Empire of Ruins: The Hunchback Assignments III by Arthur Slade

Empire of Ruins: The Hunchback Assignments III by Arthur Slade

Completion Date: May 8, 2011

Reason for Reading: Carry on with the series.

While Modo has spent a quiet winter recovering from his adventure in the dark deeps, talk of ancient Egyptian ruins in the midst of the Australian rainforest has been swirling around London. A temple bulges with riches, but also contains danger: the infamous God Face. No one knows what the God Face is or what it is made of, but it is rumoured to be a powerful weapon; anyone who looks upon it will be driven mad.
Modo's next assignment? Go to Queensland in Australia and discover the truth behind the God Face. He won't be alone: Octavia and even Mr. Socrates will be accompanying him, as well as Mrs. Finchley, Modo's beloved caregiver from childhood days. But hot on their trail is the Clockwork Guild, with a brand-new weapon-mechanical birds, capable of transmitting signals as well as delivering poison.

With an airship battle, an escape from spear-waving natives and an astounding discovery-one that hinges on Modo's true appearance-the Hunchback Assignments series continues to enthrall readers of all ages!

Dear Blog Readers... Did you recently read my review of Catherine Webb's second book and think it sounded like you? Have you been reading and enjoying Scott Westerfeld's latest trilogy? Do you tend to enjoy steampunk novels? If you answered yes to any of these questions, I have a series for you! A couple years ago I had the pleasure to read a book called Jolted by Arthur Slade. I was still not really reading young adult fiction back then, but I took a chance and I am so glad that I did. Arthur Slade writes really, really good books. Books that will appeal to all ages. Books that you will wait anxiously for each year. Especially now that he is writing a series and you want to know what happens next. It is only three books in, so it is the perfect time to visit with Modo, Octavia, Mr. Socrates, and all the other characters that make up these fun books.

In a weird twist, this book has an airship. The second book in Catherine Webb's series? Airship. The last book in Carrie Ryan's trilogy, which I just recently read, hot air balloons. A slightly less-techno version of the same thing. Apparently flying is a popular trait in books at the moment. Especially the steampunk ones. (Although, Carrie Ryan's trilogy is a zombie story, not a steampunk trilogy.) Moving on.

Modo is a beloved character. During the three books, you really find that you get to know him. He is often the narrator of his own story, so you get his impressions on the world. Modo has had a very strange life so far and he is only 16 or so. Then there is Octavia. She is the female lead and she is also often the comic relief. I really enjoy how the two characters play off of each other and look forward to further development in later books. Then, there is Mr. Socrates. He is the leader of their organization, so you don't get to really 'see' him during the previous two books. In this book, though, he decides to accompany them on their mission to Queensland. This opens up a very rare chance to really get to know Mr. Socrates. It is an interesting contrast to see what Modo is thinking about Mr. Socrates, the only real father he has ever known, and what Mr. Socrates, in turn, thinks of Modo. It is a unique experience.

Once again I really enjoyed the story and I cannot wait until a new book in the series is released. I hope I have tempted a few people to check this series out. If not, I will have to try even harder when book 4 is released. In the meantime, I am going to catch-up with Catherine Webb.

My thanks to Harper Collins Canada for once again sending me a wonderful Arthur Slade novel!

Series:

The Hunchback Assignments

The Dark Depths (Never reviewed...)

Empire of Ruins

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The Hunchback Assignments by Arthur Slade

There are rumors that a hunchback infant in a gypsy freakshow has the power to transform his appearance. This comes to the attention of Mr. Socrates, a member of the shadowy Permanent Association, who decides to take the boy back to england and raise him for his own purposes. Naming him Modo, Mr. Socrates keeps the boy indoors and never lets him see his deformity, while putting him through training to be a secret agent. When Modo turns 14, his education is complete. He is handed a mirror and confronts his image for the first time, horrified. Then, he is taken to foggy, polluted London and abandoned, penniless, to test his skills.

