Review: The Clockwork Conspiracy

*Written by Sam Sedgman*
*Illustrations by Stephanie Shafer*
*Published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books*

The Clockwork Conspiracy is a gripping, enigmatic and fast-paced adventure brimming with danger, daring and deceit.

Twelve-year-old Isaac Turner is helping his father (who is a horologist) in his role as Keeper of the Great Clock (Big Ben) on the night the clocks go back. But, when his father goes to investigate a peculiar occurrence and does not return, Isaac goes to find him only to discover that his father, Diggory, has vanished, leaving only his broken pocket watch, and an enigmatic message, behind.

It is not long before Isaac meets Hattie, the daughter of his Godfather, Solomon Bassala, and Speaker of the House who lives in the Palace of Westminster as Solomon offers him a place to stay whilst a search ensues for his father.

Not willing to wait for the authorities to discover what has happened to Diggory, Isaac and Hattie, are determined to carry out their own investigation to find him and discover why he has been taken. And so begins an incredible, action-packed and intricate adventure as the two friends unravel cryptic clues and follow a twisty puzzling path, towards the discovery of a devious plot.

As they race through London landmarks, and over its rooftops, to save Diggory and time itself, they find themselves in increasing peril as someone will stop at nothing to implement a new law that will change the nature of time itself. Can these two determined children use their ingenuity to unmask the mastermind behind a dastardly play for power? Can they save those they love before time runs out for them?

I loved the political machinations, the secret society, the false trails, the code-breaking, the science of time through horology and chronometry and the many twists and turns that kept me on the edge-of-my-seat. I also loved learning more about the Palace of Westminster and thought this was perfectly weaved into the plot. Absolutely gripping and fascinating in equal measure.

An exhilarating, intriguing, locked-room mystery perfect for adventurers of 9+.

Thank you for the Publisher, Bloomsbury Children’s Books and NetGalley for providing me with an e-copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review: The Ice Children

The Ice Children is a magical, mesmerising, wintery read with a timely underlying ecological message, and is a story that completely captured me.

Five-year-old Finn Albedo is found frozen in the city rose garden with his feet encased in a pedestal of ice. Although he cannot be awoken, his heart is still beating, but can he be saved by the love of his older sister, Bianca, as she determines to investigate what has happened to him – and the other children who are appearing frozen. Could it be something to do with a mysterious silver book and a group of strangers who rely on the coming of winter for their existence? Bianca, using all her ingenuity and courage, finds herself in a beautiful and dangerous winter wonderland where she endeavours to save the ice children, and winter, before time runs out …

This is a stunning adventure – a modern fairytale – drawing on well-known tales including The Snow Queen and The Selfish Giant but with a fresh twist to include an important and timely ecological message. I loved the setting of Winterton with its snow queen fortress, fairground, circus and companion creatures, especially the reindeer, Pordis. Like all fairytales, the magic has an underlying darkness, but there is also hope that there can be a better future when action is taken.

I found Bianca an incredibly sympathetic character who clearly loves her little brother and desperately wants him back home with her and their parents. She is courageous, determined and empathetic and comes to understand that the ice children are not the only ones in danger of no longer existing in our world. She shows kindness and understanding and brings hope when it appears to be lost. I also loved that she believes in the power of stories to change the world!

The illustrations are absolutely stunning and add to the magical quality of the storytelling perfectly.

This is a truly mesmerising, magical modern fairytale that is just perfect for young children to enjoy this winter, hopefully whilst the snow swirls outside.

First Lines Friday

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Finally… reveal the book!

The dark shape of Highbury House was getting closer and closer. Justice told herself that she knew the place now – its turrets and spooky ramparts no longer had the power to scare her. But the school was a daunting sight in the twilight, looming up out of the flat marshland, birds – or possibly bats – circling the four towers.

Any ideas?

I loved Justice’s first murder mystery, and am really looking forward to delving into her next case.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Justice Jones, super-smart super-sleuth, is back for her second spine-tingling adventure! For fans of Robin Stevens, Katherine Woodfine and Enid Blyton.

When Justice returns for spring term at Highbury House, it’s not long before murder is back on her mind. Assigned to look after the elderly Mr Arthur in Smugglers’ Lodge on the other side of the marshes from school, Justice is initially dismayed. But dismay quickly gives way to intrigue as she finds herself drawn to Mr Arthur and his stories of piloting in the First World War – and especially when Dorothy, who lives nearby, tells her that the lodge is haunted.

But when Mr Arthur dies in mysterious circumstances, Justice soon has a list of questions in her journal: why hasn’t he been given a proper military funeral? Why does the new Matron not seem to know much about First Aid? And what secrets does Smugglers’ Lodge really hold?

Justice sets out to uncover the deadly truth in this brilliant follow-up to A Girl Called Justice.

Did you guess the book? Have you read this or A Girl Called Justice?

A Girl Called Justice

Take a handful of hidden notes, a dash of secret meetings, a light dusting of deaths and kidnappings, and a sprinkling of clues at just the right moments and you have the perfect ingredients for this arresting mystery.

I really enjoyed this action-packed story which has a perfect blend of tension and intrigue throughout. Justice Jones has been sent to Highbury House Boarding School for the Daughters of Gentlefolk, where she soon suspects a crime has been committed. Not surprising as she is the daughter of a criminal barrister, and her recently deceased mother was a crime writer.

Justice is a curious, clever, determined super-sleuth who is intent on solving the mystery of the murdered maid which leads to her tenaciously following her suspicions … and uncovering hidden secrets.

As Justice, who has been home-schooled, settles in to boarding school life, she forms some wonderful friendships, and comes to rely on these friends to help catch the criminal which, of course, leads to dangerous situations for them all.

The setting for this story is perfect: an isolated Gothic mansion on the edge of a marsh with its own haunted tower, basements, attics and creaky staircases. This really helps with tension-building, especially when they are cut off by a snowstorm with no apparent form of communication with the outside world.

I would highly recommend this to any 9+ fans of detective stories.

Thank you to NetGalley and Quercus Children’s Books for an e-ARC of this book.