Showing posts with label Erin the Cat Princess. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Erin the Cat Princess. Show all posts

Sunday 21 July 2024

THE DEATH OF DOWNTON TABBY

by MANDY MORTON;  

 Cover by Jason Anscomb                                                                                     

Small Book cover image. With a pink/cerise background, we see in yellow the backdrop of the book festival; a big marquis and a camper van with the concertina roof partly raised. Three cats in relief appear on the front in a deep burgundy. One has it's paw resting on an open yellow covered book. The series name appears in white text along the top, with the word FELINE in capital yellow letters. A blue revolver appears either side of those words, pointing inwards.  The words, The death of downton Tabby appear in white capitals in a 1920's ish font. A quoite from Laura Thompson appears to the right side. It says: 'Deliciously clever & a true delight'. The authors name appears in white along the bottom of the page.



An Adventure Book Review by Erin the Literary Cat©, International Book Reviewer.

Hello, and welcome to my weekend Book Review featuring this week an Adventure in Middle Grade ADULT Fiction. Book 3 in the No. 2 Feline Detective Agency series.

Given it is the summer season, allegedly, I was thinking of hosting a literary festival here in Upper Much-Mousing. You know the thing, book reviews and readings, signings by all the big names that would rush to our small village. 

Then there would be the food, actually you'd find around here the cats and humans would dine first then read and listen. A moratorium on anything vaguely alcoholic being served during the day would be applied.

Not because they are a rowdy lot, far from it, but because the local inn has a reputation for disturbing the peace with the shear volume of the patrons snoring. Talk about holding ones drink, that lot have to have straws and glasses stuck to the bar to save excess spillage when they drop off after the landlords extra potent weak ale; aptly called Old Snorer. 

I said I was thinking about holding a festival, but then Mrs H and I read this fine work and decided against it. 

To find out what changed our minds, just read on. Rest assured you'll NOT be disappointed with this tale. Adult murder mysteries by cats done just how it ought. So without further ado lets discover who did it in . . . 
 


Large Book cover image. With a pink/cerise background, we see in yellow the backdrop of the book festival; a big marquis and a camper van with the concertina roof partly raised. Three cats in relief appear on the front in a deep burgundy. One has it's paw resting on an open yellow covered book. The series name appears in white text along the top, with the word FELINE in capital yellow letters. A blue revolver appears either side of those words, pointing inwards.  The words, The death of downton Tabby appear in white capitals in a 1920's ish font. A quoite from Laura Thompson appears to the right side. It says: 'Deliciously clever & a true delight'. The authors name appears in white along the bottom of the page.

 


AUTHOR:  MANDY MORTON


Latest Edition Cover art by: Jason Anscomb

 

Published by: Farrago

 

Publication date latest edition Paperback: 9 May 2024

 

 

Paperback ISBN: 978 - 1788 424 660


UK Cover price for Paperback: £9.99


Kindle UK price: £2.99


Audible price: £13.00 or one credit

 

Pages: 267

 

Age range: Adult.


Any humans? No, just a delightfully eclectic character mix of Cats.


 

 

SPOILER ALERT

Some as to plot direction and characters.

 

 

Thank you to... 

 

I am exceedingly grateful to Mrs H for stumping up the readies out of her pension so I can Read & Review this awesome fun and incredibly clever series.

As ever, our views are our own, and we only share reviews of books we have bought, been given as gifts, or received in exchange for an impartial review.

First and foremost, the books we review are those we select to read, like, and feel our global readers deserve to know about and that we hope they, their family, friends and students will enjoy.


 

The plot

The town is proud to be holding its first literary festival, organised by the librarian Turner Page. It is held at Furcross House, the former care home which was closed and turned community centre after the murders featured in book one.   

With free passes to the weekend event as a reward, anyone who is anyone in the town is getting involved in the running. Tilly has been enlisted by Turner to arrange the guest speakers and musical attractions, whilst our lead protagonist, Hettie Bagshot, as head of The No.2 Feline Detective Agency, has been hired somewhat begrudgingly, as Festival Security supremo. 


