Review: Operation Bunny by Sally Gardner

Magic, mysteries and a resilient heroine - fab start to a new series for 7+

Sally Gardner is so great! I've never been disappointed with one of her books, and this quirky magical tale is no different. With shades of Roald Dahl and Eva Ibbotson, this is classic young fiction at its best.

As the first book in a new series, it lays the groundwork for the future, showing how the wonderful cat Fidget and little Emily Vole on the book cover come to be working together at a Fairy Detective Agency. The gorgeous illustrations are perfect, starting with the cover style that shows us this is no 'pink and sparkly' fairy book.

Emily's life has fairytale elements: she's an orphan, found in a hatbox at Stansted Airport and quickly adopted by the incredibly wealthy Dashwoods, who soon grow frustrated by Emily's inability to perfectly complement their otherwise perfectly coordinated life and treat her shockingly. It's through Emily's adoptive parents that comparisons to Dahl are most valid, with their caricature-like superficiality and materialism. Once the magical elements start featuring, things look up for Emily and the adventure truly begins.

Children of around 7 and up will lap this up, revelling as they do in deliciously bad parent-figures and tough and resourceful child protagonists, not to mention magical talking animals. I know I would have loved this as a child (umm, actually I loved it now :) ) and my 9yr old will too.

Overall, this is definitely a fun read for newly confident readers (shortish chapters and lovely b/w illustrations throughout), or would work well as a shared bedtime read.

From the Back Cover:

When Emily Vole inherits an abandoned shop, she discovers a magical world she never knew existed. But a fairy-hating witch, a mischievous set of golden keys, and a train full of brightly coloured bunnies are just a few of the surprises that come with it.

With the help of a talking cat called Fidget and a grumpy fairy detective called Buster, it's up to Emily to get to the bottom of Operation Bunny.

*************************************************

Published in October 2012 by Orion Children's
My grateful thanks to the publisher for sending a review copy
For more info: publisher's website

Stories on Saturdays: If I Never See You Again

Title: If I Never See You Again
Author: Niamh O'Connor
Publisher: Transworld
Published: 2010
Genre: Crime (police)

Find it at Amazon UK

The Blurb says...
On the streets of Dublin, one woman tracks a terrifying killer.


The Detective
Meet Jo Birmingham - single mum, streetwise, and spiky as hell.  Recently promoted, she is one of the few female detectives on the Dublin police force.  But with a failed marriage behind her and two young sons at home, trying to strike the right work-life balance has run her ragged.

The Serial Killer
When Jo identifies the missing link in a chain of brutal killings, she comes under fierce scrutiny from her male colleagues, especially her boss and ex-husband Dan Mason.  But as the body count rises, so do the body parts.  As fear stalks the city, it soon becomes obvious that a serial killer is at large.

A Chilling Game of Cat and Mouse
And so Jo embarks on a terrifying psychological journey to find out who the killer is, and how he is choosing his victims.  Soon she is involved in a deadly game in which the killer is always one step ahead.  Because he knows all the rules ...

My verdict: a pacy crime with unexpected twists and a great cast of characters.  Recommended for crime fans.
This is a complex mystery with an interesting lead character.  It's relatively unusual to come across a female lead detective with children, although of course a complex and often unhappy love life is de rigueur with crime-novel-cops.  I warmed to Jo Birmingham and her struggles to be taken seriously amongst the boys in blue, and was drawn into the story through her character.  She has an ongoing crusade - to get Separate Legal Representation for rape victims - which is mentioned throughout the book and picked up in an author's note at the end.  This clearly is an issue which the author (a crime journalist) has strong feelings about, but she did not allow it to take over the plot, which a lesser writer could easily have done.

The setting of Dublin is strongly present and there probably were references that I missed which would delight those familiar with the city, but I wasn't left with a 'one step behind' feeling.  The supporting characters were also well-drawn and inherently interesting, while the tense relationships between Jo, her teenage son and her ex-husband are effectively portrayed.

The plot itself (in terms of the crimes committed) was complicated and encouraged me to keep reading, but there were times I was surprised at the leaps made and I think there were aspects that were never completely explained - or maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention.  This was not sufficient to stop me reading (I wanted to know where it was going next!) and would absolutely not inhibit me from reading another Jo Birmingham novel in the future.

I received this book via Transworld's Great Crime Caper, but this did not influence my judgement.

Stories on Saturdays: Mistress of the Art of Death

Title: Mistress of the Art of Death
Author: Ariana Franklin
Publisher: Transworld
Published: 2007
Genre: Historical Crime

Find it at Amazon UK

The Blurb says ...
1171
Adelia Aguilar is a rare thing in medieval Europe - a woman who has trained as a doctor.  Her speciality is the study of corpses, a skill that must be concealed if she is to avoid accusations of witchcraft.