But Modo is resourceful, and he finds a way to get by, keeping to himself… until one day, when the beautiful Octavia Milkweed knocks on his door. soon, with the help of Mr. Socrates, they find themselves uncovering a sinister plot being carried out in the very sewers beneath their feet. Will they be able to stop the mad scientist Dr. Hyde and his even more terrifying associates before they unleash their monstrous plans upon unsuspecting Londoners?

The start of a fantastic series, in the hot new genre of steampunk, The Hunchback Assignments takes readers into the sewers and alleyways of an alternative Victorian London, in an unputdownable adventure.

From Harper Collins Canada

My Thoughts:

Last year I had the chance to read an ARC of Arthur Slade's Jolted. It was so fun and I finished it shocked that I have never read him before. Actually, if it wasn't for the wonderful Rachel I might not have read him then and I would've been missing out! But, she wrote a wonderful review and one thing lead to another. I have to say that Rachel has never steered me wrong. When she says to read something, you should just read it. I know that I do! Anyway, she warned me that this book wasn't as good as Jolted, and she was right, but it still had merit. I wish it wasn't a series because I really don't need to read anymore series, but since it is Arthur Slade and he is Canadian, I am going to just deal with it.

The Hunchback Assignments is a young adult book with a very interesting cover. I can't decide if I like it or not! It's fun, though, and when I received it in the mail the other day I was actually pretty excited to figure out who all the characters on the cover were. The main character is essentially Modo, but there are a lot of secondary characters that play a key role as well. Frankly, if this was not following up Jolted I would probably have loved the book a lot more, but I couldn't help comparing it to my first read by him and having it not measure up. It is still a novel with an interesting storyline, though, that kept me turing the pages. Modo didn't really grow on me was one of the problems. I liked him, but I didn't feel like I really knew him. I imagine that he will be growing throughout the series and that we haven't seen the last of him!

My favourite thing about Modo was his love of books. For about 13 years of his life, he lived in the written world. For us that are always saying that we never have enough time to read, Modo has more than enough time. To think how many wonderful books he read in that time frame! Not that I would want to be him, exactly, though. Modo was abandoned by his family at an orphanage and then sold to a traveling freakshow. He has the ability to transform his shape, which was actually a very interesting story addition. When Mr. Socrates (great name, huh) finds out about him he sets out to rescue him and begin his education. It is save to say that he does not have a normal childhood!

I also want to mention how much I enjoyed the names in this book. Like I mentioned above, there is Socrates. Then, one of Modo's work associates is Octavia, which is the name of Octavian's sister from Roman history. The 'bad guys' name is Cornelius Hyde. It could be really bad, but it works for the story. By their names, actually, you can figure out a bit about the characters before they are even really developed. I look forward to more from them in future books! I will conclude with saying this was another fun book from Arthur Slade! I would say that I like Jolted better, but really, they are very different books so it actually makes it hard to compare!

Thank you to Harper Collins Canada for my review copy of this book!

Dust by Arthur Slade

Books Completed: 59
Completion Date: February, 2009
Pages: 168
Publication Date: August 2, 2001

Reason for Reading: 2nd Canadian Challenge

Eleven-year-old Robert is the only one who can help when a mysterious stranger arrives, performing tricks and promising to bring rain, at the same time children begin to disappear from a dust bowl farm town in Saskatchewan in the 1930s.

I first read Arthur Slade last year when I read the fantastic Jolted. I honestly love that book to death, and that is very high praise from me in terms of a young adult novel! I have read more this year than normal, but mostly because I won't buy them generally and I am addicted to putting books on hold at the library! Arthur Slade, though, is a young adult novelist that I am not afraid to tell everyone that they should read! Jolted was better, for me, than this book, but I still really liked this experience. Slade is just a fun author. His ideas are fresh and original. It has been a joy so far to sit down with one of his books. Once my library pile is not quite so scary I plan to read more from him.