Headlining the event is the writer of many a period romp, Sir Downton Tabby. Overly rich, a womaniser, and caring little for others – especially the Brontë Sisters, he has added to his wealth by recounting the tales of his aristocratic upbringing. It is a life where servants were five a penny, punished for eating crumbs their mistress may have dropped, and discarded into the workhouse and greater penury when too old to slave away. Despite the vulgarity and openness of his situation, and the controversy he courts, he draws the crowds hoping to lap up some of the 'charged atmospheres' he creates. So very much like humankind, right?

As far removed as one can get, the Brontë sisters have been hired by Tilly as a last-minute fill-in, on a hire-two-get-third sister thrown-in kind of basis. The sisters were brought up in Teethly, on the bleak moors of Porkshire; a place where gingerbeer-on-the-lung disease killed many an addicted cat due to a lack of a clean water supply. On discovering unfinished works by the old Brontës, the sisters are tasked by their father to find fame by finishing the works. Emmeline (a poet in her own right) is the author of the top-selling Withering Sights, which outstripped Charlene's Jane Hair. That left Ann's book, The Tomcat of Wildfell Hall, on the slush pile of their northern agent Penny Stone-Cragg. 

It is fair to say that when the sister's camper van arrives at the festival, fur flies and noses are bloodied, and chaos ensues. Things get worse as the sisters have it in for Downton Tabby, who has slated the sisters and their work, playing each off against the other.

Some sanity comes in the form of musician Muddy Fryer, who performs her one-cat Arthurian cycle of songs. Doing costume changes and wielding props along the way. Poly Hodge and Nicolette Upstart, famed and popular crime writers, bring to the festival both maturity, professionalism and calmness. 

Things start to seethe and boil inside when Sir Downton and the Brontë sisters trade insults during his interview session. If it wasn't murder for Hettie to keep a lid on tempers in the blazing heat of the day, it soon is when Sir Downton is found murdered later on. Decapitated, and no trace of his head, things are looking bad for Muddy, whose mighty Excalibur sword, used as a prop, vanishes!

Now, this is just the start. Hettie has to keep her invited guests safe, as well as not let on to the public that the star attraction has been most brutally slain. It would be the ruination of Turner who would lose everything. A sudden and severe storm and flooding set the scene for the meat of this tale, and we enter a spine-tingling series of events, punctuated with essential pie and cake stops and much-needed medicinal cups of tea from Delirium Treemint.

In fact, dear readers, in a very short space of time, it seems dear Delirium Treemint, she of the shaky spilling nature and much-broken crockery, is the only cat NOT on Hettie's suspect list.

Who did it, and that isn't a clue, and how Hettie goes about trying to save everyone else and the day, I will leave you to find out for yourselves. 

So, what did we think?

What a brilliant idea to bring together affectionate parodies of literary icons, both past and present, to create the cast of this jaw-dropping and deliciously crafted murder mystery. A mystery with a hefty heap of 'very well done' black humour. We have nods to felines of the human world, too, as well as references that the musically aware of the past decades will recognise immediately. I missed some and was pleased when the author pointed them out at the end of the book. 

As the third book in the soon-to-be thirteen-and-counting, series, it is with much pleasure that the tale does not feel tired. We have settled into a comfortable familiarity with our protagonists, but not to the point where they lose any of their essential differences or edge. The wit and satire, tongue-in-cheek humour the characters, and the occasional sarcasm from Hettie, bring a refreshing twist to both cat stories and murder mysteries. 

If you would like to add an extra dimension and get the mind's eye working on overdrive visualising all the cats, the Audible version is a wonderful expressive expansion of this series. Well worth buying, as Mrs H has, and we have listened multiple times already.

Sir Downton Tabby is a great example of bringing together a plethora of traits and historical attitudes into one love-to-hate victim. As to the other deaths you'll come across as the story goes along, which are no less gruesome, I shall let you decide whether they are deserved or not. I am sure there is many a moral to this story, karma, just desserts and all that, but reading for pleasure I tend to think of those at the end. It all makes for the truly strangest and most adventuresome and deadly Littertray Festival you will ever turn a page on.

 

So . . . .

Crunch time. 

Addictive and whimsical, it is surreal yet delightfully real and charming. Buy a copy or borrow it from your local library; I'm sure you won't be disappointed. Now, if you will excuse us, we feel the need for some festival pies and ale of our own!


Want to buy a copy?

