Still, in a genre overstuffed with grim dystopias and angst-y Chosen Ones, there’s pleasure to be found in a quiet,...
The finale to a low-key middle-grade fantasy trilogy falters under the weight of earnest moralizing.
Fer is now the true Lady of the Summerlands, oath-bound to serve her people. But there are other Lords and Ladies who would rather rule than serve, and by forswearing their oaths to remove their mesmerizing “glamories,” they have brought a deathly sickness to their realms. Only the half-human Fer can stop the spreading curse of the “stilth,” and that will require trusting in Rook and his brother-pucks—whose very nature is to lie and betray. The magical lands are small and contained, drawn with exquisite attention to detail, which makes the creeping ruin all the more horrifying. Fer remains a likable heroine, having outgrown much of her earlier naïveté while retaining her compassion, bravery and unwavering sense of right and wrong. Rook is an appealing foil as he struggles with unexpected feelings of friendship and loyalty. Unfortunately, the remaining characters are barely sketched, with their personalities changing to serve the convenience of the plot. Too many fortuitous twists and nick-of-time rescues drain the narrative suspense, and the climactic confrontation is less inspiring triumph than wince-inducing bathos (spoiler alert: All you need is love).
Still, in a genre overstuffed with grim dystopias and angst-y Chosen Ones, there’s pleasure to be found in a quiet, gentle—if excessively well-meaning—adventure tale. (Fantasy. 10-14)Pub Date: Dec. 31, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-192109-4
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 19, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2013
A thrilling first installment in an adventurous new series.
An orphaned street urchin is recruited into an elite school for thieves.
In an alternate world where France is the dominant world power, 13-year-old Tom Morgan has had to scrimp, starve, and steal on the streets of London to survive. Born into a workhouse, he doesn’t know anything about his father, while his mother may have been from North Africa. One thing he does know is the sort of cruelty that awaits the poor who are sent to the workhouse, and he’s determined not to go back. But when their camp is raided and his friends are captured by workhouse agents, the only thing Tom can think of is how to get them out. Enter the Corsair, a cunning and mysterious man with a proposition: He wants to recruit Tom into Beaufort’s School for Deceptive Arts. From nabbing treasures to forging identity papers, Beaufort’s promises to teach Tom everything he needs to know to become a Shadow Thief and a member of the Shadow League, the secret global organization that helps keep the world’s political power in balance. But Beaufort’s has its own rules and secrets, and if Tom is to survive long enough to help his friends, he’ll need to figure them out quickly. Clever and gripping, this fast-paced boarding school story will appeal to fans of the Mysterious Benedict Society and Spy School series.
A thrilling first installment in an adventurous new series. (Adventure. 10-14)Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9781665982283
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel.
Sure signs that the creative wells are running dry at last, the Captain’s ninth, overstuffed outing both recycles a villain (see Book 4) and offers trendy anti-bullying wish fulfillment.
Not that there aren’t pranks and envelope-pushing quips aplenty. To start, in an alternate ending to the previous episode, Principal Krupp ends up in prison (“…a lot like being a student at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School, except that the prison had better funding”). There, he witnesses fellow inmate Tippy Tinkletrousers (aka Professor Poopypants) escape in a giant Robo-Suit (later reduced to time-traveling trousers). The villain sets off after George and Harold, who are in juvie (“not much different from our old school…except that they have library books here.”). Cut to five years previous, in a prequel to the whole series. George and Harold link up in kindergarten to reduce a quartet of vicious bullies to giggling insanity with a relentless series of pranks involving shaving cream, spiders, effeminate spoof text messages and friendship bracelets. Pilkey tucks both topical jokes and bathroom humor into the cartoon art, and ups the narrative’s lexical ante with terms like “pharmaceuticals” and “theatrical flair.” Unfortunately, the bullies’ sad fates force Krupp to resign, so he’s not around to save the Earth from being destroyed later on by Talking Toilets and other invaders…
Is this the end? Well, no…the series will stagger on through at least one more scheduled sequel. (Fantasy. 10-12)Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-545-17534-0
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 19, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2012
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