LOCKWOOD & CO:SCREAMING (B)

I confess that I read this book because of the Netflix series. It caught my attention, and was great fun. But as good as the show was, the book is even better. This book introduces us to a fantastic cast of characters, with strengths and weaknesses, quirks and habits, that help them feel so alive. As a firm believer that banter makes or breaks story, I can say the author nails it. It helps the book have great moments of laughter while maintaining a spooky environment. The story is fantastically fresh, while starting with just enough familiarity to help you hit the ground running. Old tropes and myths about ghosts and haunting are given great form by the author. Such as using silver and iron in traditional ways while giving them more modern twists. You can read this book as a standalone story, with a great beginning and end, or you can give in a read the full series. I recommend the latter, as the adventure just gets better.

This is a fun book, something I would have absolutely gone bonkers over when I was in grade school or junior high. As an adult, it's a nice break from some of the heavier fantasy. It's also refreshing in that it focuses on action instead of romance - which is what has turned me off from a lot of the YA stuff coming out. I wanted to read about kids fighting ghosts and that's what I got. One of the things that struck me was that the story was told in first person, not from the PoV of Lockwood, but from the perspective of the group's latest recruit, a young lady by the name of Lucy Carlyle. In some ways, it reminds of a Sherlock Holmes story with Lucy taking the place of Dr. Watston, describing the escapades of the group, especially their eccentric leader Anthony Lockwood. The story leaps right into the action, detailing an exciting and completely disastrous job that nearly kills off Lucy and Lockwood straight off. It gets them into all sorts of hot water, especially financially, and provides the reason they take on a wholly nasty job that could well be beyond their abilities. I won't go into tons of detail, I don't want to ruin the adventure, but I will say there are tons of creepy and dangerous ghosts the trio (Lucy, Lockwood and George) must deal with. It's no Scooby Doo tale where the ghosts end up being fake. I like the rationale for why all of the ghost hunters are youngsters. I don't like how all of the adults are either stupid or nasty. There is too much of that in stories intended for a young audience. It's okay for the kids to be heroes without having to resort to turning all adults into the enemy. Aside from that, I found the book a real pleasure. I will be reading the next in the series.

Please understand that all my reviews focus on the interests of my middle school students. I never do a full plot synopsis in a review and try to give as little away as possible. YA literature always seems to "get things" much better than those dusty tomes for grown ups! The Ghost/spirit-monster genre is certainly no exception. You just can't beat The Last Apprentice (that's the Wardstone Chronicles for you Brits), especially if you like a stoic first-person narration, or the Monstrumologist series, although it is very, very dark. Now we have Stroud venturing into the spiritual realm again (as in the Bartimaeus series), only this time the human main character (a girl name Lucy Carlyle) is actually likable (remember, Bartimaeus, though very likable, is not human). Stroud returns to London for his setting, but it is London of the near-future, not the past. The plot's major premise is that the world (England in particular) is experiencing what the populace calls the Problem: sinister ghosts, capable of killing and inflicting serious injury both physical and mental, have started appearing all over the place. The small-letter problem is that only children and teens can see and deal with these deadly apparitions. As the kids age, they start losing their gifts to see (before they manifest), hear, feel, etc. the ghosts (called Visitors). A lot of them then become supervisors for the kids who do the real work. The gifts these children have differ in form, strength, and usefulness. Needless to say, getting rid of ghosts soon becomes a thriving industry. Agencies spring up all over the place, and, in time, of course, some garner better reputations and more clients than others. All agencies use adult supervisors to oversee the kids. It is isn't long before the government sticks its bureaucratic nose into things. Between the adult interference and government regulation, ghost-busting starts to lose its effectiveness. Enter our hero, Anthony Lockweed, who leads the Lockwood & Co. psychic detection agency. He is himself a mid-teen; he hires only other kids and loathes the restrictions of having frightened adults along on a case. There is a fly in this ointment, however, as the agency has only three employees: Anthony, the afore-mentioned Lucy, and George, a gluttonous, but brilliant, thirteen-year-old. In addition, the agency is in serious financial peril and will soon have to shut down if its fortunes don't turn. The plot centers on the kids' effort to rescue the agency by solving a high-profile and extremely dangerous case while at the same time seeing to the needs of their other clients and cases. The pace of the plot is not exactly blistering, but it is never tedious, either. You will move along quite well and smoothly. For me, the first-person narrative (by Lucy) is absolutely addictive. If you do the math from given clues, you can deduce that Lucy is around fifteen. She is spunky, decisive, a bit spontaneous (but NOT impulsive), and very adamantly independent. The narration is light and conversational and, although not as consistenly humorous as Bartimaeus, will at times have you laughing out loud. Stroud has nailed the voice of a mid-teen, feisty girl. Character development is superb, both of minor and major characters. The second book in the series is now available. If you like Delaney, Yancey, Wrede, and others like them, you will love this book/series.