Alas, Littertray Festival T-shirts and Festival Ale aren't available to us, but if you head down to your local independent bookshop they should be able to supply you with something better, this book. 

 

Mandy Morton's short author page at Farrago Books can be found HERE or type this: https://farragobooks.com/fb-author/mandy-morton/

Farrago Book's web page can be found HERE or type this: https://farragobooks.com/

Hettie Bagshot can be found on both Facebook and Twitter. 


We are joining the Sunday Selfies, hosted by the wonderful Kitties Blue and their mum, Janet Blue, from the Cat on My Head blog in America. Click this link to see Janet Blue's selfie page.

Small image. The Cat on My Head Sunday Selfies Blog Hop badge. Features a yellow-haired lady with a tuxedo cat on her head.

I shall leave you with a lazy selfie. I entitled this "The paws have it". 

Incidentally, it has been the Manor House's election this week. Old Ned, our gardener offered to stand – or rather sit, against me to make up the numbers. It was a close run thing when Mrs H spoiled her vote. Yup, she'd accidentally used her ballot paper to line the cake tin. That's the last time I use greaseproof paper to ensure a transparent voting system! 

However, after the cake had been baked and filled with judicious amount of jam and cream, and various slices and cups of tea consumed, her cross in my box was revealed, and I was duly elected. That's the sweetest way to end any election.



Till laters!

ERin


Sunday 19 May 2024

Michael, the Incredible Super-Sleuth Sausage Dog.

by  TERRIE CHILVERS,

Art by Tim Budgen  

  


 
                                                                                   

An Adventure Book Review by Erin the Literary Cat©, International Book Reviewer.

Hello, and welcome to my weekend Book Review featuring this week a Doggy Adventure in Middle Grade Fiction.

This week, we are delighted to share book 2 in the series about Michael, a highly talented and arguably self-absorbed mind-reading sausage dog. 
But fair dues, he grasped the nettle, or stick, in his jaws and ran with the talent he had, and it came good. But mirroring life, things do not always go well, and lessons have to be learnt. So join Mrs. H and me now as we see what Michael and his sidekick, Stanley Big Dog are up to . . . .
 


 


AUTHOR:  Terrie Chilvers

 

Cover & Internal Art by:  Tim Budgen 

 

Published by: Firefly Press

 

Publication date Paperback:  2 May 2024

 

 

Paperback ISBN: 978 - 1 915 444 516


UK Cover price for Paperback:  £6.99


Kindle UK price: £3.49

 

Pages: 168

 

Age range:  6+


Any dogs or cats? Just dogs


 

 

SPOILER ALERT

Some as to plot direction and characters.

 

SPOILER ALERT

Some as to plot direction and characters.


Thank you to... 

We are exceedingly grateful to Graeme at Firefly Publishers for agreeing to give us a copy of this fine adventure for our Read & Review. We loved the first adventure, and this was a must-read for us both.

As ever, our views are our own, and we only share reviews of books we have bought, received as gifts, or received in exchange for an impartial review.

First and foremost, the books we review are those we select to read, like, and feel our global readers deserve to know about and that we hope they, their family, friends and students will enjoy.

The plot

Michael the Sausage Dog has climbed the rungs of the Holywoof ladder, and after his success at the Canine Spectacular theatre show, he gets his own chat and mind-reading show – An Audience with Michael. He is the king of the hill. Well, he was. A new act in Tinsel Town has knocked back the ratings. Steve The Stunt Sausage Dog has caught everyone's attention. So much so that Michael can't get anyone to agree to come on. Nobody but Susan, the irritating Chocolate Labrador with a talent for balancing peanuts on her nose. Things really had sunk to a new low.

Things take a turn for the worse when Susan's star caravan is found empty, turned over and smelling very much of cheese. Susan has been DOGNAPPED!!!

Detective Wrinkles, a basset hound, declares the caravan a crime scene. After a bit of searching, they discover the ransom note on a seat under Stanley's bum. Quickly, they discover the signature calling card of notorious dog napper Dog X, a stinking wheel of exotic cheese.

The show must go on, but with no guests, our duo could be twiddling their paws. But, in a bizarre twist, Michael and Stanley Big Dog are to act in the ransom money drop! Detective Wrinkles, who really doesn't like Michael or believe in his talents, takes them to stay at the grotty Dog House Motel in a backwaters town called Three Paw Creek. The town's only claim to fame is that it houses the 'World's Biggest Stick' attraction. Naturally, Stanley just can't wait to take the lift to the top of this huge (and decidedly tree-like) stick!

