a reality… She meets a strange boy called William, with tentacles that sprout from his head and amber pincers rather than hands. Marina’s whole life is about to be turned upside down as she helps him solve the mystery of his past.

‘The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy’ by Richard Pickard is a heartwarming story full of plot twists and quirks. I absolutely love William and I think that he is a really special, unique character. As well as having quirky physical traits, such as claws which help him to prepare amazing sashimi, William is a fantastic boy with a gentle and caring heart. Another cool feature in this book is that all of the characters (except William) have fish-related names, which I think is really ingenious and funny.

I wanted to read ‘The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy’ straight through to the end as soon as I started it, as it’s such a unique book. At the beginning, there’s a ‘boy who cried wolf’ message about Marina’s tall tales. But the main message of the book is about acceptance – that you should treat someone not based on how they look but on how they act. The fishmongers of Marina’s town treat William like a fish at first, debating which parts of him they would sell. But by the end of the book the residents of Merlington learn to see William for the boy he is.

I adore the beautiful illustrations on the cover and at the start of every chapter, and I think the artist Maxine Lee-Mackie is really talented. Both the clever illustrations and the strange, unique characters in the book remind me of those in the ‘Starfell’ series by Dominique Valente (illustrated by Sarah Warburton) – if you like those books, you would certainly love ‘The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy.’ I would fully recommend this book to all children aged 9+, especially fans of mystery and adventure novels. 

I really liked The Wind Child because it was fun to learn about all the gods and goddesses of Russian mythology throughout the story.

It has lots of adventure and magic in it. The main character Mara is brave and determined and with her best friend Torniv the bear-shifter she’s unstoppable. Mara is also very cunning and that was really good because she would have probably died without it.

This is the story of how Mara sets on a quest to save someone she loves.

The ending is great because it’s really suspenseful and makes you really curious about what was going to happen next.

I would recommend it to all my friends.

About the book

Packed with a colourful Slavic cast of tempestuous gods and frightening monsters, The Wind Child is above all a story about friendship, and how far you would go and what you would sacrifice to avoid saying goodbye to someone you love. 

No human has ever returned from Navia, the Slavic afterlife. But twelve-year-old Mara is not entirely human. She is the granddaughter of Stribog, the god of winter winds and she’s determined to bring her beloved father back from the dead. Though powerless, Mara and her best friend Torniv, the bear-shifter, set out on an epic journey to defy the gods and rescue her father. On their epic journey they will bargain with forest lords, free goddesses from enchantments, sail the stormy seas in a ship made of gold and dodge the cooking pot of the villainous Baba Latingorka. Little do the intrepid duo know of the terrible forces they have set in motion, for the world is full of darkness and Mara will have to rely on her wits to survive.

(This great book is a part of a series so if you like this book maybe consider reading the series! Now back to the book review!)

I loved this book! It’s in the area of mystery and adventure, that I like to read about and it tops the category.

It’s all about a boy called Hal who is a (train) detective along with his Uncle Nat. They are investigating Alexander’s Kratzenstien’s death in Berlin undercover. What’s spooky in this book is that there is an Old Kratzenstien curse at Dead Man’s Pass where Alexander was killed. Do you think that was the curse? (Well obviously I know if it was the curse or not but do you?) While Hal is there, Hal finds out more about Uncle Nat, could it be related to the death and the
curse?

This book is good for people who like Adventures, Murder and are 9+
Hope you liked the book review
See you next time!!!

About the book

Embark on a thrilling fourth adventure in the bestselling, prize-winning Adventures on Trains series – Danger at Dead Man’s Pass , from M. G. Leonard and Sam Sedgman, as Harrison Beck investigates an ancient family curse high in the German mountains. Illustrated in black-and-white throughout by Elisa Paganelli. 

A mysterious letter from an old friend asks Hal and Uncle Nat to help investigate a spooky supernatural mystery. Legend has it the Kratzensteins, a family of rich and powerful railway tycoons, are cursed, but there is no such thing as a curse, is there . . .?

