Tag: Adventure

Dead Lock by Simon Fox, reviewed by Oliver (10)

Simon Fox has produced an outstanding book called Dead Lock.  After reading the first chapter, I was hooked or should I say “locked in!” 

Every chapter ended with a cliff hanger and I couldn’t put it down or wait to turn the next page.  Simon Fox’s storyline was so gripping – I felt I was with Archie on his thrilling adventure throughout the story.  If you are a fan of Alex Rider, then you are sure to love this!

“If you are a fan of Alex Rider, then you are sure to love this!”

Oliver (10)

Archie Blake and his dad share a useful skill – they can pick locks. After the loss of his mother, together he and his father have lock picking competitions to see who can pick a lock the fastest. His dad is a policeman and he works for the art crimes department.  Archie’s whole world falls apart when his dad is arrested for the theft of a diamond necklace. 

Archie decides to go on the run and to prove his father is innocent – but he only has 48 hours to do so. His only option is to go to the safe house where he meets a girl called Bunny who helps him with his quest. Together they fall deeper into the twists and turns of jewel heists and police corruption.  Maybe his dad wasn’t as innocent as he thought?

I think this book would be a great read for 9 to 12 year olds.  Packed with thrills and dangerous feats I guarantee you won’t be able to put it down!

Fablehouse by E.L.Norry, reviewed by Niamh (10)

Fablehouse is a brand-new gripping middle-grade series by E.L. Norry. She’s already known for writing fantastic stories that tell the untold tales of black children in history and her first book, Son of the Circus, was previously shortlisted for the Diverse Book Awards. 

Set in a children’s home for ‘Brown Babies’, mixed-race children born to black US army soldiers and white British mothers after the Second World War, the story follows Heather and her friends as they fight evil fae and stop everyone living in Fablehouse from being replaced by changelings.  

Fablehouse draws on E.L. Norry’s own personal experiences as a mixed-race child growing up in the care system in Cardiff, although we don’t know if she was battling fae during her childhood!

Niamh (10)

After they help injured Palamedes (also known as Pal), a black knight who served King Arthur, they are tasked with the quest to prevent his old friend, ‘The Champion’, from leading the fae to take control over the whole world!

I loved this book! It deals with real-life serious issues, while also telling a magical, exciting adventure story. I couldn’t put the book down after the changelings began to appear, which were fae left in the place of children living in the care home that talked in a low, threatening hissed voices.

Fablehouse draws on E.L. Norry’s own personal experiences as a mixed-race child growing up in the care system in Cardiff, although we don’t know if she was battling fae during her childhood! I was furious at the horrible way the local children treated Heather and friends in the book because they were mixed-race. 

I recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure, folklore, magic and wants to learn more about the experiences of mixed-race children born post-WW2. I’m delighted there will be more books in this series and I can’t wait to find out what happens Heather and her friends next. 

I’ve got tickets to see E.L. Norry, Lizzie Huxley-Jones and Ross Montgomery at the Edinburgh International Book Festival this summer and I can’t wait to tell them all in-person how much I love their books! 

Perfect for fans of: Vivi Conway & The Sword of Legend by Lizzie Huxley-Jones; and The Chime Seekers by Ross Montgomery 

Vivi Conway and the Sword of Legend by Lizzie Huxley-Jones, reviewed Niamh (10)

Vivi Conway and the Sword of Legend is the first book in a new exciting, fantasy middle grade series by Lizzie Huxley-Jones. They most recently were a contributor to the Being an Ally World Book Day Title in 2023. The bright and beautiful cover is drawn by the award-winning author and illustrator Harry Woodgate.

The book follows Vivi Conway, an autistic girl with a passion for Welsh mythology. Not only does she have to deal with moving with her mums away from their rural home in Wales to loud, busy London, she’s got a magical destiny to fulfil, a cranky talking ghost dog that’s come into her life and a plague of mysterious creatures to battle! 

After having bullying problems in the past, she must learn to trust her newfound friends and work alongside them to defeat an evil threat to our world…

“It deals amazingly with how it feels to be autistic while still trying to save the world.”

Niamh (10)

Vivi Conway and the Sword of Legend has all the ingredients for the perfect story. It has non-stop excitement, fascinating legends from Welsh mythology, warm and loveable characters that you’d love to know in real-life, and it ends on a cliff-hanger. It also features LGBTQ+ and disabled characters, and deals amazingly with how it feels to be autistic while still trying to save the world. 

