Brightstorm - Vashti Hardy.
‘Fear kills more dreams than failure ever will. You can be comfortable or courageous - never both.’
Twins Arthur and Maudie Brightstorm are devastated to hear that their father has perished during his exploration to the Third Continent in a bid to be the first to reach South Polaris. They are even more distraught to hear testimony at the Geographical Scoiety by Eudora Vane, a rival explorer, that he and his crew stole Vane's fuel and that his air ship was then found empty with traces of blood near by. News such as this means that the twins' father broke the Explorers' Code laid out by the Lontown Geographical Society which means that no insurance is paid to the now orphaned children who are subsequently sold to Mr and Mrs Beggins. Thus begins their new life in the slumps: Maudie (good with engineering) is sent to work at the docks, whilst Arthur (with one metal arm) is set to work in the house.
The twins, however, are a determined and courageous pair and are far from convinced by the story of their father's demise (even more so when Parthenon, their father's sapient bird, reappears), so when they see an advert in the paper for crew for a journey to South Polaris, posted by explorer Harriet Culpepper, they jump at the chance to join and to fulfil their dream of clearing their father's name. And so begins their adventures.
Will they make it to be the first crew to reach South Polaris? Will they discover the truth about what happened to their father and why is Eudora Vane so keen to scupper their chances?
O's Opinion:
There was an abundance of adventure with Arthur and Maudie as wherever they went they always seemed to encounter action and mystery. I found a lot of suspense within the book in times of peril and times of mystery. I loved all of the characters but my favourite was Harriet as she helped any member of her crew no matter what.
This book made me cry and laugh at all the right times, and I loved reading it. This is an amazing first book and I hope there will be a second!
K's Opinion:
Any book that contains the line "How exciting - books are the greatest gift." gets my vote any day! And this book certainly gets my vote!
I have to admit thinking that this may be a slightly predictable plot (enjoyable but possibly predictable); however, I was to be proved wrong as there were several unexpected twists along the way which kept me gripped, as did the strength of the characters. I always enjoy getting to know independent female characters and you certainly get that in the form of Maudie and Harriet (as well as Eudora, I have to say), and I love the fact that they are both keen engineers; however, it was Arthur who really drew me in: determined, headstrong and lead by the desire to discover the truth, it's clear that he isn't held back by his arm. I liked the fact that there is also a vulnerable side to him and we see his uncertainty in himself and a jealousy of his sister's sense of direction (although he is also proud of this) - it was these complexities that made him my favourite character.
This was a very well written book and I can't wait to get back into school to start recommending it to the children. In school, the sign of a good book is one that never makes it was far as the library as it is simply passed from child to child - I think that this will be one of those books!
We would recommend this book to fans of Cogheart, Sky Chasers, Tin and The Peculiars.
O's Opinion:
There was an abundance of adventure with Arthur and Maudie as wherever they went they always seemed to encounter action and mystery. I found a lot of suspense within the book in times of peril and times of mystery. I loved all of the characters but my favourite was Harriet as she helped any member of her crew no matter what.
This book made me cry and laugh at all the right times, and I loved reading it. This is an amazing first book and I hope there will be a second!
K's Opinion:
Any book that contains the line "How exciting - books are the greatest gift." gets my vote any day! And this book certainly gets my vote!
I have to admit thinking that this may be a slightly predictable plot (enjoyable but possibly predictable); however, I was to be proved wrong as there were several unexpected twists along the way which kept me gripped, as did the strength of the characters. I always enjoy getting to know independent female characters and you certainly get that in the form of Maudie and Harriet (as well as Eudora, I have to say), and I love the fact that they are both keen engineers; however, it was Arthur who really drew me in: determined, headstrong and lead by the desire to discover the truth, it's clear that he isn't held back by his arm. I liked the fact that there is also a vulnerable side to him and we see his uncertainty in himself and a jealousy of his sister's sense of direction (although he is also proud of this) - it was these complexities that made him my favourite character.
This was a very well written book and I can't wait to get back into school to start recommending it to the children. In school, the sign of a good book is one that never makes it was far as the library as it is simply passed from child to child - I think that this will be one of those books!
We would recommend this book to fans of Cogheart, Sky Chasers, Tin and The Peculiars.
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