This is such an amazing series! Wow. I was blown away when I loved the 2nd book even more than the 1st..Well now this 3rd book is my favorite lol So they just keep getting better & better. I absolutely love Herbie & Violet with my whole heart, along with Erwin, Jenny, Mrs. Fossil, Dr. Thalassi, Mr. Seegol, everyone at the hotel, & just everyone & everything about this magically eerie seaside town. All the kooky shops, including the book dispensary with the Mermonkey-soooo good! These are such atmospheric reads, with the most descriptive writing. I feel like I’m there on this adventure with them. I love how each mystery is so vastly different, yet so intertwined with this place, & certain people, like our Herbie. I loved the direction this one took, & all the different layers to it, & things explored & things revealed. Even though I feel like I know a little more to the puzzle, I’m left even more eager to know more! Lol So much adventure, mystery, suspense, danger, & friendship. Can’t wait for the 4th one in the fall! Highly recommend! Another STUNNING cover by George Ermos as well!

There is something about Thomas Taylor’s writing that just dazzles. Having read Malamander for the first time this summer, I devoured the next two in quick succession. But my goodness, is Shadowghast my favourite. The writing is sublime, wonderfully descriptive and playful in a way I can’t remember reading before. It has been a very long time since I have read a book (series!) that has stuck with me as much as the Eerie-on-the-Sea series has. Shadowghast appeals to me the most for the spooky, Halloween element to the plot. The creature’s origin story is delightfully eerie (living up to the brand name) and it leaves you guess what is going to happen throughout the story. Extremely engaging and I shall be recommending the whole series to the children I taught last year who have now moved into Year 5 and will undoubtedly enjoy it as much as I have.

Yes! Yes! Yes! I was so fortunate to get this early, as a teacher. My son and I had been excitedly discussing the arrival of the next Thomas Taylor adventure, so we’re delighted to get it. It has not disappointed us at all. Set in Eerie in Sea, with all the familiar faces, Violent Parma, Mrs Fossil, Dr..Thalassi, Jenny Hanniver, Herbert has been tracked down by a mysterious woman who claims to be related to him. As he has been apparently orphaned, he is of course keen to know more. Violet is suspicious of her motives, and believes that there is a deeper, darker secret surrounding the mysterious woman and her presence in Eerie on Sea. To be honest, we have read all the Eerie on Sea adventures, and this is full of amazing cliffhangers, leaving us gasping for more. Well done Thomas Taylor for another epic tale. An easy 5 star winner. We eagerly await the next book!!!!