When we are children we are told over and over again to not talk to strangers. Robert and his little brother are probably told the same, but sometimes you forget your parents' words when faced with the situation. This happens to seven-year-old Matthew. He has finally been trusted to walk to town on his own. He meets a stranger along the way and his parents are faced with the very serious situation of not knowing what happens to him. Robert is different, though. He is able to see through all the situations that are thrown his way during the course of the novel. The town is desperate. They have been living with a drought for quite sometime and are desperate for water to feed their dwindling groups, so when a man appears with his fancy words and technology that could save the town, they are quickly bought into the scheme.

Not a very long book, but another example of why Slade is such a great Canadian young adult author. He takes a very believable situation and throws in the unbelievable. This mysterious stranger is not at all what he seems, but Robert seems to be one of few people that can figure this out. Throw in a rain machine and some butterflies and you have what could be a very illogical novel. Slade makes it all come together, though!

Jolted by Arthur Slade

The Starker family is infamous. They’ve been chronicled on blogs, profiled on TV and researched by paranormal investigators. They appear to be cursed: everyone of Starker blood has died after being struck by lightning. Fourteen-year-old Newton Starker is the last of his line—except for his great-grandmother, Enid, a woman as friendly as a pickled wolverine—and he’s determined to survive.

Newton has spent all of his life surviving, following a list of rules for self-preservation, guidelines passed down through generations of Starkers. But Newton wants to try something new. He has enrolled at Jerry Potts Academy of Higher Learning and Survival in Moose Jaw with the hope that he’ll be able to beat the odds—he has a dream of becoming a great chef someday. If he wants to go beyond just getting by, Newton is going to need more than rules. He’s going to need friends.

From the creative mind of award-winning writer Arthur Slade—author of Dust, Tribes and Megiddo’s Shadow—comes a quirky, laugh-out-loud story about dreaming big, standing out and knowing when you need help.

Rachel over at a Fair Substitute for Heaven wrote a FANTASTIC review of this book, so, it of course moved onto my RADAR. Then, it just so happened that Harper Collins was willing to give me an Advanced Reading copy of the book, so I quickly said yes! I am very glad that I did. I read it yesterday in one sitting and it was a really entertaining read! I enjoyed how it crossed several genres, it is nice to get outside the comfort zone once in a while. Best thing of all? He's Canadian, so he is one of my own (who I had never even heard of before, but I don't read a lot of young adult fiction).

Moving on. The main character in this book is Newton Starker. He comes from a family who attracts lightening strikes. This means that he has to follow very strict rules about how he lives his life. He is technically the second-last surviving Starker because he great-grandmother Enid is still alive, and what a character she is! Let's just say there is one scene where she gets her great-grandson to wheel her outside so she can watch the men playing lawn hockey. Why, you might ask? Because apparently some of them still have very nice backsides! This woman is over a hundred, so I am sorry, you can't help laughing at that! The poor boy, though, I am sure the last thing a 14-year-old wants to think about his old men and their backsides.


It is not a long book, and it is young adult fiction, but it's hilarious and refreshing. You cannot help getting swept away by the characters and Newton's time at Jerry Potts Academy of Higher Learning and Survival. The students are forced to wear kilts. Not because Jerry Potts wore them, but because he was part-Scottish. Waring a kilt is quite complicated, though, as Newton comes to learn!

My favourite character of all, though, was Josephine! Her timing was perfect in every scene and you just couldn't help laughing at her interactions with Newton. Oh, and I probably should mention, Josephine is a truffle-finding pig. She was a perfect addition to the cast of characters! Anyway, I really enjoyed this book, and I will hopefully read some of the back-list by him in the future. People should read this book!

This book can also count for the 2nd Canadian Challenge, Eh? I think I might be done.... I will have to go count!

Thanks to Harper Collins for sending me a copy of this book!

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