At the end of Monstrous Devices, Alex had defied his grandfather’s instructions and not destroyed the little tin robot with supernatural powers. Now it and Alex are needed to rescue his grandfather’s friend Harry from the clutches of the same evil characters who were after them before.

In the previous book, the tall man and a girl called Zia were out to resurrect the Golem of Prague and use it to their advantage. This time, their plan is to reconstruct the Shadow Gate and open the divide between life and death. They have kidnapped Harry and have hidden him in the Black Forest. Alex and his grandfather set out to find him and figure out why nine historic paintings have been stolen throughout Europe. These pictures are by different artists, from time periods and of subjects. Figuring out the connection between this and the opening of the Shadow gate is difficult, but it all comes to a head when the doorway is constructed and the tall man and Zia go through it, forcing Alex with them.

Both these books are based on historic traditional tales, although the Golem of Prague legend is better known than that of Castle Boll. The supernatural elements in both are scary and sometimes quite dark.

The action is very fast paced and the secrets from the first book that were unanswered, such as whether the tall man is Alex’s father, are revealed in this sequel. The plot is perhaps not as tidy and straightforward as the first, but the action never lets up. Original, entertaining and gripping.

Reviewed by Lynne Babbage
Age Guide 11+