I’m not a huge reader of fantasy but I will read anything by Katherine Rundell (I have recommended The Explorer and Rooftoppers - one of my favourite ever reads - to countless children and they are always well received). I was hoping to finish my mammoth reading year of 2023 on a high and there was plenty of hype and plaudits to suggest that Impossible Creatures would deliver. Did I save the best to last…yes, I quite possibly did. Christopher Forrester lives in London. Mal Arvorian lives in the Archipelago. The two should never have met. But after rescuing a baby griffin, the last of its kind, Christopher is transported to Mal’s world. A world full of mythical creatures, mystical islands and magnificent waters. A world where the magic that supports life is quickly fading and with it everything Mal knows and loves. Together they must venture across the wilds of the Archipelago to fight off evil to save all that they both hold dear. The future of two worlds is at stake and they must stop the darkness descending before it is too late…
If it is possible to establish yourself as one of the best writers of children’s fantasy in just one book then Katherine has done just that. Impossible Creatures is impossibly brilliant. For children in the later years of primary school who want fantasy adventures of epic proportions then they don’t get much bigger than this as Katherine, her two brave protagonists, her dragons and a heart-stealing griffin swoop in with a captivating read. Fast-paced, packed with peril and delivering thought-provoking life lessons that will challenge views of the world and our role as custodians of the planet, I devoured every word, held in the grip of a writer who is as magical, as wise, and seemingly as mysterious as one of the many fantastical creatures she writes of. Pick up any one of Katherine’s books and what quickly becomes apparent is the awareness and respect that she has for her audience. She is never afraid to take children, be it protagonists or readers, to the limits of what they are capable of, can understand or overcome. Christopher and Mal are no exception; a chance coming together, they must draw on every ounce of courage and bravery as the overwhelming responsibility of trying to stop the apocalypse weighs heavy on young shoulders. With high stakes and seemingly endless dangers and obstacles, friendship will flourish, life-shattering truths will be revealed and unimaginable sacrifices for the greater good will need to be made. Don’t worry, it isn’t all hard-hitting doom and gloom, there are plenty of light-hearted and funny scenes along the way as there tend to be in all good adventures and the ending will have everyone eager for book two (you’ll need to get in line behind me though). Not a read for sensitive souls, this is for the bravest of adventurers. And like a phoenix, it will rise and rise and rise again to the very top of the fantasy must-read list. Superb. Recommended for 10+.
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