Trapped in a seedy motel whilst Detective Wrinkles uses the rooms at the posh Bouncy Ball Hotel in the good end of town, it takes little time for Michael to feel hard done by. The chews supplied for breakfast were half-chewed, and their water bowl likely came from the puddle outside. The pair are also under strict instructions not to show their faces!

OK, as you can imagine, Michael, having a larger-than-life ego, and Stanley, being a dog of relatively little brain but full of life and a yen for seeing the BIGGEST stick in the world, soon break the rules. In fact, they are soon off investigating. Michael can see a ratings boost if he can be instrumental in saving Susan. 

The ransom drop is due later that day, so what could be the harm in checking things out?

What indeed, and therein sits the root of the adventure that unfolds. If it can go wrong, it does. Which is why we have to close the review just there. If you want to learn more about Stanley and his big stick or whether Michael gets his interview and the star ratings that his super talents (and ego) deserve, you'll just have to get the book.

So, what did we think?

This is a brilliant, dog-centric adventure. It plays to each breed's strengths and polite stereotypes in a delightfully comic, tongue-in-cheek, and childishly innocent and cheeky fashion. There are jokes and naughty words such as 'bum', and an almost vaudeville/Laurel & Hardy humour that I think kids will love, and adults will smile and maybe groan at. The light lessons Michael learns along the way will resonate with kids, parents, and teachers alike. 


So . . . .
Crunch time. 

A fun and easygoing read, delightfully illustrated by Tim Budgen, that left us with a smile on our faces and chuckles and laughs resonating through the room. It is a book that's so easy to love, which is why we feel it is an excellent, safe buy.

Want to buy a copy?

To get a copy, avoiding ransom gangs and stinky cheese, please head down to your local independent bookshop. Big sticks are optional. There are plenty out there (both book shops and sticks), and each shop is just waiting to serve up whatever kind of mystery, fun and adventure you desire.


Book one review can be found by clicking this link HERE





Terrie Chilvers' web page can be found HERE or type this: https://www.terriechilvers.com/


Tim Budgen's web page can be found HERE or type this: https://timbudgen.com/


Firefly Press' web page can be found HERE or type this: https://fireflypress.co.uk/


We are joining the Sunday Selfies, hosted by the excellent Kitties Blue and their mum, Janet Blue, from the Cat on My Head blog in America. Click this link to see Janet Blue's selfie page.

Small image. The Cat on My Head Sunday Selfies Blog Hop badge. Features a yellow-haired lady with a tuxedo cat on her head.

I shall leave you with NOT another Sofa Selfie. This time, and to prove I don't just sleep on the bed and or sofa, I can be seen monitoring the state of my driveway. Yup, it's a hard job (not least because of the hard surface, MOL), but one I am always up to, weather permitting. I also get to keep an eye out for many of the transient new felines in the area who seem to think my drive is some sort of free-to-use access way! 



 

Till Laters!

ERin


©Erin the Cat Princess

Sunday 18 February 2024

THE DOLL TWIN by Janine Beacham

 

illustrated by Nathan Collins.                                                                                    

   


An Adventure Book Review by Erin the Literary Cat©, International Book Reviewer.

Hello, and welcome to my weekend Book Review featuring this week a Middle-Grade Gothic Horror Adventure.
 

We have a delightful read for you today, one that came right out of the blue when Mrs H's book-to-be-read pile was perilously low. So without further ado, dim the lights, stoke the fire, and wrap up for an amazing read.

 

AUTHOR:  Janine Beacham

Cover art by:  Nathan Collins

Published by: Firefly Press

Publication date Paperback:  4 April 2024

Paperback ISBN:  978-1-915 444 479

UK Cover price for Paperback:  £7.99

Kindle UK price:  N/A

Pages: 295 (in proof copy)

Age range:  9 to 12

SPOILER ALERT

Yes, some as to plot direction and characters.

Thank you to... 

We are exceedingly grateful to Graeme at Firefly Press Publishers for the delightful surprise package that gave us the chance to Read & Review this very atmospheric eerie book before publication.

