The Whispering Skull

If you haven't yet read my gushing review of the first book in this series, let me sum up my feelings for you. Lockwood & Co. is brilliantly written fiction, with witty banter and a rich atmospheric setting. Is it any wonder that I was thrilled to be offered the second book in this series for review? I couldn't wait to join up once again with Lockwood, Lucy and George. To ramble about the ghost filled England they reside in, and solve dangerous mysteries with them. I adore these characters, and Jonathan Stroud for writing them.

After their last case was solved successfully, things have definitely improved for Lockwood & Co. They may not be the highest paid agents, or the most well-dressed, but they more than make up for that with their show more ability to solve the toughest cases. I smiled at the fact that nothing had changed about about these three. Lockwood was still as debonair as ever, George just as lovably gruff, and Lucy maintained her ability to outwit any person who dared cross her. I loved the fact that these three characters were like a little family. Three pieces of a puzzle that fit together perfectly. Their lightning quick banter, their little scuffles, all of it just made them that more lovable. I couldn't wait to see what spectral enemy they took on this time.

I wasn't disappointed! I learned in the first book that Stroud is not afraid of sharing shiver-inducing details. He writes in a way that wraps the reader up in a web of words. You'll be following the case right along with the characters, and suddenly realize that your nose has gotten quite close to the page as you devour the words leading up to the climax. Everything about this case was deliciously eerie. Rotting skeletons, a mysterious mirror, gruesome deaths, it all added up to an amazing story that was impossible to put down. Once you added in the fact that our fearless characters find themselves in very real danger, more than once? Well, you can see why I finished this so quickly.

This series is spectacular so far! I gave the first book five stars, and I have absolutely no problem with giving this one the same stellar rating. There is nothing I don't love about these books. Much love to Jonathan Stroud. You've taken your rightful place on my shelf of favorite authors. show less

Set in a modern London with a severe ghost problem, this is the second adventure for the intrepid phantom stalkers of Lockwood & Co. Brought in at the discovery of an unexpected grave, the disinterring of the iron coffin and its grisly contents leads to disaster, and a dangerous ghost escapes and an even more dangerous artifact is lost. Even more dangerous than the supernatural entities are the living villains sniffing around - relic hunters looking for haunted objects to steal and sell. Lucy, George and Lockwood tear around London on the trail of the mysterious mirror, but there's a killer close behind.

This series is becoming a favourite. Rich in atmosphere, lots of secrets and mysteries and plenty of adventure and intrigue all built show more around endearing characters. Exceptionally well written, too, dark and witty, but surprisingly ordinary and cheerful in its everydayness. Of the three YA books I've just read and reviewed, this was the most fun, which is surprising when you consider how preoccupied with death a smart book about ghost hunting must necessarily be. But with no genocide and no series of brutal betrayals and compromises corrupting their souls, Lockwood & Co are definitely the people to hang out with. show less

Finally got around to reading the second one in the series and loved it as much as the first. This one sees Lockwood and Co hired to help trap the ghostly spirit of a doctor who was supposedly killed by rats in his own sanitarium. But when the three open his iron coffin they find an intact corpse and something else more sinister that causes George to scream uncontrollably. After wrapping up the case,however, someone breaks into the coffin and steals the sinister object. When Lockwood and Lucy follow the thieves they find one dead in a tree - and it looks like he died of fright. The band must try and retrieve such a powerful object and destroy it before it falls into the wrong hands.
Great characters and all the bit players too are show more described very well so you can imagine exactly what they are like. I also loved the Whispering Skull when it starts to talk as it makes very witty observations and sulks when it doesn't get it's own way. The back story of Lucy wondering why she can't go into a certain room in the house and what happened to Lockwood's parents is intriguing. What is Lockwood hiding as even after a year, Lucy and George know very little about their leader? show less

In the course of their investigations on Wimbledon Common, Lockwood & Co. have to be rescued from a number of hostile ghosts by their old rivals from Fittes. With Lockwood and Kipps keen to prove that theirs is the better agency, they enter a psychical investigation competition, with the loser having to take out an advert in The Times and publicly admit defeat. But with Inspector Barnes allocating a case involving an unrecorded burial and a dangerous psychic artefact in Kensal Green Cemetery to the two of them, Lockwood and Co. and Quill Kipps's team regularly cross each other's paths, each trying to solve the case first.

