BOOK REVIEW:Teachers Tales of Terror(Chris Priestly)

Book: The Teachers Tale Of Terror

Author: Chris Priestly

Rating:   2/10 - and that's being very  generous

Recommended age: If you want to find it scary I would suggest age 6-7 max. although they may find some bits to be rather scary depending on the child.

This book was an awful read.

It was a 2-in-1 world book day special  for a pound so I was expecting to be rather short and not brilliant but I still was hoping that it would be ok.

Unfortunately this was not the case as the stories generally starting good but had a rather disappointing or cop out endings that I doubt even a 5 year old would find scary on the whole

I mean for example the first story in it ends with her waking up from a nightmare, I know right, how disappointing.

 Another ends with something slightly better but more suited to a detective action novel with Satan having a jolly conversation to the boy who worked out who he was then throwing him off the balcony. But again not exactly scary is it? 

the only thing in the whole book that was scary in my opinion was the ending with the class he was reading to not existing  and then appearing outside his house and whispering in his room late at night.

I know I've ruined the ending of two of the stories and the whole book, but to be honest anyone buying this book would be a fool and sorely disappointed unless under the age of say 6?  so who cares as I'm sure none of you would want to read such an appalling horror book

Yes there were a few scary bits in them and maybe one scary story  with a mad woman and her dead daughter but overall most were disappointing.

I hope you found this review helpful,

The Devonian  Reviewer

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BOOK REVIEW: The Spooks Curse(Joseph Delany)

Note: this is a review I wrote a couple of years ago so It may not be perfect.

Book Title:  The Spook's Curse

Author:  Joseph Delany

rating: 7/10

recommended age: 10-12yrs old

This book is the second book in a series called 'The Wardstone Chronicles'. So far I've read the first two. Number 1 is called 'The Spooks Apprentice' and number 2 is 'The Spook's Curse', the book I'm writing this review about.

It is the job of the spook to protect the people from creatures of the dark. It is a very lonely job. The county's spook Is very experienced in dealing with creatures from the Dark but is getting old. In this book he has to take on the bane - the creature that the last time he tried to bind it he only just managed to  succeed and escape with his life.

Now he's older and getting tired. His apprentice must help him to try and stop the bane.

On top of that problem, the spook gets arrested  and is going to get burned to death,  but a witch called Alice binds herself to the bane by giving it her blood and setting it free to help save him - however, by doing so, she to gets turned  dark.

Can Tom,  the spook's apprentice, save the spook, stop the bane and work out what to do with Alice, who's now a slightly dark witch but has helped Tom numerous times?

Read the book to find out...

I think that the book is great! It is full of horror and action at  the same time. It's unpredictable in my opinion, which is good, as you never know what the next page will bring -  and some of it is written in the first person and some is written as some one's recollection of events. This is a book that I would recommend to any 10-12 year olds!

I hope you found this review helpful,

The Devonian Reviewer

(note: this review was written by me a few years ago so I apologise for any inaccuracies)

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BOOK REVIEW: Traction City(Phillip Reeve)

Book:  Traction City

Author:  Phillip Reeve

Rating:      4/10

Recommended age: 7+

This was an ok book. Part of a 2-in-1 world book day book with the teachers tales of terror(which was a very disappointing read)which I have also done a review on being the second.

But back to this book,

This book was ok but I feel to really of enjoyed it you would have to have some knowledge of the rest of his series( a knowledge I was lacking) as I was abit confused on how the events and people and places in the story came about.

Despite this I found this book to be a good ,if short, read. Based on the mobile moving city of London that absorbs other town to itself  on the base tier people are disappearing and being murdered and all the victims are missing their right hand.  Smiff a poor boy scavenging for anything dropped form the higher tiers is a witness to one such an attack but escapes and calls the police. Armed with a bomb and a mysterious Girl who has a surprising knowledge on what is doing it 2 police officers try to hunt the killer down.

This was a good book for the cost of £1 for both and had an ok storyline.

I hope you found this review helpful,

The Devonian Reviewer

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BOOK REVIEW: The King Beyond The Gate(David Gemmell)

Book:   The King Beyond The Gate

Author: David Gemmell

Rating:  7.5/10

David Gemmell's book, The king beyond the gate, is a very good and gripping story set in his fantasy land in the country Drenan and the Drenai people overcoming seemingly invincible and insurmountable terrors and obstacle disrupting their country.

The King Beyond The Gate  is set a century after the events of his previous book Legend.

In this book the land is in the dictatorship of Ceska: 

"mad emperor held in power by two forces of unsurpassed evil, the joinings- werebeasts of awesome power and dark templars-priests of darkness and warriors without equal."-extract from  blurb

One man Tenaka Khan, half drenai and half nadir, hated by both, sets out to kill ceska and bring an end to the reign of terror in the land. For he is ex-dragon. the finest fighting force seen who were brutally massacred in their attempt to bring ceska down. Now Tenaka, who refused to answer the call, is going to finish what his friends started. joined throughout the story by survivor  Ananais one of the leaders of the Dragon who killed a joining but lost his face in the process, Renya a half joining, Pagan a mysterious black man, and Garland and Parsal more ex-dragon. Can this  unlikely group end the terror in the land, help save the rebels of Skoda from the joinings  and overcome their petty hatred for their last hope, the Nadir?

This story is gripping and very interesting with a even greater insight to the world Gemmell invented. like his other books such as Legend and waylander he combines just the right amount of action, in-depth story and dilemmas to keep readers interested. Although in my opinion it's not as good as waylander it is a great read .

I hope you found this review helpful,

The Devonian  Reviewer


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