I discovered Lockwood & Co. by watching the excellent series on Netflix. For me, many Netflix series aimed at young adultish fantasy readers just aren't great. They tend to rely on elements of young adult fantasy that I dislike - the heroes are perfect and often fall into the category of abusive partners, heroines are often imperfect and need to be rescued and/or unattractive (and need to be rescued). The heroine is selfless and will sacrifice herself for anything and anyone. There's also the formulaic slut shaming aimed at any other woman who even speaks to the hero. None of this is true of Lockwood & Co. The series is one I didn't want to end and I definitely want to see a second season (Netflix, we're all looking at you here). It was so good that I had to read at least one of the books. The Screaming Staircase is the first in the five-book series and yes, dear reader, I'll be reading them all (no matter what Netflix decides to do). These books are listed as either middle-grade, or young reader, or young adult. I think they're suitable for some elementary school readers and definitely suitable for adults. If you know a kid who loves Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, I think they would also love these books. We're in an alternate England, but especially London, where there is a plague of ghosts of all kinds - get touched by one and you'll soon join them. Children are the only ones who are able to combat them because they have powers that allow them to get the upper hand. They grow out of these powers, of course, but still require adult "supervision," although you learn the worth of that pretty quickly. Lockwood & Co. is a 3-person agency with no adult supervision. Lockwood, Lucy, and George are content to do their own research on their cases and to do battle to raise ghosts to rest. Of course, there are misadventures, but these just make you root for the characters even more. After a very unfortunate mishap involving Greek fire in a house that ... well, you can probably imagine ... the trio falls on hard times. There are fines to be paid and they move lose their house and their business or at a minimum come under supervision (yeah, I'm not fond of adult supervision, either). At the last moment, the owner of the most haunted house in England hires them to make the place less haunted. The world building is ingenious and is communicated through just enough exposition and events that occur in the books. Anthony Lockwood is my favorite kind of English prep school boy - you know the ones - tousled hair, handsome, deadly with a rapier, mysterious, and a true and loyal friend. George Cubbins is a researcher - a budding young scientist complete with loads of library time and some dubious experimental undertakings. Lucy Carlyle, our heroine and narrator, is tough, talented, and not afraid to speak her mind - more and more so as the book goes on. I like her a lot - so good to see a heroine who isn't a princess in need of rescue (more of this please). The book was engaging and interested and I returned to it again and again with anticipation. It was good enough that it took me awhile to find my next read and once I finished that one, I started on the second Lockwood & Co book, The Whispering Skull. Highly recommended!

