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menshevixen's review against another edition
4.0
A fun return to Castle Keep, complete with beloved established characters and vivid new ones.
nattygsmith's review against another edition
3.0
I love Susan Cooper, and love her Boggart stories. This one was not quite as satisfying or wondrous as the other two, but I loved seeing Cooper’s Trout/Trump caricature, and loved reading about Boggart and Nessie again. The new magical beings were not quite as wondrous as I wanted them to be. There was also never a scene that approached the beauty of when the Boggart discovers the light and sound tech in the Toronto theater in the first book. Fun to read, if not as magical as other books by Susan Cooper.
caroparr's review against another edition
3.0
Pleasant to meet the boggart again. The thinly disguised Trump figure gets his comeuppance, of course.
thomcat's review against another edition
3.0
Written 25 years after the first book, the characters are the extended family of the first book's characters. As in the other books, I liked the characters from Scottish and Celtic history also.
The villain here is development and greed - building a golf course and complex and in stage two tearing down the family castle to replace it with a castle hotel and resort. The personification of this greed is Mr Trout, whose mannerisms and giant "T" logo are clearly meant to remind us of another greedy mogul.
I enjoyed the history and characters, but the plot was a little thin. Reacting against the villain only goes so far. The closing chapter wraps things up a bit too neatly. Still, this was a fairly quick read (just over two hours, much of it on a plane). I'd like to look into something else by the author - her young adult The Dark is Rising series is pretty highly rated.
The villain here is development and greed - building a golf course and complex and in stage two tearing down the family castle to replace it with a castle hotel and resort. The personification of this greed is Mr Trout, whose mannerisms and giant "T" logo are clearly meant to remind us of another greedy mogul.
I enjoyed the history and characters, but the plot was a little thin. Reacting against the villain only goes so far. The closing chapter wraps things up a bit too neatly. Still, this was a fairly quick read (just over two hours, much of it on a plane). I'd like to look into something else by the author - her young adult The Dark is Rising series is pretty highly rated.
scostner's review against another edition
4.0
Those who have read Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban will remember the boggart that Professor Lupin used in his Dark Arts class. It was a shapeshifter that took on the form of the worst fear of whoever faced it. So readers may think this boggart will be the same, but it is rather different.
Boggart is able to change shape, but it is more of a prankster than something fearful. And it has a history of association with the MacDevon family. So when Castle Keep, the family seat of the MacDevon clan is threatened by a greedy developer, Boggart and his cousin Nessie take action. While the descendants of MacDevon work on petitions to stop the construction and meetings with the local council, Boggart and Nessie call on other "ancient creatures of the Wild Magic" for help. The results are not always what they expect, but they don't give up the fight.
Susan Cooper's books often include elements of legend and myth from the British Isles. In this story we have beings from Scottish legend such as the boggarts, the Caointeach, the Each Uisge, the Blue Men of Minch, and the Nuckelavee. Raeders will also see what it is like to be part of a community that is being invaded, so to speak, by a corporation intent on changing everything for its own purposes and how that impacts the environment, the local economy, and even things as mundane as the water lines.
Seeing the struggle against corporate powers and the wonder of the boggarts and other legendary creatures from the viewpoint of the children (Jay and Allie), adds to the feeling of powerlessness in the first case and the awesome thrill of the second. And for those who already read the original appearance of The Boggart, this will be a welcome return of a favorite character. Either way, I highly recommend this for middle grade readers who enjoy a mix of magic into everyday world.
I read an e-book provided by the publisher through Net Galley.
Boggart is able to change shape, but it is more of a prankster than something fearful. And it has a history of association with the MacDevon family. So when Castle Keep, the family seat of the MacDevon clan is threatened by a greedy developer, Boggart and his cousin Nessie take action. While the descendants of MacDevon work on petitions to stop the construction and meetings with the local council, Boggart and Nessie call on other "ancient creatures of the Wild Magic" for help. The results are not always what they expect, but they don't give up the fight.
Susan Cooper's books often include elements of legend and myth from the British Isles. In this story we have beings from Scottish legend such as the boggarts, the Caointeach, the Each Uisge, the Blue Men of Minch, and the Nuckelavee. Raeders will also see what it is like to be part of a community that is being invaded, so to speak, by a corporation intent on changing everything for its own purposes and how that impacts the environment, the local economy, and even things as mundane as the water lines.
Seeing the struggle against corporate powers and the wonder of the boggarts and other legendary creatures from the viewpoint of the children (Jay and Allie), adds to the feeling of powerlessness in the first case and the awesome thrill of the second. And for those who already read the original appearance of The Boggart, this will be a welcome return of a favorite character. Either way, I highly recommend this for middle grade readers who enjoy a mix of magic into everyday world.
I read an e-book provided by the publisher through Net Galley.
brucefarrar's review against another edition
4.0
Tom Cameron and his two children twins Jay and Allie return to Scotland to visit Tom’s father in his home and general store on the shores of Loch Linnhe in Scotland. It’s within sight of Castle Keep. Castle Keep is the ancestral home of the MacDevon clan, for a brief time it belonged to Jay and Allie’s mother’s family. When she and her brother had first visited it, they discovered that although the last MacDevon had died and they inherited the small fortress, what they thought was an empty abode still contained an inhabitant, but not a human one. Sleeping on a shelf in its library was a boggart. The boggart was an ancient spirit, not a ghost, but a mischievous sprite who loved nothing better than playing practical jokes on humans. Although usually invisible, it could ring bells or rattle chains in the middle of the night, snatch food off your plate, and make itself visible sometimes shape-shifting into the form of a seal to play in the water or sun itself on the rocks on the shore of Loch Linnhe with the real seals.
When he was a boy, Tom had known the last MacDevon, and had become acquainted with the boggart. Now his children would also meet it and its cousin Nessie and become caught up in the fight to save their clan’s castle from the greedy plans of a rich and powerful American land developer.
Cooper has added a timely and updated sequel to her delight filled series of supernatural high jinxes.
When he was a boy, Tom had known the last MacDevon, and had become acquainted with the boggart. Now his children would also meet it and its cousin Nessie and become caught up in the fight to save their clan’s castle from the greedy plans of a rich and powerful American land developer.
Cooper has added a timely and updated sequel to her delight filled series of supernatural high jinxes.
arbieroo's review against another edition
3.0
Boggart and friends vs Donald William Trump Trout. Can they save Stalker Castle Castle Keep, the Appin coastline and its wildlife from becoming a huge holiday resort for the rich?
Well, it's a book for kids, so you guess.
It's a charming adventure involving the afore-mentioned shape-changing trickster spirit of Scottish folklore, the Boggart of Clan MacDevon and the youngest human members of the Clan - Jay and Allie Cameron (long story). Various other creatures from Scottish folklore also show up, playing into Cooper's strengths as illustrated by her famous Dark is Rising sequence.
Well, it's a book for kids, so you guess.
It's a charming adventure involving the afore-mentioned shape-changing trickster spirit of Scottish folklore, the Boggart of Clan MacDevon and the youngest human members of the Clan - Jay and Allie Cameron (long story). Various other creatures from Scottish folklore also show up, playing into Cooper's strengths as illustrated by her famous Dark is Rising sequence.
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