Lizzie Huxley-Jones is non-binary and autistic and they draw from their own experiences in the book, including having been bullied. I really liked that the character Dara is introduced by their pronoun ‘they/them’ immediately without any explanation.  

I loved the part in the science museum because it was really exciting! After getting to know all the characters, I grew to love them all, especially the ghost dog Gelert! 

I couldn’t put the book down and read it all in one weekend! Vivi Conway and the Sword of Legend is one of the best books I’ve ever read!!! I’m so glad it’s a series of books, as I can’t wait for the next one to come out! 

Perfect for fans of: Like a Charm by Elle McNicoll; Like a Curse by Elle McNicoll; and Jayben and the Golden Torch by Thomas Leeds. 

(Illustration above by Niamh)

The Girl Who Broke The Sea by A. Connors, reviewed by Farrah (16)

Lily, who has deep-rooted emotional problems, has an outburst which leads to expulsion from her school. In a desperate attempt at helping Lily and saving their family, her mother accepts a research job on a deep sea, mining rig (Deephaven), with Lily in tow.

The setting of Deephaven was unlike anything I have ever read before. It was an incredible backdrop for this story, providing a creepy, stark surrounding, to amplify the tensions and conflicts, as well as Lily’s internal battles.

Farrah (16)

Initially Lily feels just as unbalanced and isolated there as she did topside, but as the story unfolds, and she discovers more about her surroundings (and the suspicious nature of certain events), Lily gradually grows and adapts to her new-found environment. She begins investigating the death of a scientist on the rig, suspecting that his death is not all it seems, and discovers many enlightening things. With a blossoming friendship under her belt, Lily goes on a multitude of deep-sea exploits, ending up in several death-defying circumstances, as she attempts to untangle a web of mysteries, lies, and fascinating scientific discoveries. 

The setting of Deephaven was unlike anything I have ever read before. It was an incredible backdrop for this story, providing a creepy, stark surrounding, to amplify the tensions and conflicts, as well as Lily’s internal battles. The worldbuilding was expertly crafted, and you will be able vividly picture all of the action in your mind’s eye. 

Lily is a compelling main character, whose growth you root for, as you follow along with her identity- asserting journey. This fast-paced sci-fi thriller will have you enthralled, and on the edge of your seat, as you venture to the depths of the sea, with both villainous and courageous characters alike. 

I would recommend this novel to fans of ensnaring mysteries, as well as lovers of sci-fi and anything that will question and engage your mind. 

Wren by Lucy Hope, reviewed by Aysha (11)

This thrilling historical adventure story is set in Wren’s ancestral home in Anglesey, in North Wales in 1870. 

Wren is not like other girls, she is adventurous and she likes taking risks. One day, Wren hears a strange noise coming from the walls of her house. A song or a call? Later at  breakfast, her strict father tells her there was no sound and tells Wren that he is planning on sending her to Boarding school where she will learn how to behave like a proper ‘lady’. 

“I loved this book as I never thought that it would have so much to the story…”

Aysha (11)

Wren notices a letter left on the table from a famous French inventor who built a flying bird and includes his plans. Deciding to escape from her home, Wren decides to build the flying bird in order to escape. Wren gathers the equipment, and with some help from her friend, they make it. However, the day she decides to use it, the weather is terrible and she lands in the cold sea, but when she was up in the sky, she spotted something…

What could it be?

I loved this book as I never thought that it would have so much to the story. I would recommend this book for 10-13 year olds but I think there should not be an age restriction on books so if you are an adult, go for it too!

(Cover illustration fan art by Aysha)

Peanut Jones and The Twelve Portals by Rob Biddulph, reviewed by Aysha (11)

Peanut Jones, her friend Rockwell, her sister Little Bit and the pencil that can make drawings come to life go on their second adventure. This time to try and stop Mr White (the baddie) from making the world and the illustrated city colourless and also to try and get famous paintings back after they had mysteriously disintegrated.

I loved this book because it had lots of beautiful illustrations on each page.

Aysha (11)

I loved this book because it had lots of beautiful illustrations on each page. It was exciting to read and nerve-wracking too! This would make a great gift to get with Christmas coming up!

