How much information do you give a reader when creating another world?

A Clock of Stars: Beyond The Mountain

Written by Francesca Gibbons @fran_gibbons

Illustrated by Chris Riddell @chrisriddell50

Published by Harper Collins @HarperCollinsCh

ISBN: 978 0 00 835508 1 £12.99 hardback

Published: 14th October 2021

First line: The trees leaned out of Ochi’s way, creating a path through the darkness.

Genre: Fantasy, Quest

Age: 9+

Thanks to Toppsta and Harper Collins for the review copy.

What’s it all about?

It’s been a while since I have enjoyed a book so much. It reminded me a lot of Philip Pullman’s Northern Lights trilogy. 

The story follows two sisters who know of an entrance to another world through a door in a tree in a garden that they visit. In this, the second installment, no one believes that they have been through it, and their mother is trying to prevent it from happening again. However, the sisters, especially Imogen, need to find proof that the world exists to convince everyone else that it is a real place, and the only way to do that is to go back. However, once they are there, Marie (Imogen’s younger sister) is kidnapped by Anneshka, who has a terrible desire to become a powerful queen. A quest begins for Imogen, and along the way, she has to battle the bad and the beautiful and decide who to trust. Old friends from the last story arrive and new ones.

Why should I read it?

The creatures and people and places that you meet are described in enough detail for you to feel that you are there, but not too much so that you feel bogged down with information. Each character has its own personality, which you can relate to and believe in. Isabel’s worries and struggles are easy to relate to and would help children to understand why people sometimes do what they do. Beautiful art work from Chris Riddell brings some of these characters to life. The story, quite a simple quest idea, takes the reader on a wonderful journey through many new amazing places. The children meet old friends, from the first book, and new. Scary and kind creatures and humans. 

I am now very tempted to buy and read the first book, as it’s a world that I want to go back to. I didn’t feel that I needed to read the first book in order to understand this one. I can’t wait for the final book!