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The Whispering Skull Lockwood Co Jonathan Stroud 8601416341385 Books

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The Whispering Skull Lockwood Co Jonathan Stroud 8601416341385 Books

Jonathan Stroud cannot write a sequel soon enough. Lockwood & Co. is my new favorite series. Stroud has taken a little bit of Sherlock Holmes and a lot of John Bellairs and thrown them together to create a captivating, horrific, and witty mystery. Stroud's dry wit, (which is sometimes of the blink-and-you'll-miss-it kind) is not overused. The characters, thrust into a truly fantastic world where ghosts are real and only children can save us, are completely believable.

Lockwood, Lucy and George are truly a team, though even Lucy admits that they don't include George enough in the actual action. All three have their flaws, but are saved by the strengths of the other team members. In The Whispering Skull, we learn a huge cliff-hanging secret about Lockwood. We see what George is truly capable of when pushed. And we see how important loyalty and family are to Lucy.

Though maybe not as scary as the first book, The Whispering Skull, gives the reader a lot of shivering, hold your breath, moments, where once again the scariest, most dangerous things in the world are the actual people and not the ghosts.

A must read.


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The Whispering Skull Lockwood Co Jonathan Stroud 8601416341385 Books Reviews

I can't believe I almost skipped this series. See, book one was tagged as a middle grade book, appropriate for readers in grades three to seven. Or six to nine, depending on where you were looking. (This one is apparently either three to seven or five to eight.) And you know, I've revisited too many books that I loved-loved-loved as a kid that simply don't hold up. (I was a precocious reader, too; it's not like those childhood favorites were unusually simple.) That's always sort of disappointing, so I'd pretty much decided that, with a couple of rare exceptions, I do better when I leave the middle grade books to the kids and focus on stuff that's written with my own age bracket in mind.

But, a few things got me to risk it in this particular case. It was on sale. A few different friends of mine had rated it highly. And I really liked this author's Bartimaeus series. So, I bought it and promised myself I'd start it right away so that I'd have time to return it if it ended up being too young for me.

Oh man. I don't know if the reading level was set unusually low or this just happens to be one of those rare exceptions, but book one wasn't just enjoyable, it was destined for my “favorites” shelf. And I'm pleased to report that I loved this one as well.

Lucy, Lockwood, and George are back. This time, they have the benefit of a somewhat improved reputation...but their cred still isn't quite on the same level as the Fittes Agency. And too bad the Fittes folks they keep running into are such jerks. The Whispering Skull serves up another excellent ghostly mystery, complete with plenty of danger, and as an added bonus, we get to find out more about the creepy skull from Lucy's pre-employment test. A lot more.

It probably goes without saying, since Jonathan Stroud is such a terrific author, but this book checks all the right boxes. The plot is engaging. The characters have depth. The setting that I praised so highly in book one is still delightful and magical and sinister all at the same time. (And, since there are so many ebooks lately that are so unprofessional, it might be worth pointing out that the dialogue is realistic, the editing happened, and the story doesn't end on a cliffhanger.)

I understand book three is being released soon and I'm practically dancing with anticipation. Whether you're in grades three through seven or not, I suggest you do yourself a favor and get this—along with The Screaming Staircase, if you haven't read that one yet—and settle in for an outstanding ride.
With this second installment of _Lockwood & Co_, Stroud still managed to pull a rare feat pull me into a first-person narrative. I really rather dislike most first-person narratives--most of the time I see first person and go the other way. This book was still good, but not quite as good as the first because there was a lack of world-building here and a lack of some further character development. I've never been to London and it's out-lying areas (and never will get to go there). There was no real attempt to paint settings with words here, just a lot of place names that mean very little to me (having never seen London). Readers see a bit more into _Lockwood & Co_'s world primarily through the introduction of some new characters, so the world does expand a bit. The fact that there is as black market for Visitor-related goods (which was probably obvious to more mature readers anyway), but there was really not much new information regarding "The Problem" itself. As a team--and individual characters--though, Anthony, Lucy, and George don't gain much more depth until near the end of the book. I really would have welcomed some more character development, especially if this is going to be a series that goes on for a while yet (I really have no idea, I don't know much about the author or his books). The ending of this one made me swear--and if I'd been reading a paperback, I probably would have probably have thrown it across the room... Finally, there was going to be some progress on developing mysterious Anthony Lockwood... I "turned" the digital page and hit the glossary... The book ended, leaving me hanging! Maddening!

There are a couple of dangling story left here, presumably left for other volumes. Who was the blonde young man with the mustache that Winkman referred to as "My lord" (also seen with Penelope Fittes)? What is the harp-like symbol seen on the box that Penelope Fittes gave the young man (and was also on George's goggles)? What about Lockwood's past (and parents)? Will more be learned about the advent and history of "The Problem" and "Visitors"? Will anything *new* be discovered about "The Problem" and "Visitors"? So many questions yet...

Being a young-at-heart (adult) reader, with lots of reading experience, I figured out the plot twists. I still enjoyed the ride. I'm a little ticked about being left dangling, but.. Fortunately, I picked up _The Hollow Boy_ when I saw the price had dipped the other day before I had even started this one (it was only briefly discounted, so I'm glad I did). So, once I take a breather and read the short story _The Dagger in the Desk_ (which is currently free), I'll be back... LOL _Lockwood & Co._ is my first experience with this author and I'm enjoying it, for the most part. ;)
Jonathan Stroud cannot write a sequel soon enough. Lockwood & Co. is my new favorite series. Stroud has taken a little bit of Sherlock Holmes and a lot of John Bellairs and thrown them together to create a captivating, horrific, and witty mystery. Stroud's dry wit, (which is sometimes of the blink-and-you'll-miss-it kind) is not overused. The characters, thrust into a truly fantastic world where ghosts are real and only children can save us, are completely believable.

Lockwood, Lucy and George are truly a team, though even Lucy admits that they don't include George enough in the actual action. All three have their flaws, but are saved by the strengths of the other team members. In The Whispering Skull, we learn a huge cliff-hanging secret about Lockwood. We see what George is truly capable of when pushed. And we see how important loyalty and family are to Lucy.

Though maybe not as scary as the first book, The Whispering Skull, gives the reader a lot of shivering, hold your breath, moments, where once again the scariest, most dangerous things in the world are the actual people and not the ghosts.

A must read.