There are times when you need to sit with a book for a while after finishing it to process your feelings and reactions. Maybe the reading experience was emotionally exhausting. Maybe the subject matter was disturbing (or nightmare-inducing!). Maybe... a lot of things. After I finished Jonathan Stroud's Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase, I struggled to evaluate my reaction. My roommate walked in and saw me sitting on the couch, book closed on my lap, staring into space. I told her, "It was a good book, but creepy as hell." She said, "Put that in the review." Great advice. Lucy is a girl with: an exceptional ability to listen to ghosts, bad mistakes in her past, and a tendency toward obsessive preparedness. She's also an agent at London-based Lockwood & Co., a small outfit whose job it is to banish spirits. To do her work Lucy abides by three rules: 1) Get in quick, 2) Don't use electricity, and 3) Wear a watch with a luminous dial. The other (unspoken) rule is that things never go quite as expected. Increased hauntings are plaguing Britain, and only the young can detect and eliminate them. Which is how/why three teenagers came to run a business of a sinister nature. In this first in a new paranormal series, Stroud introduces three young ghost hunters: the narrator Lucy, Anthony Lockwood and George. Lucy is new and trying to prove her competence. George is abrasive and fanatical about jelly doughnuts and research. Lockwood brings them together as a clever and charismatic leader. And Stroud unites their disparate talents and abilities to tell a dark and disturbing tale for middle grade readers. Oh, it's also funny, smart and can't-put-it-down-addictive reading. If you like mystery,danger, and stories that involve escaping by the skin of your teeth, this is the book for you. Did I love it? I had a hard time knowing for the first few days. It scared the freaking daylights out of me in parts, but I couldn't stop reading. I loved Lucy and George and Lockwood, and I will be counting down the days until the next book releases and I can find out what happens next. I thought the mystery was extremely well-executed, with twists you could see coming, and others you couldn't. In some ways, I was intrigued in spite of myself, because I say I don't like scary books. And yet. I couldn't stop thinking about The Screaming Staircase. I think this is what being in love with a complex book looks like, folks. Yes, I think it must be love. Because while the story offers all the thrills and chills expected of a good ghost story, it's also about three characters who have the odds stacked against them and still rely on their ingenuity (and luck!), and let their stubborn will and intuition guide them through. That sort of pluck will win me over any day. Let me be clear: The Screaming Staircase is close to perfect. It has a well-realized fantasy world with an insidious paranormal problem, engaging characters and real danger. The story has enough twists, surprises and scares for everyone. It's also great all-ages (10 and up?) reading - I'm giving a copy to my 23 year-old brother for the holiday. Yeah, that's a pretty whole-hearted recommendation. It IS love! Recommended for: readers ages ten and up (especially those who like mysteries), fans of Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book, and anyone who likes a good ghost story.

I'm rarely drawn into books written in first-person narrative, so this book is a rare exception. By the end of my first sitting with this one, I was 10% in, by the end of the second day, reading in "down moments," I was 25% through the book. Every day since starting it, I've craved the quiet moments where I could pick up my Kindle and read more. Even in first-person, this one has a flair of "alterverse" dark charm (though I don't think it was any darker than Dahl or Rowling). I found the writing style easily accessible, but well-crafted. I didn't feel like I was reading that pesky pronoun "I" altogether too often, as I so often do when trying to read books in first-person. As an adult reader, I did pick up on which character was going to be the ultimate "villain," but getting to the end was still highly entertaining and pretty lushly satisfying. There is some fantasy (and everyday) violence and mild swearing in this one, but nothing to be too concerned with, in the end. I was pleasantly surprised that the story didn't get seriously bogged down in teen-angsty love-triangles and other over-used teen dramatics. I think that anyone that likes paranormal tales or mysteries would probably enjoy this one. I will most likely be picking up book two some time in the future, once I get a few more books removed from my Kindle purchases slush pile. I enjoyed Lockwood & Co. more than enough to revisit the characters in their next adventure. The alterverse London with the dark present is compelling and I really want to know more about Lockwood, Lucy, and George.

