The Secret Deep
ISBN13
9781911490029
Review published
16/07/2018
By Reviewer
Lorraine
Star Rating
By Author / Illustrator
Lindsay Galvin
Age range(s)
11+
Review
Aster and her younger sister Poppy are orphans who have travelled around the world to live with a relative they barely know, their aunt Iona. After a chance meeting with a local boy, Sam, on the plane, they are taken to a remote, secret ecovillage where their suspicions are soon aroused. Drugged on a boat trip Aster wakes on an island, groggy and disorientated. Where is Poppy and her aunt, more importantly why have they been brought here and what are the shadows in the water? This book turned out to be totally different than I expected and the author has taken a brave leap, mixing modern day sci-if with myth, legends, mystery and adventure. Throw in a sensitive handling of grief and anxiety, along with a touch of modern day displacement and poverty issues, and you have an adrenaline packed story that will have you hooked with its likeable characters and villians. I usually see the plot from a long way off but this book kept me guessing and not normally a fan of series, I was disappointed when the book ended with a natural conclusion. There is a chink of hope for a sequel and I for one would be lining up to read it first. I think fans of The Hunger Games, Maze Runner, The Fifth Wave etc would like this as well as younger readers ready for something a bit different. Recommended. 270 pages / Ages 11+ / Reviewed by Lorraine Ansell, school librarian.