Hal and Nat take the night train to Berlin and go undercover. From a creaking spooky old house at the foot of the Harz mountains, they take the Kratzenstein family’s funeral train to the peak of the Brocken Mountain. Can Hal uncover the secrets of the Brocken railway and the family curse before disaster strikes?

Danger at Dead Man’s Pass can be read as a stand-alone novel, or enjoyed as part of the Adventures on Trains series. Join Hal and Uncle Nat on more stops in this thrilling series with: The Highland Falcon Thief , Kidnap on the California Comet , Murder on the Safari Starand Sabotage on the Solar Express.

This book is about a girl called Flick (short for Felicity) Lions. Her dad ran away so she entered a magic competition to win the thing that will get him back. It is set in the Great Fox’s house in Devon, he is a rich magician who has mysteriously disappeared. On the way she teamed up with Charlie, who is a real chatterbox sometimes. The ending is very, very unexpected, I loved it.

It took me no time at all to get into the Great Fox Illusion. The main character is truly brilliant, she is a one legged, girl magician. The way the author wrote made me feel sympathy for the characters on the other team, even though they were mean to Flick. Though this book wasn’t a thriller it had me eating it whole! 

This is the perfect mix of magic and adventure. I give it five stars. 

About the book:

Secrets and illusions abound as a group of young magicians competes for the prize of a lifetime in this gripping adventure, the first in an enthralling new series from debut author Justyn Edwards.

“Magic is about dreaming what is impossible and making it possible. It’s the innocent young mind in all of us that loves it. We want to be filled with wonder. We want to believe. I want the winner of this competition and the recipient of my legacy to dare to dream big.

So, let the Great Fox Hunt begin.”

Thirteen-year-old Flick Lions has won a place on a new television show, in which young people compete to win the legacy of The Great Fox, one of the world’s most famous magicians. But Flick isn’t interested in uncovering the Great Fox’s tired old magic tricks – she’s after something much more important. The magician destroyed her family, and this is Flick’s only chance to put things right.

Inside the Fox’s house is a secret that will change the world of magic for ever, and Flick will go to any lengths to find it.

The Great Fox Illusion is the first book from Justyn Edwards and the start of a new exciting series, featuring Flick Lions and the world of magic tricks.

13-year-old Flick takes part in a new television programme, where she pairs up with a boy called Charlie Lopez and competes against siblings Harry and Ruby Townsend to win the legacy of a famous magician, called The Great Fox. 

Everyone competing holds their own secret that makes winning the most important thing to them, including Flick’s search for the mysterious Bell System trick to bring her dad back.

I think The Great Fox Illusion is an amazing book, filled with excitement, mystery and an intriguing insight into the world of magic and magicians. It’s also very inspiring that the main character has a prosthetic leg and the story tells you about the challenges of having a disability.

I absolutely love that it explains magic tricks that happened in real-life as part of the plot. After reading about magician David Copperfield making the Statue of Liberty disappear, it inspired me to watch a video of the trick!

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes mysterious, adventure stories and learning new interesting things as they read. It’s a must-read for 2022 and I’m going to suggest it as a class book to my teacher because my friends would love it.

I’m really looking forward to reading the next books in the series and I think the next one should be called The Great Lion Illusion! 

Perfect for fans of: The Nowhere Emporium by Ross MacKenzie; Escape the Rooms by Stephen Mangan; and Escape Room by Christopher Edge. 

About the book:

Secrets and illusions abound as a group of young magicians competes for the prize of a lifetime in this gripping adventure, the first in an enthralling new series from debut author Justyn Edwards.

“Magic is about dreaming what is impossible and making it possible. It’s the innocent young mind in all of us that loves it.

We want to be filled with wonder. We want to believe. I want the winner of this competition and the recipient of my legacy to dare to dream big.

So, let the Great Fox Hunt begin.”

Thirteen-year-old Flick Lions has won a place on a new television show, in which young people compete to win the legacy of The Great Fox, one of the world’s most famous magicians. But Flick isn’t interested in uncovering the Great Fox’s tired old magic tricks – she’s after something much more important. The magician destroyed her family, and this is Flick’s only chance to put things right.

Inside the Fox’s house is a secret that will change the world of magic for ever, and Flick will go to any lengths to find it.