What a rare treat it is to find a book so gripping that I'd want to experience it twice in one year! I hadn't heard of Jonathan Stroud or the series when its title caught my attention in the bookstore. But before I knew it, I found myself almost as 'ghostlocked' as the characters. Jonathan Stroud's writing is so vivid and atmospheric that I could practically feel the characters' fear, leaving me as cold and tense as the characters themselves. His approach to worldbuilding is a particular win here. This isn’t just another ghost story. It's a well-crafted reality. Spirits are dangerous and unpredictable but also are grounded in a clear set of rules that are expounded upon the more you read. The characters, teens in this case, have agency and skills and are not at all helpless. This structured nature of the universe doesn't lessen the fear. Instead, it heightens it. We know the risks and we sense the consequences. The knowledge only builds the suspense. The character dynamics are so well done. They all feel real in their complexity, with each bringing in their own strengths and flaws. In their collaboration and loyalty to one another, the trio really shine. You find yourself enjoying their bickering and relishing their quiet moments (perhaps with a biscuit or three to share in their feasts). The author really created characters that linger in the mind long after the final page and I am almost sad that I'm just meeting them now. All in all, I'm hooked and am reading the other books.

Jonathan Stroud is one of my favorite children's fantasy authors, and Lockwood & Co does nothing to disappoint. His Bartimeus trilogy is one of my all-time favorite children's book fantasy series (I know this is heretical for people in my generation, but I'd rank it above Harry Potter--partially because the seventh Harry Potter retroactively tainted the series for me, partially because Bartimeus is so deliciously snarky, and mainly because of the elegance with which Stroud wraps up the third and final book), and although I was a little leery of Lockwood & Co when I first read the description ("Ghosts? Really?") I pre-ordered it and was lucky enough to receive it a day early! (It pays to live a few blocks away from one of Amazon's fulfillment centers sometimes.) I eagerly devoured the entire thing in a day, and would not be surprised if Lockwood & Co eventually turns into another of my favorite children's fantasy series (although the story wraps up beautifully, it is strongly hinted at the end of the book that there will be more to come). Ghosts may have seemed a strange choice in subject matter to me initially, but I had forgotten how well Stroud handles horror: he doesn't focus on explicitly horrific subject matter in any of his other books that I've read, but the horror scenes in Heroes of the Valley , and particularly the grave robbing scene in The Golem's Eye (second book of the Bartimeus Trilogy), are some exquisitely executed horror that should have tipped me off to the fact that Lockwood & Co is a natural place for him to end up. Much like Bartimeus did for demon summonings, Lockwood & Co takes all the stereotypical trappings of traditional ghost stories, mixes them together with young, plucky, and occasionally snarky characters, and comes up with something uniquely wonderful. London (and indeed all of England) is afflicted with the Problem: a rash of hauntings and deaths caused by supernatural means that proliferated after some unknown event about fifty years ago. Sadly, the only people able to deal with the threat are young children; those with the gift are able to detect ghostly activity, but as they age their abilities degrade. Lucy Carlyle, the heroine of Lockwood & Co, is one such gifted youngster who has joined up with the independent Lockwood & Co: a small team of children who work without adult supervision. Unfortunately, their fledgling team is less talented than its visionary founder, Anthony Lockwood, envisions and due to a series of mishaps ends up desperately accepting a highly dangerous job in one of England's most haunted houses. Lucy is a wonderful protagonist: she's smart, talented, often snarky, and a fairly sensitive soul despite the horrible things she has experienced. I would not be surprised if Lockwood & Co appeals to a larger crowd than Bartimeus initially did simply because of Lucy; Bartimeus and his master Nathaniel could both be off-putting at times, while you're rooting for Lucy from the first page onward. I highly enjoyed her compatriots, as well: Anthony Lockwood's manic-depressive charisma and skill with the rapier are subtly offset by his childish view on the world, while George Cubbins is hilariously negligent about social expectations regarding hygiene in a way that will be instantly recognizable to anyone who has dealt with pubescent boys in any quantity. I am eagerly awaiting to see where Stroud goes with his little gang of miscreants and ghost hunters in future books, and for now strongly recommend that you give Lockwood & Co a try; you will certainly not regret it.