Ian Wigby is about to find out that he is a very special boy.
Along the southern coast of England, atop the White Cliffs of Dover, stands a castle. And at that castleβs old keep is an orphanage. Delphi Keep has seen many youngsters come and go through its gates, and Ian Wigby and his sister, Theodosia, are happy to call it home. Life has always been simple at the Keep, and the orphanage safe, until one day, Ian and Theo find a silver treasure box. And within the box, a prophesy. Three thousand years ago a great Greek oracle wrote of a quest. A quest on which the fate of the world depends. A quest that names two childrenβIan and Theodosia. Suddenly Delphi Keep is no longer safe. And Ian and Theo, along with a very special group of friends, realize they must unravel the meaning behind the scroll of Dover cavern before darkness falls on the world. And before an unfathomable evil catches up with them.
From the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
Grade 5β8βThe orphanage at Delphi Keep is a great place for Ian and Theodosia to grow up. They love exploring the tunnels all around the White Cliffs of Dover. One day, they happen upon a silver box in one of them. When Ian wedges it free from the sand, a vicious hell-hound, the servant of an evil sorcerer, begins to chase them. The two soon find themselves embroiled in a wild adventure involving a prophecy foretold by the oracle Laodamia about the coming of the Nazis and the end of the world. It hinges on an old legend about the Demogorgon fathering four children who control the elements and who are bent on destruction. Now, the two children, along with their friend Carl, their teachers, and an old antiquities professor, must race against half-demons and piece together the clues of the prophecy. If they don't find several important objects mentioned in it, the world could be destroyed. While the story begins well and has several breathtaking action sequences, it quickly meanders and loses steam. Laurie has too many plot strands to tie together and she does so haphazardly, leaving the story overloaded with characters, especially villains. The characters themselves seem more like archetypes than real people, and the dialogue is sometimes unrealistic. With an overlong, complicated plot and long stretches of low action, the story is unlikely to find a wide audience.β Necia Blundy, Marlborough Public Library, MA
Copyright Β© Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
About the Author
Victoria Laurie lives in Austin, Texas. You can visit her on the Web at www.oraclesofdelphikeep.com.