The Lost Twin

BRAVO! Truly, a around of applause is owed to Sophie Cleverly and The Lost Twin. I'm well out of the age range that this book is aimed at, but I absolutely adored every bit of it! I can only imagine how much excitement younger Jessica would have had, upon discovering this story. So many things I love are expertly wrapped up in here. Forbidding boarding schools, terrible headmistresses, brave girls, and tons of secrets. What more could a reader ask for?

If you've been following me for any length of time, you'll know that one of the biggest points in any book for me is character development. In MG fiction, that's even more important. A character needs to grow, to change, and to find themselves in situations that cause them to step outside show more the box. Cleverly has that down pat. Ivy's character was brilliant. Quiet, meek Ivy learned so much about herself while posing as her much more outgoing sister, Scarlet. I loved watching her come out of her shell, and face down the danger. All for the love of her sibling.

Oh, and the mystery! Pardon my overuse of the word brilliant, but it truly was brilliant! The highest compliment I can extend to this story, was that it made me think of my love of Nancy Drew, as a young reader. The clues. The chase. I was head over heels for all of it. The fact that Cleverly gave Ivy the perfect little sidekick, and best friend, was just the icing on the cake. I couldn't love this story more if I tried.

As you can tell, I am a big fan of this story. The ending was just pure perfection, and I am so eager for more! I'm smitten with Ivy, and so excited to meet her sister. This series and I are going to get along just fine. show less

Why must Scarlet become Ivy? Invited to take her departed sister's place at an exclusive boarding school, Scarlet discovers she is expected to BECOME Ivy at the behest of the terrifying Miss Fox. But this means entering a minefield, because she has no way of knowing what Ivy did the previous year, of what secrets she uncovered or what enemies she made. And it turns out she made a few. And they're really gunning for her. Following a trail of exasperating clues to find pieces of her sister's diary, it's not easy being Scarlet, but it's too dangerous to be Ivy.

A very well-written little psychological boarding-school mini-gothic. Ivy's plight is tricky and claustrophobic, the school is well-realised and the characters are great. Miss Fox in show more particular is spectacularly monstrous and creepy. A fast and very enjoyable read, with a wonderfully spooky ending. show less

This was a fast paced mystery set in 1937. Ivy has been summoned to Rookwood Academy to replace her twin sister who has gone missing. However, Ivy knows something is terribly wrong and so the race begins to find Scarlett.

"The Lost Twin" was quite a page-turner and entertaining, perfect for younger teens. There were rivals, villains, nasty teachers and clues along the way to keep the reader engaged. I really liked the strong friendship which developed between Ivy and her roommate, Ariadne. Despite being rather quiet and demure, she was a true friend and always there for Ivy, especially at the end.

The book finishes on a climax which will encourage readers to continue the story to discover what happens next.

This is a book that I can read time and time again, its got such an interesting premise and the portrayal of a 1930s creepy boarding school is done excellently. The way the boarding girls were portrayed reminded me of Enid Blyton's St Clare series.

It starts off with a meek quiet girl called Ivy Grey, who must take her sister's place at Rookwood School. When I say take her place, I mean it quite literally. She discovers a fragment of her lost sister and continues hunting around the school. She meets nice people (Ariadne and Miss Finch) and mean people (Penny, Miss Fox) The book is riddled with mysteries.

Ivy was such an enjoyable character, the character development is steady and slow and by the end, she has grown considerably into a show more much stronger version of herself. I loved watching her change her attitude. Her new friend Ariadne is possibly the best character in the series, she's kind, talkative, smart and unique. She's also a bookworm like me.

I can tell you that I knew there would be book two because of how the book ended and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. show less

Ivy, I pray that it's you reading this. And if you are, well, I suppose you're the new me...

When shy Ivy's troublemaking twin Scarlet vanishes from Rookwood boarding school, Ivy is invited to "take her place." But when Ivy arrives, she discovers the school's true intention; she has to pretend to be Scarlet. She must think like Scarlet, act like Scarlet, become Scarlet. What on earth happened to the real Scarlet, and why is the school trying to keep it a secret?

Luckily for Ivy, Scarlet isn't about to disappear without a fight. She's left pieces of her journal carefully hidden all over the school for Ivy to find. Ivy's going to figure out what happened to Scarlet. She's got to.

But the staff of Rookwood is always watching, and they'll do show more anything to keep their secrets buried... show less

The premise was great (which was why I thought I'd try it) but the book never rose to any particular heights. The situations were not particularly exciting/interesting/funny/suspenseful, the characters were not particularly interesting/compelling/engaging/distinct (aside from clearly evil Miss Fox), and though Ivy's apparently a young girl from days of yore, her voice is nice, calm, 40ish modern lady.

I felt the situation cried out for more of a Wolves of Willoughby Chase, gothic-inflected, over-the-top treatment, and I didn't get it. Aside from the lack of modern conveniences, the school and its inhabitants seemed very present day. It's all a bit rote, a bit formulaic, and the parts that weren't were awfully unlikely, which doesn't show more help.

The reason it's a three star and not two star review is the glimmers of good writing hither and thither. I got a chuckle out of one character suggesting another character might get for a present "not just a pony, a whole horse!" and the character responded with "I'd hardly want half a horse." So there were moments. But mostly it was me, sighing to myself, thinking "no one would do that," "when is this supposed to take place again?" and "do young girls have to read about mean girl school shenanigans to enjoy a book? It's not doing anything for me."

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s). show less

This book was supplied to me by the publisher via Edelweiss.

The Lost Twin is the story of Ivy, a young girl dealing with the recent loss of her twin sister. Her sister, Scarlett, died while away at school. The day after her birthday, Ivy receives a letter stating that she is expected to fill her sister's vacated spot at the school, Rookwood. The next day, a teacher arrives to accompany her back to the school. Upon their arrival at the school, Ivy is informed by the teacher, Miss Fox, that she is expected not only to fill Scarlett's spot, but to become Scarlett. She threatens Ivy with dire consequences should the other students or staff suspect she is not Scarlett. Though terrified, Ivy decides to use the opportunity to find out what show more happened to her sister, and why two other students, Penny and Nadia, seem to be so antagonistic toward her.
I wanted to enjoy this book, but the whole plot seemed very rushed. There was so much focus on solving the pivotal mystery that no real attention was given to character development or any action one might expect from a book with this kind of story line. I did read all the way through, because I wanted to find out what happened to Scarlett, otherwise, I would have been out early on in the story. show less