Always, Clementine by Carlie Sorosiak, reviewed by Aysha (11)

This story has to be read aloud! 

The story is all about a mouse who someone has stolen from a science lab and placed inside a mailbox.

This story is really good and will make you laugh out loud.

Aysha (11)

What makes this story brilliant is that it is told by Clementine the mouse, who smells of raspberries and is very bright.

Each chapter is a letter she is writing in her head to her friend back in the lab.

She meets wonderful new people and discovers her love for playing chess, while also trying not to get caught by the researchers from the lab.

This story is really good and will make you laugh out loud.

Which Way to Anywhere by Cressida Cowell, reviewed by Evie M (9)

How long can you hold your breath? 

This is a story out of this world… it is dazzling and dangerous, 

come with me if you dare through the Which Way to anywhere!

What is the story about?

This intriguing story is about two thirteen year old twins called Izzabird and K2 O’hero. Their father had mysteriously gone missing when they were little. They have two stepsisters and a stepbrother, called Theo and Mabel, who they don’t like very much and a baby sister Annipeck. Their mother and aunts have magic powers and K2 discovers that he also has a gift that means he can draw maps to other strange universes when he places a cross in the middle of a piece of paper. The cross is a ‘Which Way’ and acts as a gateway to access other planets. 

“The best bit was when Horizabel, full of grace, appears from out of the washing machine with adorable Blinkers her robot!”

Evie M (9)

The adventure really begins when a stranger knocks on the door of their washing machine, a fearsome robot storms their house to destroy them and their baby sister Annipeck is snatched by an evil pirate named Cyril. They are forced to slice an ‘X’ in the air of their world to create a ‘Which Way’ portal to travel through to save their sister by working together and maybe even Everest, the father of Izzabird and K2! They also make new friends on the way including a cheeky robot named Puck and the beautiful, talented Horizabel, but is she really a friend?

My personal favourite character

Horizabel because she is the storyteller of the book and is pretty. She also seems to be good but really… Horizabel is quite fascinating and by far has the best clothing. (Cressida Cowell well done!)

If you liked these books you will love this story too!

Harry Potter or The Magic Faraway Tree then you would love this!

Best bit…

My favourite part was where baby Anniepeck is kidnapped by evil Cyril and when Horizabel, full of grace, appears from out of the washing machine with adorable Blinkers her robot!

The Strangeworlds Travel Agency: The Secrets of the Stormforest : Book 3 by L.D.Lapinski, reviewed by Leontine (11)

The epic final of The Strangeworlds Travel Agency was an amazing book, packed full of adventure, magic and courage. I really enjoyed reading this book and once I started I couldn’t stop reading it.

Flick is really powerful, strong and courageous.

Leontine (11)

The secrets of stormforest are all about Flick and her friends stopping an evil danger from stealing magic. Flick is really powerful, strong and courageous. Together Flick and her friends are unstoppable.

Tristyan is my favourite character because he’s really wise, brave and prepared to do anything to protect his friends and family.

I really liked this book and would recommend this book to all magic lovers.

Unraveller by Frances Hardinge, reviewed by Farrah (16)

Unraveller is a vivid and delightful fantasy novel, which had me gripped from the very first chapter. Featuring Kellen, an unraveller of curses, and Nettle, an individual whose curse was unravelled by Kellen, we follow these characters as they are joined by unlikely allies in a journey to uncover the conspiracy surrounding a band of fugitive cursers. Along the way they travel through the alluring and vibrantly depicted locations of Mizzleport, the Shallow and the Deep Wilds.

It will certainly go down as one of my favourite stories of the year.

Farrah (16)

Covering a variety of topics in this expertly crafted fantasy, this is a book which you will find yourself unable to put down. I loved the vast cast of characters, and the incredible set-up of this fantastical world and its ‘magic system’. From the fearsome creatures inhabiting the Wilds, to the victims of strange curses and their seemingly formidable cursers, these are characters who’s escapades are a joy to read. Nettle’s quiet compassion and Kellen’s vivacious lust for adventure (and often the danger that accompanies it) are enchantingly written.

Lover of the fantasy genre or not, the lyrical writing and engaging characters will entice you in from the get-go. I would highly recommend this book to a large variety of age groups, and it will certainly go down as one of my favourite stories of the year.