An effective and exciting conclusion.
The quest that began with The Lighthouse Between the Worlds (2018) continues.
Four days after escaping Somni and its evil, magic-wielding priests, Griffin and Fi have taken refuge on Caligo, one of the eight worlds connected by lighthouse portals. The children learn they are crucial to defeating the priests, who are bent on controlling the magic of all eight worlds. (Earth is one of the eight, and its magic, oddly, is not disclosed.) The priests have now invaded Fi’s home world of Vinea, aided by mind-controlled soldiers from Earth. Fi discovers the greenwitch magic of Vinea has been lying dormant within her and must learn to trust her new power in order to help the resistance back home. Griffin travels to Maris, an oceanic world whose sonic magic may be able to protect Earth from further mind control. The risks are great, but they have no other options. Worldbuilding is vivid, from Caligo’s library, with bear-sized batlike creatures that convey visitors to the multistoried stacks, to Maris, where the inhabitants live on docks suspended above the sea. Third-person narration alternates between Griffin and Fi. Each has a fair balance of accessible strengths and weaknesses. Griffin is white; other Earth humans assume a white default. Greenwitch skin glows green, and Marisians have bronze skin.
An effective and exciting conclusion. (Fantasy. 8-13)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5344-0518-9
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
Full of puzzles to think about, puns to groan at and references to children’s book titles, this solid, tightly plotted read...
When a lock-in becomes a reality game, 12-year-old Kyle Keeley and his friends use library resources to find their way out of Alexandriaville’s new public library.
The author of numerous mysteries for children and adults turns his hand to a puzzle adventure with great success. Starting with the premise that billionaire game-maker Luigi Lemoncello has donated a fortune to building a library in a town that went without for 12 years, Grabenstein cleverly uses the tools of board and video games—hints and tricks and escape hatches—to enhance this intricate and suspenseful story. Twelve 12-year-old winners of an essay contest get to be the first to see the new facility and, as a bonus, to play his new escape game. Lemoncello’s gratitude to the library of his childhood extends to providing a helpful holographic image of his 1968 librarian, but his modern version also includes changing video screens, touch-screen computers in the reading desks and an Electronic Learning Center as well as floor-to-ceiling bookshelves stretching up three stories. Although the characters, from gamer Kyle to schemer Charles Chiltington, are lightly developed, the benefits of pooling strengths to work together are clear.
Full of puzzles to think about, puns to groan at and references to children’s book titles, this solid, tightly plotted read is a winner for readers and game-players alike. (Mystery. 9-13)Pub Date: June 25, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-87089-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: April 2, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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