As ever, our views are our own, and we only share reviews of books we have bought, been given as gifts, or received in exchange for an impartial review.

First and foremost, the books we review are those we select to read and review, like, and feel our global readers deserve to know about and that we hope they, their families, friends and students will enjoy.

 

The plot

Cared for in the Home, which was run by a matron of strict sensibilities and dislike for any child that did not conform, Una is adrift. She longs to be back in the lighthouse her father and mother ran on Anglesea. The life of ‘Groundlings’ is not one she recognises or enjoys. She is a quick learner and loves all things to do with the sea. Mechanisms, too. She helped her father repair and run the big light that would save many ships and lives. He didn’t have to go to war, he was in a protected job, but he went to the war to end all wars, because of his passion for all things mechanical. Dieing in the trenches, he left his wife and daughter, Una, behind to tend the lighthouse. But when Una’s mother dies of influenza, she becomes homeless and an orphan.

Una is a dab hand at repairing things as a result, tinkering and making things. So, when Mrs and Mr Smith turn up at the Home, they seem to have found the perfect child as both have a love of turning their hands to practical things. Mrs Smith repairs dolls, whilst Mr Smith is repairing a mechanical carousel, complete with candy-twist poles attached to ponies. And Una thinks she has found the perfect parents as their motivation is to adopt the child they always wanted and don’t seem stuffy at all.

Mother and Father, as they prefer to be called, have everything Una could hope for short of a life at sea or in a lighthouse. But their recently acquired house, Copperlins, an aged large three-storey house above the village of Knifely Stifling, is close to the sea. And even though a boy at her orphanage had warned her about the house, she is determined to make it home. It may be outdated and cold, but Una has a room of her own and views. Good food abounds as Mother is always baking. Father enjoys tinkering here and there at his carousel and smoking a pipe. In fact, they are both very much the archetypal parents one might have seen in the magazines and adverts of the time.

Una is enrolled in the local school. She has never been to a groundling school before, though she did have postal lessons while on the lighthouse. It is so very different. In fact, it is very inhospitable. The villagers don’t like strangers. Worse, they fear Copperlins and what was said to lurk within after the reclusive, elderly lady owner, a doll maker, died. They have horseshoes over their doors to ward off the evil. The adults, including Una’s teachers, and the local children, shy away from Una and mutter in closed, cold groups.

But a girl called Mary soon makes friends, not least because of Una’s unusual and daring but practical short haircut. It is very movie-star-like, Mary says. Though Una has no knowledge of such things and prefers nature and her books.

Whilst settling into her new home, Una hears strange noises coming from the second floor. Could they be mice? The scratching and bumping and creaking may not be unexpected in such an old building being exposed to frigid, buffeting winds.

Mother and Father, such nice people and as good as perfect parents as she could ever hope for as an orphan, think there is nothing amiss. So Una, for fear of being sent back to the Home, steals herself, saying she is a Wexford and has endured far, far worse in the lighthouse.

But little things start happening. And little things mount up and Una is soon aware of things being moved, or worse, going missing from her room. Then, when Mary comes for a sleepover but flees midway through the night without explanation and clearly terrified, Una starts to have doubts. Could what the locals fear about the house be true? Is it haunted by malevolent spirits? Mary goes so far as to extend a safe harbour at her house if Una is too scared.

When the noises in the basement, and music from the carousel she and her father are repairing, rouse Una from her sleep, she is minded to investigate. But there is nobody in the room. Later, she ventures to investigate noises on the second floor. It is an area of shut-off rooms, closed curtains and cobwebs. When none of the rooms reveals the source of the sounds, she steals herself again to check within the last room, a broom cupboard. There she confronts the doll; child size and, if that wasn’t scary enough, it has Una’s face and hair and eyes. When telling Mother and Father, who neither heard the carousel music or other such strange sounds, Una can not find the doll to show them.....

Now things take a turn around about here, and Una actually gets to meet the Doll Twin. Ani (short for animated curiosity) is the doll's name, and she seems to be out to copy Una completely. Is Ani bent on taking over Una's new life and parents? What happens next is both dramatic, scary and heartwarming.

Put aside notions of scary demon dolls.

