Caro King

I liked this book better than the first in the series but I still had some issues with the characterization and level of horror for a middle grade audience. Skerridge, for example, while on the "good team" continues to eat dogs and other innocent creatures which I found upsetting, especially when it's done almost as a throw-away, even as an attempt at something comical (he eats a woman's dog, burps and spits out the metal disk with the dog's name on it). Hard to like a creature like that show more even if he's trying to turn things around. I just felt that would be upsetting to a lot of kids who love their dogs and cats like family. Also, some of the experiments and gruesome details about Strood were pretty horrific and while I'm not against horror and fear in kids stories, this just seemed to cross some boundaries for me.

There were elements of the books that I liked...some creative ideas (loved the glass lions and the mudmen and the idea of new Fabulous being created), and some other things, but something about the writing just felt off to me. Hard to put my finger on exactly what it was. Maybe the unevenness in the the writing for the intended audience, I'm not sure. I read a lot of middle grade and YA books and many are excellent, but this series fell short for me. I actually debated whether or not to finish it at all. Maybe a better editor could've worked with the author to make it a better story with more even style and writing. show less

When Nin wakes up one morning to find that the bogeyman has stolen her little brother, and that nobody else even remembers that she had a little brother, she is determined to do something about it. But then she is catapulted into a wonderful, strange and terrifying otherworld - and staying alive is going to be hard enough without an impossible rescue to pull off as well.

This is something like Wonderland, something like Narnia, but with a streak of Coraline and a dollop of Stephen King. Very show more cool, pacy, complex and (apart from the occasional slightly unnecessary fanfare for 'twists' the average reader will have figured out pages ago) pretty good writing. show less

this was pretty good, the first few pages into the book, was like your hand was being gripped by a dead tree branch, it got your attention fast and it wasn't about to soothe anyone's delicate sensibilities at any time. you had to go on reading, to get to the end. and read it on i did. i must say, the protagonist was quite intelligent for her age, saying and thinking things you wouldn't normally expect out of a ten year old somewhat sheltered girl.i did enjoy reading it and i wouldve been show more rather sorry that i had reached the end of the book so soon, if i hadn't already also bought the sequel the same time :) so now i'm continuing nin's adventures and i love how her luck always holds in every single predicament and how enemies become friends just for having known her :) show less

Nineveh(Nin for short) Redstone has a problem,her brother has gone missing.To make it even more complicated no one but her seems to remember he existed in the first place!

He has been kidnapped by the bogeyman Skerrit into another world and now its up to Nin to save him.

Ok before anyone starts...I knew it was a childrens book when I started reading it but I just liked the plot and thought it sounded amazing. I am a firm believer that á good book is a good book.This book wasnt it though.

I was show more expecting something more epic something that would make me go "oh wow i cant believe this is a childrens book!"

But everything was so undefined and nothing got properly explained. The main character just seems to ask a few requisite questions of the othet character for appearances sake and then she simply isnt curious anymore.

There was magic in the book but not in the writing.

Or maybe im just too old. show less