Review: The Great Brain Robbery

It is two months since Suzy’s first adventure into the Union of Impossible Places, the events of which are told in The Train to Impossible Places.   She has missed her friends from Trollville, so is incredibly excited to receive a secret invitation to re-join The Impossible Postal Express.

When Suzy arrives in Trollville, she is reunited with her friends, the crew of the Postal Express, and is overjoyed to be taking on her role as Postie again!  But, of course, things do not run smoothly.  Just as the train is about to be inaugurated by the wonderfully eccentric Troll King, the first earthquake ever to shake Trollville occurs, and chaos ensues as everyone in the city is put in danger.

I absolutely adored the sense of community spirit and resilience amongst the citizens of Trollville as they immediately begin to pull together to repair the damage to the city. After all, they are masters of invention.

Whilst trying to find a part to make a repair, Suzy inadvertently stumbles on an unsavoury creature whose villainous plan may very well destroy the city which she has come to view as a second home.  Not being one to accept defeat, Suzy finds herself in a race against time – with the aid of her friends – to foil his plan and save Trollville, and the rest of the Union from destruction.

This is an incredibly fast-paced, magical adventure which utterly enchanted and delighted me as it led me on a thrilling journey, full of danger and discoveries which are just so cleverly interspersed throughout the story that I had just had to keep reading, especially as many chapters ended on cliff hangers which made this an unputdownable book. 

The world-building is incredibly rich and fizzing with inventiveness; it is enhanced even further by the delightful images by Flavia Sorrentino.  I absolutely loved being shown the city of Trollville, Cloud Forge and the Uncanny Valley. 

This story felt like going home as I got to catch up with many of the wonderful characters from the first book, including Suzy’s best friend and Postmaster of the Postal Express, Wilmot; Ursel who is a very protective bear; and, members of the Old Guard who are retired from the Postal Service. 

Suzy is a truly wonderful young girl.  She has a deep-seated interest in physics and is fascinated by Troll technology which is a fusion of science and magic (fuzzics).  She is strong-willed, ingenious and brave, prepared to risk her own safety to protect her friends.  I adored the camaraderie between the friends:  their friendship was filled with warmth, humour and an overwhelming desire to look out for each other, no matter the consequences. 

I loved the title of this book, but I don’t want to spoil it by explaining why it is called The Great Brain Robbery – just read it and find out!  This is a perfect magical adventure for children of 8+.  I really hope I get to join Suzy on the Postal Express again.

Thank you to Toppsta and Usborne Publishing for a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.