This is a worthy follow-up to the first volume in the Lockwood & Co. series. Where the first title raced along at show more break-neck pace for large portions of the book, this second offering has a slower pace. At first I wasn't entirely sure about this change, but it soon became apparent that the author has concentrated on character development in The Whispering Skull, and we definitely learn more about each member of Lockwood & Co. I enjoyed it immensely and again finished the book in record time, and the only reason I deducted a half point was because the eponymous skull of the title has a certain connection with something/someone having a bearing on the present case, which in my opinion stretched credibility just a little - but that's an adult's point of view, and I doubt teenagers will feel the same. Certainly the connection adds an extra dimension to the case and is extremely well told, with our heroes in deathly peril. I can't wait for no. 3. show less

Lockwood and Company is back! Up against some spectacularly scary phantoms (ghost rats, anyone?), grave robbers, and a rival agency with a bet to drive them out of business, Lucy, George and the indomitable Anthony Lockwood are on the case of a missing artifact. The item in question is a mirror that shows its viewer “the other side.” What that looks like, however, is a mystery because those who gaze into the mirror die.

The Whispering Skull is the second book in the Lockwood and Co. series by Jonathan Stroud, which began last year with The Screaming Staircase. I absolutely loved that book and happily, book two continues the ghastly adventures of this cool and courageous trio, who boldly go about their spectral business with a dash of show more humor and a spot of tea. Be warned, there’s enough references to jam donuts that readers may develop a craving. . . this one sure did!

Like the first book, Lucy narrates the derring-dos of the group. The personal stakes are high when Lockwood bets a rival agency that he can be the first to recover the mirror that Scotland Yard is seeking. While the swords are sharp, the amusing dialogue is even sharper. There’s also the titled whispering skull, a nasty piece of work that was stolen long ago by George but which seems to have developed a psychic link to Lucy and which, surprisingly, seems to know quite a bit about their latest case.

In addition to the requisite old abandoned house, there’s a classic creepy-catacombs-hidden-beneath-a-church setting. And lest readers think that my mention of donuts and humorous dialogue mean this is light on scary moments, rest assured that the author has included plenty of suspense and horror and gore (ghost rats, remember?).

Best of all, The Whispering Skull ends with a teaser that promises a peek into the mysterious Anthony Lockwood’s past. The only downside is waiting another year for the next book! show less

Jonathan Stroud combines humor and scares in this second book of the Lockwood and Co. series. His narrator Lucy's dry observations of her haunted world and the colorful characters who people it never fail to make me laugh. It's a well-constructed world, and I like how the author handles the idea of children and teens being society's protectors, the implications for them as well as for the adults.
The audiobook reader changed from Miranda Raison to Katie Lyons, but the performance was still excellent.
Looking forward to more adventures with Lucy, Lockwood and George!

I really have enjoyed reading this series and I think I liked this second book even more than the first! The premise of ghosts as a constant and dangerous presence and children being utilized to hunt them, as adults can know longer see them, is wonderful, Lockwood and his company of Agents (ghosthunters) is a charismatic and interesting character with a lot of mysteries still to reveal. His friend and second in command, Geroge, is a researcher and compiler of facts and history, but is rumpled and messy to Lockwood's smooth elegance. Lucy, the newest member of them team has extraordinary psychic abilities, including the ability to actually talk with ghosts, something that is extremely rare. Together they are a resourceful and skilled show more team and their interaction and personalities mesh well and keep the novel littered with humour. The adventure this time around is even more horrific than the last one and seemingly much more dangerous, and threatens their friendship and trust. The book just zooms along with action on just about every page it seems. Horror, humour, mystery, and suspense - this book has it all and the ending doesn't disappoint! I can't wait for the next installment!!! show less