This story is far more skilled and doesn’t need such adult-style nonsense. Arguably, it is far more human than that. What we have going forwards is a series of revelations, of journeys and discoveries sewn together with twists and turns both bold and powerful and yes, at times, as chilling as the storms Una and her once family faced as lighthouse keepers. Which is where we have to leave this review. 


So, what did we think?

A 1920s gothic horror-style feast of suspense, fear and automata, driven by a descriptive text that makes every page pulse and whir with life, and the senses tingle with anticipation from cover to cover.

One of the book’s great strengths is its being set after the ‘Great War’. With many children left fatherless, and as with Una Wexford, later motherless in the influenza outbreak, the book becomes very thought-provoking and powerful from the off. I can imagine this being a key point for classroom discussion, too.

There were no points where we weren’t immersed in the telling. Looking back, there were telltale clues that we just didn’t see or see clearly enough. Mrs H even peaked forwards, and with a gasp, carried on reading even quicker. She was still surprised by the final chapters; which were magnificently executed. We were raised up on a crest of hope, then sent to the depths of despair or shattered on the rocks with our characters.

Because of the writing skill, ultimately the ending was immensely satisfying. I won’t say what that is, as I don’t want to give it away.

So . . .
Crunch time.

A middle-grade ‘gothic’ horror, you’ll have to go a long, long way to find one better or more skillfully written. I dare say Mr King would be impressed if he were to read this. We were thoroughly entertained and devoured this in record time, and I think most other kids and parents will, too.

Steeped in atmosphere, this is one adventure not to be missed, as it has it all.

Want to buy a copy?

To get a copy, please do consider and support your local and independent bookshops and publishers.

 

Janine Beacham's web page at Hatchette UK can be found HERE or type this: https://www.hachette.co.uk/contributor/janine-beacham/

Firefly Press' web page can be found HERE or type this: https://fireflypress.co.uk/

Nathan Collins' Twitter feed can be found HERE or type this:  https://twitter.com/NathanlCollins


We are joining the Sunday Selfies, hosted by the wonderful Kitties Blue and their mum, Janet Blue, in America.

 

Small image. The Cat on My Head Sunday Selfies Blog Hop badge. Features a yellow-haired lady with a tuxedo cat on her head.



I shall leave you with a selfie entitled: Black and White on Paisley 🙂 🙂





Till laters!

ERin

Saturday 25 June 2022

The Extraordinary Voyage of Katy Willacott

by SHARON GOSLING;  

An Adventure Book Review by Erin the Cat Princess©

 


Hello, and welcome to A Saturday Book Review featuring Adventures in Middle-Grade Fiction! 

 


Mrs H and I have been basking in the shade this last fortnight, enjoying a bit of downtime now that summer is here. As UK summers go quickly, we decided to let the grass get longer. Fear not, dear readers and fellow haymakers, I have Mrs H and the electric Flymo scheduled to mow the 14-acre field next weekend. The only problem is finding all the extension leads?

 

Anyways, it was just yesterday that we finished our latest HOT read. A sea and land based adventure that had us on the edge of our deckchairs right up to the very last pages. It was the perfect way to round off a lazy afternoon, and what now seems to be the last day of summer.


The author of this HOT read is Sharon Gosling, and she has a new kitten, called NEWT, who is utterly adorable! Follow Sharon and NEWT on TWITTER using the the twitter tag: @sharongosling

 

So, without further ado, I ask you to join me in The Extraordinary Voyage of Katy Willacott.

 

Image subject to © copyright.



The essential info:



The Extraordinary Voyage of Katy Willacott, by SHARON GOSLING

 

Cover art and ship illustration by: Kristina Kiser 

 

Published by: LITTLE TIGER GROUP


Publication date: 7 JULY 22


Paperback ISBN: 9781788954181


Cover price for Paperback: £7.99 

 

Pages 288.

 

Age range: Middle Grade (9-12 AND upwards)


Any dogs or cats? Yes, a fantastic and sleek black cat called Shadow.


 

 

SPOILER ALERT


The bare minimum to lay the plot and introduce characters. 

 

 

Disclaimer. 

 

We were lucky enough to be approved by Little Tiger Group to review this book for you. 



The plot


The year is 1879. 

The place, victorian London, England.

