Mini reviews: perfect for Halloween!

Hello everyone!

I hope you are all well!

I’m stopping by your timelines today to share 4 more books that will be perfect for the upcoming spooooky, Halloween’y period! Featuring dragons, magic, dressing up and ghosts, these books will be spot on! My Y6 readers are slowly embracing these books and are thoroughly enjoying them!

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Dragon City – Katie and Kevin Tsang

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In an alternate reality, 5,000 years in the future, the evil Dragon of Death has become ruler of Dragon City. Humans now live to serve the dragon population and it’s no different for Billy Chan and his friends. After losing contact with their own dragons, they’re determined to track them down in this new city, even if it means putting their own lives at risk. But one dragon has turned to the dark side and has no plans to return. With the help of a new clan of dragon friends, can Billy, Dylan, Charlotte and Ling-Fei undo the Dragon of Death’s villainous work or will she triumph eternally?

Anyone who knows me knows that I absolutely adore this series! It’s so full of fun and adventure and it’s so brilliantly paced. These books have gone down so well at school, so when I got my hands on this third instalment, I knew I was in for a ride… and let me tell you, I put it down and I needed a moment or 12. I think I cried for at least 8 chapters. This story is JUST BRILLIANT. So action packed; so full of our favourite heroes; so full of hope; so much of a battle between dark and light. Being back in this land where the darkness and hunger for power has taken over and everyone is afraid, and there being just the tiniest smithereens of hope and kindness brings so much to this story. There are so many twists and turns, some little moments of humour. I just adore this world. This gang of characters is one of the best. I love these dragons and their humans so much. I can not wait for the final book!

The Raven Heir – Stephanie Burgis

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Deep within an enchanted forest lies a castle where a set of triplets and their sorceress mother have lived for years — safe from the decades-long war for the Raven Throne that rages in the kingdom beyond. Cordelia, one of the triplets, has the power to become any animal with just a thought, and she yearns to discover more about the world outside her castle. But one day, the world comes to her, when the eldest of the triplets becomes the newest heir to the throne. Knowing that being named heir means certain death, Cordelia’s mother hid the truth about which child is the eldest when she hid them in the forest. When her family is captured, it’s up to Cordelia to use her powers to keep her siblings hidden and discover the truth about the Raven Heir — before it’s too late.

This is one of those stories that just comes along and took me off my feet! I properly adored it. I hadn’t even heard much about it and I am SO glad I read it when I did because… IT IS JUST BRILLIANT? I absolutely raced through this book in a matter of hours in one evening (I even begrudgingly had to stop to eat!). This story is full to the rafters of magic, secrets, family and a whole load of adventure. I absolutely adored the magic in this (I know, shock horror… someone who loves a magical story enjoyed a magical story ha) and how linked it was to the triplets. The characters here are wonderful (I think Connall is my fave) and I loved the adventure – it was pretty epic! Do I sense a book 2?! I really really hope so because I would read it SO quickly. This was just brilliant!

The Cardboard Kingdom: Roar of the Beast – Chad Sell

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A mystery is afoot in the Cardboard Kingdom. Vijay, the Beast, renounces his title after being bullied by neighborhood teenagers. No one–not his big sister Shikha or his friends–can seem to draw him back out of his shell. That very night is when it starts. At first, no one believes Nate, who breaks his leg trying to pursue what he saw from his bedroom window. But then there’s another, and another. An unknown monster has been spotted roaming the Kingdom after dark. It’s ghastly, it’s quick, and it might even have giant tentacles. Or claws. Or wings. Okay, there might be some varied testimonies on what exactly this monster looks like. Forget Halloween–the newly minted Monster Mashers will go to any lengths to protect the Kingdom and uncover this mystery. But how did the monster get here? What does it want? And mostly importantly, who is behind its creation?

I loved the first book in the series, and when I read through the second one, I was reminded of all of the brilliance of the first book – fun, full of friendship and brilliance. This series is so fun. This book is jam packed with imagination, monsters, heroes, being scared and the different ways to be a hero! When a monster is terrorising the kingdom, it takes the whole gang to bring peace back! I loved the nod to the 2 princes guarding over the kingdom and the illustrations again just blew me away! I really hope we keep getting more from this series because this is another one that I have loved and that my kids are also loving!

Ghostcloud – Michael Mann

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Twelve-year-old Luke Smith-Sharma shovels coal under a half-bombed, blackened power station. With his best friend Ravi he keeps his head down, hoping to one day earn his freedom and return to his family, while avoiding the wrath of the evil Tabatha Margate. When he tries to help new girl Jess, Luke is punished and sent to clean the sewers of the haunted East Wing, a place from which few return. Whilst serving his punishment, Luke realises he can see things others can’t in the power station: ghostly things. He befriends a ghost-girl called Alma, who can ride clouds through the night sky and bend their shape to her will. But when Luke discovers the terrible truth of why Tabatha Margate is kidnapping children and forcing them to work in the power station, Alma agrees to help him and his friends escape. Will Alma convince the ghost council to help their cause? And can Luke find his voice, while trying to find a way home? 

It took me a a week or so to slowly get through this… but not because I wasn’t enjoying it! Oh no, quite the opposite, I was PROPER enjoying it! When I finally finished it, I put it down and was just like ‘WOAH’ because it is BRILLIANT. It tells the story of Luke, a young boy from London, who lives in a London where children are mysteriously kidnapped and there’s a smog going around the city! It’s dark; it’s full of hope. There’s friendships, finding yourself, solving problems and a cat – what more could I want? Luke is such a brilliant main character and I loved all of his friends. Tabatha is one of those villains from kids books that will stay with me! I can’t wait for everyone to read this because I think everyone is going to love it!

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And that’s it for now! Thanks so much for stopping by! Let me know if you’ve read any of these books or if you’ve got any other ooky-spooky recommendations!

Are you a Halloween fan?
Do you have any Halloween recommendations?

S x

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