BOOK BLURB:1910. A cabin north of the Arctic Circle. Fifteen-year-old Sig Andersson is alone. Alone, except for the corpse of his father, who died earlier that day after falling through a weak spot on the ice-covered lake. His sister, Anna, and step-mother, Nadya, have gone to the local town for help. Then comes a knock at the door. It's a man, the flash of a revolver's butt at his hip, and a mean glare in his eyes. Sig has never seen him before but Wolff claims to have unfinished business with his father. As Sig gradually learns the awful truth about Wolff's connection to his father, Sig finds his thoughts drawn to a certain box hidden on a shelf in the storeroom, in which lies his father's prized possession - a revolver. When Anna returns alone, and Wolff begins to close in, Sigs choice is pulled into sharp focus. Should he use the gun, or not?
REVIEW:
Whenever you get a Marcus Sedgewick novel you know that your going to get something special, what he tends to focus on is the principle character and those around, throwing them into a situations and seeing how they get out of it as well as delving deeper into the psyche. Which he does well in this novel as we dive into the life of Sig Anderson who lost his father and faces great danger as his family runs for help. Its well written, its pretty gripping and the reader really is left wondering which way it will go. A novel of personal exploration of emotional impacts and a tale that really will stay with the reader.
BOOK BLURB:Meet the wonderfully weird Otherhand family and their faithful guardian, Edgar the raven, and discover the dark secrets of Castle Otherhand.
Edgar is alarmed when he sees a nasty looking black tail slinking under the castle walls. But his warnings to the inhabitants of the castle go unheeded: Lord Valevine Otherhand is too busy trying to invent the unthinkable and discover the unknowable; his wife, Minty, is too absorbed in her latest obsession - baking; and ten-year-old Cudweed is running riot with his infernal pet monkey. Only Solstice, the black-haired, poetry-writing Otherhand daughter, seems to pay any attention. As the lower storeys of the castle begin mysteriously to flood, and kitchen maids continue to go missing, the family come ever closer to the owner of the black tail...
First in a brand new six book series of tales of mystery (with a touch of goth-froth) for 9 year olds from bestselling author, Marcus Sedgwick. With quirky black and white line illustrations from new talent, Pete Williamson.
REVIEW:
Personally not a tale I really got behind and whilst I did enjoy another offering by this author I had a hell of a time getting into it. It was well written, the cast a weird and unusual bunch but something about the whole thing just didn’t gel for me, the likability factor on the principle protagonists, after all they’ve got to have one to keep the reader amused. A great shame as I was all ready to be taken to a place I’ve not been before. I’ll still keep an eye on Marcus’ other work but sadly for me, I’ll be giving this one a miss.
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