Eleanor Updale

When we meet Montmorency (not his real name), he's in a London prison for thieving: caught during his getaway when he crashed through a glass roof. Dr. Robert Farcett used Montmorency as an experiment - to see if he could be saved, and to see how much the human body could recover from. When Montmorency is freed from prison, he is set on living the high life, and he has a plan. He decides that he cannot trust anyone to be his accomplice, but will play both necessary roles himself: as show more "Scarper," he will use London's new sewer system to make quick escapes from the shops and homes he robs, and as "Montmorency" he will reap the benefits of this plunder.

Montmorency/Scarper displays much cunning and cleverness, but little empathy or even sympathy for others. When London police catch "Freakshow Frank," his cellmate (who was released soon after he was), they blame all of Scarper's thefts on him (the "Hopping Horror" - Frank has only one leg), and Frank goes to the gallows. Montmorency's conscience pricks slightly, but the instinct to save his own skin is much stronger than the urge to save Frank. However, as the novel progresses, Montmorency does develop more of a conscience, and even experiences different emotions depending on whether he is Scarper or Montmorency at the time (adopting different clothing, mannerisms, and even addresses for each).

Montmorency makes a friend - Lord George Fox-Selwyn - and becomes drawn into a matter of national intrigue, using the sewer system to sneak into the "Mauramanian" embassy. He succeeds, and feels a measure of personal and national pride. At the end of the book, he "found himself acting in unusual ways" - that is, displaying generosity (e.g. to Scarper's old landlord) and making restitution (e.g. returning Dr. Farcett's bag, giving Scarper's old clothes to a tramp from whom he had stolen clothes in the past, returning a valuable book to a man he respects). Thus, the story is concluded and Montmorency is "set for a career of travel and espionage in the service of his country."

Overall I quite enjoyed this book. Without focusing on a well-known historical figure, it evokes the lives of lower- and upper-class Londoners circa 1875 in vivid detail. It differs from many YA novels in that the main character is not himself a young adult, but he does grow and change. The ending is neat, while still leaving open the possibility of more books featuring this character. show less

This sucked me in just as fast as it did when I was a kid! The tension throughout the book is really great, and it's a nice easy heist read (maybe good for kids who like heists but are not ready yet for Six of Crows.) The ending does feel pretty rushed, but given that there is now an entire series (!!!) that did not exist when I first read this 10+ years ago, that rushed ending may not be as big a deal. I am definitely interested in what goes on in the other books in the series!

Engaging story with plenty of historic atmosphere. As a prisoner and doctor's showcase patient, Montmorency has been in the attendance of various academic lectures. One in particular captures his interest: that of the sewer system in London. He realizes he could use the sewer system as a getaway option when robbing valuables. When he is released from prison he embarks on his plan. By selling the items he steals, Montmorency is able to buy into an upper-class lifestyle. He adopts two personas show more to carry it off: that of Scarper who does the stealing and is the personal "assistant" to Montmorency, the high-end gentleman living at the Marimion Hotel. He is engaged by a fellow gentleman to spy on an embassy dinner and get any details about an uprising in Maramnania. When Montmorency successfully pulls it off, he is offered a job with the foreign office. At that point, now a legitimate member of society, Montmorency drops his Scarper persona and returns several items he'd stolen but never sold. show less

The title character, Johnny, hates being short, so when he sees an advert in the newspaper that promises the secret to tallness he steals some money off his mum to send away for the secret. Unfortunately this is a con, but it gives Johnny an idea for his own money-making scheme to help pay back the money he stole and to help his mum pay the rent. He places his own adverts in the paper to trick people into sending him money. Some of his adverts were really clever and funny, and even though he show more was technically breaking the law I really wanted his plans to work.

Later on the focus of the book shifts as a murder is committed and Johnny's mum is the prime suspect. Johnny knows he must clear his mum's name, even if it means risking getting into trouble himself.

The book is set in 1929 and a lot of the story is centred around Tuberculosis and the treatment of the disease. This historical aspect made for interesting reading and I certainly learned some facts about TB that I didn't know before. But the book is so much more than just a historical story, it's a fun mystery story with a fantastic character who I couldn't help but love. show less