ORACLES OF DELPHI KEEP
by Victoria Laurie
A tedious, overstuffed addition to the crowded field of juvenile fantasies. Ian is the archetypal Plucky Orphan Lad, adventurous, rule-bending, devoted to his loves-her-like-a-sister Theo and with a knack for conveniently overhearing crucial conversations. When a forbidden excursion unleashes a hellhound upon 1938 Dover, sinister forces begin to circle about in a way that threatens Armageddon. Can our daring Hero, his intrepid Best Chum, the Girl with the Narrative-Advancing Visions and their various one-note Adult Accessories possibly collect sufficient plot tokens to Save the World (or at least kick off a series)? Rather than carefully craft a realistic world with a consistent magical aspects, the author chooses to throw prophecies, extrasensory perception, Greek mythology, gypsy fortunetelling, Druids, crystal vibrations, elemental thaumaturgy, Nazis, pseudo-scientific technobabble—everything but vampires and space aliens—at the story, in the hope that something might stick. Ludicrous historical blunders and a tin ear for period British usage don’t help, but the real failing is the lumbering pace, as potentially suspenseful episodes are dragged down by exhaustive descriptions of generic minutiae. Unnecessary. (Fantasy. 10-14)