I’ve always been a reader. I still remember now the excitement I felt as a child when I was taken to visit the book department in Jarrolds – a large independent department store in Norwich – to buy the latest Dr Who title from publisher Target with my pocket money. Now – as an adult, and with my local bookshop within easy walking distance – going to buy books is no longer the huge adventure it seemed all those years ago and there are very few books for which I feel that same stomach-flipping, heart-rushing thrill. Until now. My love for the books which precede this – Malamander and Gargantis – is well-known, both on Twitter and in school, but this would mean little were it not for the joy that this series has brought not only me, but the classes I have taught over the last two years. Never in my teaching career have I known books to engage not only children like they have, but also a great many of their parents who have either read the books at home alongside their offspring, or have chosen to read them alone – just for the sheer pleasure of it. Taking my charges swimming this week, I was fortunate enough to have a parent accompanying us who took huge delight in telling me how she had pre-ordered Shadowghast from Waterstones and was bitterly disappointed that she would have to wait not only until the end of the summer break for it to arrive, but also for her child to read it before she could. Little did she know that I had been lucky enough to be granted early access through the wonders of Net Galley and that I was counting the hours until I could return to Eerie-on-Sea. For anyone who is as yet unfamiliar with that small and curious seaside town, it has been the setting for our previous adventures with best of friends Herbie and Violet, who met in the first story. Together, they have spent much of the first two titles battling to stay safe from various threats, while solving a great many of the puzzles which have faced them, and it is again where we find Herbie – in his place of employment: The Grand Nautilus Hotel. It is a special occasion at the hotel, and to celebrate all of the staff have been invited to a wonderful breakfast, including Herbie. Unfortunately for him, manager Mr Mollusc is in charge of deciding who eats when and for Herbie, it appears that his turn is unlikely to come. As he waits, he is startled by a female guest behind him asking him if he is worried he will be left out. After a pause, he turns around to see her getting into the lift with a couple of male guests and realises that she called him by his name. Puzzled, he returns to his cubbyhole, finding a message from Violet demanding his presence immediately without specifying why, but before he is able to attend he is summoned to the private rooms of the hotel’s owner, Lady Kraken. Here, he is introduced to the mysterious woman who is called Caliastra and reveals herself to be a magician who has come to Eerie-on-Sea and appears to know rather a lot about our young hero. Overwhelmed, Herbie runs from the hotel to talk to Violet and is alarmed when she tells him that a mutual friend has gone missing – something totally out of character. Before they can investigate, a concerned Caliastra arrives having followed him, and tells him and Violet that she has come to the seaside town to give a special shadow puppet show as part of the town’s Ghastly Night celebrations – the local version of Halloween. This tradition is based on the legend of the terrifying Shadowghast – a fearsome creature said to consume the shadows of its victims. As Ghastly Night approaches and other members of the community disappear, it appears that dark forces are in action within Eerie-on-Sea. Will Herbie and Violet be able to find their missing friends and just how is the Shadowghast linked to what is happening? With the author now well into his stride in this series, Herbie and Violet are now well-established characters whose many fans will be delighted to see how their relationship continues to develop. As we have seen before, he is much less confident and less impulsive than she is but as the story unfolds we start to see a bolder and more decisive Herbie as he reacts to what is happening around him. With the threat of the balance of their friendship being thrown out of kilter, I’m sure I won’t be the only one wondering if Herbie will continue to blossom in this way and if he does, how will Violet react and will it impact on their relationship? Although most of the action quite rightly involves the two of them, I was delighted to see the reappearance of some of the other residents to whom we have previously been introduced. While I like to pretend that I am more like the Book Dispensary’s Jenny Hanniver, I suspect my class would tell you I am far more similar in character to the eccentric beachcomber Mrs Fossil – both of whom I am extremely fond of and who feature again together with other familiar faces. The introduction of Caliastra and a few more figures connected to the Ghastly Night celebrations ensures that this as fresh to the reader as its siblings, and – as with Gargantis – it is entirely possible to read this as a standalone title with no knowledge of the previous stories. If you haven’t read them though, I beg you to do so. This continues to be my absolute favourite series of books for younger readers, and while I would say they are perfectly pitched for my Year 5 class, they will be equally well received by children throughout KS2 and well into KS3 – such is the beauty of the writing and its power to engage those reading these stories. With a bonus sneaky peek of Book 4, Festergrimm, enclosed at the end to whet the reader’s appetite, I cannot wait to find out what happens next and I know that I am not alone. The most enormous thanks must go to Walker Books and Net Galley for my early read, ahead of publication on September 2nd, and to Thomas Taylor for the joy that these books continue to bring.

The summer season is over in Eerie-in-Sea and everyone is looking forward to Ghastly Night, Eerie’s own version of Halloween where the shadowy creature with horns is remembered. However, when a new magic act appears from nowhere with its main magician, Caliastra, claiming to be Herbie’s aunt, things take a dramatic turn in the town, especially when Jenny and then Mrs Fossil both go missing, and Herbie and Vi realise that it’s up to them to find out what is really going on. Th Eerie-on-Sea series of books has captured my imagination and my heart from the very first book and so it was wonderful to be back in the town and to catch-up with Herbie and Vi. In many respects, nothing has changed: Herbie is still working the lost and found at the Grand Nautilus Hotel where Mr Mollusc is sill tormenting him, and Vi is firmly in place as Jenny’s assistant at The Book Dispensary. However, as you may imagine, many things have also changed, namely in the arrival of Caliastra who is claiming to be Herbie’s aunt and knows exactly what happened to him. As Herbie is so desperate to feel a sense of belonging and family, it’s no surprise that this news turns his head and has him wanting to know more; however, it also comes as no surprise that the very sensible Vi is much more sceptical. The pair work well together, both in the plot as well as characters that compliment each other and it was very good to be back in their company. The plot itself is gripping and has all the elements of a good Eerie adventure: intrigue, mystery, a sense of trepidation, questions about the past as well as the present, not to mention just enough sinister goings on to give you the shivers! As with Malamander and Gargantis, Shadowghast is a gripping read that will have you hooked from the first page and I guarantee you won’t want to put it down. Shadowghast is due for release on the 14th September, I urge you all to head back to Eerie.