A fast-paced, enjoyable entrée to this mystery/adventure series.
After stumbling upon a secret compartment in the cabin of their grandfather David McLean, seven cousins decide to investigate its mysterious contents and find out who their grandfather really was.
It falls to DJ to travel to England to investigate his grandfather’s alter ego, Nigel Finch. With only a fake passport, encrypted pages from his grandfather’s journal and a stack of British pound notes, DJ hopes to figure out whether David McLean was a slightly eccentric former businessman or a spy with connections to an infamous group of traitors. Thankfully, DJ’s friend Doris is not only a genial host with a drop-dead gorgeous granddaughter and a priceless vintage Jaguar, but a member of a Sherlock Holmes group that is able to assist him in breaking his grandfather’s secret code. Unfortunately, his newfound knowledge puts him directly in the cross hairs of some deadly adversaries. Part Holmes-ian mystery and part James Bond adventure, DJ’s quest requires both intellect and an unflappable resolve. While the series promises it can be read in any order, DJ’s story is the most complete narrative, providing a framework for the other six. Occasional red herrings are the only misstep in this otherwise solid nod to the British spy and mystery legacy.
A fast-paced, enjoyable entrée to this mystery/adventure series. (Mystery. 10-14)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4598-0543-9
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2014
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...
Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.
Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
Well-educated American boys from privileged families have abundant options for college and career. For Chiko, their Burmese counterpart, there are no good choices. There is never enough to eat, and his family lives in constant fear of the military regime that has imprisoned Chiko’s physician father. Soon Chiko is commandeered by the army, trained to hunt down members of the Karenni ethnic minority. Tai, another “recruit,” uses his streetwise survival skills to help them both survive. Meanwhile, Tu Reh, a Karenni youth whose village was torched by the Burmese Army, has been chosen for his first military mission in his people’s resistance movement. How the boys meet and what comes of it is the crux of this multi-voiced novel. While Perkins doesn’t sugarcoat her subject—coming of age in a brutal, fascistic society—this is a gentle story with a lot of heart, suitable for younger readers than the subject matter might suggest. It answers the question, “What is it like to be a child soldier?” clearly, but with hope. (author’s note, historical note) (Fiction. 11-14)
Pub Date: July 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-58089-328-2
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2010
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