Katy Willacott, our heroine, is Mary's daughter. Mary is a skilled and respected botanical taxonomist at the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew. It is also where Granpa Ned works as a constable. Her father, Josiah, works as an assistant archaeologist for the British Museum. Together with Grandma Peg and elder brother Stefan, they live rent-free in the quaint but tiny Rose Cottage that belongs to Kew Gardens.

 

Katy helps her mother identify and catalogue new species of plants sent back by explorers from across the globe. It is an age when men do all the fun stuff like explore, and women are considered only suited to minor and apparently less skilled roles and running the home. 

 

It is, however, not a life that Katy wants. She craves the adventures undertaken by daring women of the age. Women who journeyed to foreign lands and up the Amazon. Women like her heroine, adventurer and journalist, Francesca Brocklehurst, whose articles are published in all the newspapers.

 

Katy meets Fran when she comes to Kew Gardens to write about her mother, a notable woman in science. The interview is going swimmingly right up to the point where Sir Thomas Derby appears. He is overseeing the construction of the Natural History Museum. Having mistaken Katy's mum for a cleaner, he then goes on to say how he means to have her work taken out of the hands of amateurs and that standards must have slipped so low as they were employing women. And that the female brain didn't have the capacity for proper scientific reasoning.

 

The obnoxious, loathsome windbag that is Sir Thomas does rather set the scene and tone for things to come.

 

But when Katy learns that Sir Thomas is heading off on an expedition to locate and retrieve some fallen meteorites in Brazil, Katy resolves to join the ship's crew. But not as Katy Willacott, but in disguise as a cabin boy called William Chandler.

 

Now, it would be remiss of me to tell you much more than she does manage to get on board Sir Thomas's ship, the SS Alerte. From this point, the adventure takes a rollercoaster ride across the ocean to Salvador, Brazil, and into the jungle.

 

You will NOT be disappointed in what happens.

 


So, what did we think?


One girl fighting to break away from the ordinary, expected, mundane and perceived feeble-minded victorian woman's role. 


Running away from home and travelling across to Brazil to follow her heart and find a meteorite seems drastic. But that is what it took to be not just noticed as a woman back then but also to feel alive. Determination, bravery, and a sense of right are her tools. She makes mistakes, and we see as she sees the consequences of her actions. But we see also the good that comes from doing the right thing. Good karma is one way of looking at it; the spirit of the jungle is another.


The strength of the villain and supporting characters, from Sir Thomas to the Alerte's captain to the natives in Salvador, is a delight. The tone and atmosphere infuse the pages with that special magic that means we get invested in the story and cry at the end. 


The story has a solid ethical voice that is still relevant to this day, probably more so. Through the eyes of Katy Willacott, we get to explore the gender roles, values, and opportunities of the time. We see as she sees the result of greed, the rape of the land and appropriation of 'specimens' and plundering of resources by a colonial power irrespective of cost to the local peoples or environment. 


This is such an empowering and entertaining story. A feast for the imagination in the same way as Emma Carroll's book: Escape to the River Sea, which we will be reviewing shortly, and thoroughly enjoyed.


In fact, I would recommend them as worthy and happy bookshelf companions for the young reader with an eye on foreign travel and seeing women achieving in a time when women were expected not to. 


As strong as the lessons in this fine book are, they do not overwhelm the story. It is 100% magic and is recommended for all.



So . . . . 



Crunch time. 


Without a doubt, treat someone to this book when it comes out. Sharon Gosling is a skilled writer, and the observant reader will note some of her other MG characters appear in this book. Her first adult novel, The House Beneath the Cliffs was published in 2021. 



Want to buy a copy?

 

To get a copy, and there is absolutely NO need to run away to Brazil, just head to your local independent bookshop. There are plenty out there, and each is just waiting to serve up a treasure of literal magical resource, fun and adventure with a personal touch.

 

 

Sharon Goslings  WEB page can be found HERE  OR type this:- https://www.sharongosling.com/


Little Tiger Groups web page can be found HERE. OR type this:-  https://littletiger.co.uk

 

 

 

 

If any authors or publishers wish us to review their books, please contact us. Details are listed on our book review page.


If anyone has a 1000 meter extension lead, please do leave your contact details in the comments and I'll have Mrs H get back to you after she's washed the dishes!

 

I shall leave you with my customary selfie for the week. Till laters!

 

©Erinthecatprincess