The Great Adversary makes another bid to overthrow God in this Pullmanesque fantasy, set on the haunted Yorkshire coast. In a bid for supreme earthly power, vicar-gone-to-the-bad Obadiah Demurral receives a stolen golden figurine, one of two conduits to control of all Nature. The arrival of Raphah to reclaim it sets in motion a succession of sneaks and chases, involving two young local folk, ruthless, but not irredeemable smuggler Jacob Crane, and a host of supernatural thugs. Taylor changes names, but the major players are still recognizable: Raphah prays to “Riathamus,” who puts in several appearances in various guises to utter such familiar lines as “I will be with you always, even to the end of time,” and dispatches angelic Seruvim at need, while, preceded by fallen angels called Glashan, the radiant Dark Lord Pyratheon appears in time for a climactic but indecisive showdown. Loaded down with meditations on inner faith, and diatribes against human society (particularly organized religion), this doesn’t quite achieve the cosmic sweep for which the author is plainly reaching—but that may come in the sequels. (Fiction. 12-15)
Pub Date: April 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-399-24256-2
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2004
A variety of stories from Jones’some of which have appeared in other volumes in the US and/or the UK—have been newly gathered into this offering, certain to lure fans of the supernatural. The one entirely new story portrays Anne Smith, a girl in bed with mumps. To pass the time she dreams up “Enna Hittims,” a tiny out-of-control superheroine who attacks her own creator and ends up squashed. The other stories, products of a supremely quirky imagination, certainly deserve a new showing. In “The Sage of Theare,” a boy finds himself by stalking his own future. Jones tackles Greek myths in “The Girl Who Loved the Sun,” an exploration of a girl who decides to turn into a tree. In “What the Cat Told Me,” cat lovers will enjoy learning the history of a rather older-than-normal kitty who used her wiles to escape an evil magician. The remaining tales are “The Master,” “Dragon Reserve, Home Eight,” and the typographically-inspired “nad and Dan adn Quaffy.” Those who have a few of these stories collected elsewhere may balk at the purchase, but others will relish the stories. The intriguing introduction illuminates the author’s methodology, including a written admission that she finds ideas everywhere, even in typos. (Fiction. 12-14)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-688-16843-4
Page Count: 141
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1999
In an earnest, preachy tale from Lee (Night of the Chupacabras, 1998, etc.), a Korean-American seventh grader copes with poor teaching in school and rising tension at home. Two years after moving to Minnesota, Jin-Ha’s mother is still trapped in the family apartment, so afraid to attempt English that she’s unable to shop without a translator, and so isolated that she doesn’t know what the F at the top of Jin-Ha’s math test means. Driven by guilt and humiliation, Jin-Ha resolves to study harder; she gets no help from her lazy, inflexible, insensitive (“You Japanese are going to beat our butts”) teacher, but finds an unexpected ally in hunky classmate Grant Hartwig. In public, he calls her a “friggin’ jap math geek,” justifying himself by saying, “That’s how guys are. You have to prove that you can dish it out and take it, too,” but in private he morphs into a patient math tutor. To compound Jin-Ha’s worries, her father takes to coming home late nearly every night with a vague excuse. The situations are resolved amid a welter of confessions (Jin-Ha’s father is working a second job), stern lectures, and fervent promises, capped by a warm, fuzzy Christmas scene. Although often perceptive, this study in cultural acclimation is weighed down by artificial-sounding dialogue and scarily simplistic characters. (Fiction. 10-12)
Pub Date: Sept. 7, 1999
ISBN: 0-380-97648-X
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Avon/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
