quippe | Entries tagged with tom becker

The Blurb On The Back:

Cadenza is the City of Words. Run by poets, its skyline is dominated by the towers of its libraries, its heart beats to the stamping thrum of the Printing Quarter.

Young wordsmith Carlo Mazzoni arrives intent on making his name, but as the bells ring out mourning the death of the city’s poet-leader he finds himself embroiled in the city’s turmoil. A war threatens not only to destroy Cadenza, but remove it from, history altogether.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Tom Beckerlegge’s alternative historical novel has beautiful imagery and grounds the fictional city of Cadenza with an authentic sense of place. I enjoyed the conceit of dividing the city’s overarching story between 12 individual stories (or Cantos), but too many lacked a resolution (notably the one about the Ink Maiden Hypatia) and while some characters appear in multiple Cantos, none of them are as well developed as they could be.

Thanks to Rebellion Publishing for the review copy of this book.

The Blurb On The Back:

Betrayed your friend?

BEWARE. They’re coming to get you.

Adam Wilson is kidnapped and taken to the Dial after betraying his best friend. The Dial is a twilight world where teenage traitors are forced to atone for their treachery. It’s a terrible place, ruled over by a cruel despot, where every day is a struggle for survival – and escape. Legend has it that only one person has fled the Colditz-like prison. Nobody knows if he made it back to the real world, but he left behind a ray of hope that has reached through the years. Soon Adam is caught up in a deadly plan to escape. But who can he trust in a world full of traitors?

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Tom Becker’s middle grade novel is a boy’s own adventure that reimagines ESCAPE FROM COLDITZ into a dystopian setting. It’s a fast-paced, breezy read but the world building is a little undercooked and the female characters depressingly stereotypical. The book finishes with an open-ending, which felt like a let-down and although it seems to be a set-up for a sequel, it’s difficult to see where the story can go. I’d check out other books by Tom Becker, but wouldn’t rush to read a sequel to this one.

THE TRAITORS was released in the UK on 5th April 2012. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.