Thursday, January 26, 2017

Riverkeep by Martin Stewart - NO

Stewart, Martin Riverkeep, 403 pages.  Viking, 2016.  $18.  Language: PF-13 (19 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: PG (naked, sexual innuendo); Violence: PG-13 (some blood, corpses).

Wulliam is the very reluctant apprentice to his father the Riverkeep.  When his father is dragged under water and comes back possessed, he makes a desperate gamble to free his father from the evil inside.  Along the way picks up a motley cast of characters, all with ulterior motives, and none of which he really wants along for the ride.  Nothing is easy for Wulliam and the group – not even the dénouement.

In the sense that this is an adventure/companionship journey novel, it reminds me of Garth Nix or Paul Stewart.  However, this book has none of the charm, the heroism, nor the humor that make those books great.  Instead, Stewart goes for dark, confusing, distressing, and disparaging – making for a book that is depressing.  I can not see students recommending to anyone if they actually finish it.  I don’t like it enough to urge you to handsel it, either.

NOT RECOMMENDED.  Cindy, Library Teacher

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