Published By: Simon and Schuster Children
Pages: 304
Released On: 15/09/2022
Lana and Harrison are staying with their grandparents, when they discover their favourite tree to play in is under threat. That night, a magical golden thread leads them up through the hollow of the tree into a storybook land, where wind and rain rage and a fearsome beast terrifies all who live there.
When Harrison is kidnapped by the evil Spider Queen, Lana must do whatever it takes to find him, save the villagers and restore the balance of the storybook world, before the night is out.
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I feel a bit behind as I didn’t know Ben Miller even wrote books, which is exciting, as I’m a big fan of his. Yes, I know this is a children’s book and probably not aimed at a 29 year old but it sounded like such a fun story. It turned out to be a proper fantasy adventure.
I read an early e-copy; it would be lovely to see a finished book to see the final images as the description of this fantasy world sounded so bright and beautiful, and the black and white images in this copy don’t do them justice.
There was definitely a sense of Narnia about it, with magical lands and talking animals.
By having a boy and a girl as your protagonists, it would appeal to all children as they are all able to identify with them and follow them on their adventure.
I liked the main plot point of the spiders. In my experience, most people do not think favourably of spiders, and a lot of the children I know fall into that category. And whilst I’m not about to go and stroke a spider, I think this book could do a lot to change their perspective, especially for children.
It is straightforward and exciting for children to follow but developed enough to interest older readers.
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