The Dark Portal

I'm on a bit of a Robin Jarvis kick at the moment, and it was when I reread 'The Dark Portal' (the first in the Deptford Mice series) that I came to realise something. I think that Jarvis taught me the concept of story, in a way. I think he taught me the concept of telling a single story within a gre......more

UPDATE 15 Jan 2025: Just finished re-reading the revised version with new illustrations. Still holds up well as a read, particularly the grand finale. But this new edition, with now multiple illustrations per chapter and a vibrant cover, is phenomenal. The book glows and it's a lovely new edition. Or......more

I had to DNF this one. It's boring, and the plot is trite, and the pacing is weird. I didn't care about any of the characters, so after I stuck with it through 100 pages, I called it quits. The writing is really condescending, and points out the obvious over and over. In the beginning, the setting is......more

I brought this book, when I was a kid from either Blackbush or Brooklands market (both now long gone). I tried so many times to read it. I would get a couple of chapters in, lose interest and then come back to it a year or so later. I think I once read it all the way through but the only thing I can......more

This is a fun read that pulled me through all the way to the end. It didn’t score higher principally because the lore of the book is very underdeveloped. In particular, there are several magical moments that seem more convenient than grounded in the logic of the book. Indeed, I never truly felt like......more