But in Cambridge a child has been murdered, others are disappearing, and King Henry has called upon a renowned Italian investigator to find the killer - fast.

What the king gets is Adelia, his very own Mistress of the Art of Death.

The investigation takes Adelia deep into Cambridge; its castle and covents, and streets teeming with life.  And it is here that she attracts the attention of a murderer who is prepared to kill again ...

My Verdict: engaging, gripping and well-written (strongly recommended for crime fans)
I've read a couple of negative reviews on this book, pointing out small details that are historically inaccurate.  I'm not a historian, nor do I know a lot about the 12th century, so there was nothing to pull me out of the novel's world.  I do know a little about the period, and I did greatly enjoy the characterisation of King Henry, and the English characters' general xenophobia felt accurate to me also.

The novel has a prologue and an epilogue and initially I found the voice of the prologue quite difficult, not just because of its omniscient narration but because it addresses the reader in a way I haven't seen in many recent novels.  It felt quite 19th Century to me, and that's not a good thing to my taste.  That said, the intrusive narrator soon disappears and the plot and characters gripped me rapidly - to the point where I had to leave the book at home one day to make sure I did my marking on the train and wasn't tempted...

The main character is fabulous.  Yes, her views are quite modern (which may have irritated some other reviewers), but to me that's entirely consistent with a woman doing an uncharacteristic job and encountering prejudice on a regular basis.  Or, more accurately, having to go to extraordinary lengths to avoid the prejudice that could see her put to death as a witch!

As a crime novel, there is some unpleasant detail - this is a book about a child murderer, after all - but  considerably less than many others I've read.  The text also doesn't delve into the psychology of the murderer, which seems historically consistent to me.  Psychoanalysis as an explanation for criminology is a pretty recent concept, after all.

On a personal level, having grown up in East Anglia, I really enjoyed the depiction of Cambridge: its atmospheric fenland and especially the local dialect, which was very effectively drawn and frequently made me smile in recognition.

Overall, this is a well-paced crime novel with a strong cast of characters and a beautifully-evoked setting, in terms of geography and history.  I have today purchased the second in the series (there are four) and am forcing myself to not read it immediately (there are Christmas present books I haven't got to yet!).


I received this book via Transworld's Great Crime Caper, but this did not influence my judgement.
This review is my fourth for the British Books Challenge, since Ariana Franklin is a British novelist.

Stories on Saturdays: Birdman

Title: Birdman
Author: Mo Hayder
Publisher: Transworld
Published: 2000
Genre: Crime Thriller

Find it at Amazon UK

The Blurb says ...
Greenwich, south-east London
DI Jack Caffery - young, driven, unshockable - is called to one of the most gruesome crime scenes he has ever seen.


Five young women have been ritualistically murdered and dumped on wasteland near the Dome.  Subsequent post-mortems reveal a singular, horrific signature linking the victims.


Soon Caffery realises that he is on the trail of that most dangerous offender: a serial killer.  Beset by animosity within the police force, haunted by the memory of a very personal death long ago, Caffery employs every weapon forensic science can offer to hunt him down.


Because he knows that it is only a matter of time before this sadistic killer strikes again ...


My Verdict: Grisly and gripping, a really strong police-focused crime thriller (recommended for crime fiction fans)


The crimes in this book are not for the faint-hearted (fans of Val McDermid and Kathy Reichs are likely to find much to enjoy here), but the strength of the novel lies in its plotting and characterisation.


Caffery is a realistic and sympathetic character: flawed, complex and interesting.  His problems are not limited to needing to catch the killer, which allows Hayder to space out the main plot's action while still satisfying the reader with progression of a subplot.


The novel also occasionally features a chapter from the killer's point of view which doesn't in any way spoil the Big Reveal, but increases the tension by creating missed opportunities and unfollowed clues.  More than once, I was close to telling the police out loud what they should be concentrating on - which is not good when you read on the train!  Incidentally, this book also taught me that it is bad to read at the bus stop at dusk when you are reading a tense crime thriller, no matter how keen you are to keep reading. 


This is the first Jack Caffery novel - there are currently five available.  I will certainly be reading more of them.  Mo Hayder has also written standalone novels, which are also now on my ever-increasing 'to read' list. 


I received this book via Transworld's Great Crime Caper, but this did not influence my judgement.
This review is my third for the British Books Challenge, since Mo Hayder is a British novelist.

Transworld Great Crime Caper

I've just signed up for a crime reading and reviewing fest courtesy of Transworld.  Sign-up is open until February 14th.  There are 12 nominated titles, and you choose 3 to review.  Thanks to Nikki-Ann for pointing me in this direction!

I've opted for 3 writers I haven't read before:

Mo Hayder's Birdman

Ariana Franklin's Mistress in the Art of Death

Niamh O'Connor's If I Never See You Again 

Watch this space for the reviews!