Buy Book "Lockwood & Co. The Whispering Skull" in Ukrainian

I’ll start my review with the service.

Yakaboo delivered the book quickly: I ordered it on Saturday and received it on Wednesday. The book was in a package with bubble wrap, so there were no scratches or bends.

The cover.

I liked it: the main characters against a background of green fog that seems to wrap around the skull and barely visible stars above; a brick house with old gravestones and trees with twisting branches. This cover directly shows what awaits you inside. It looks creepy and attractive at the same time. It was covers like this that made me interested in this series. The English and Russian versions of the covers look too realistic. They are beautiful, but there are a lot of covers in serious styles. The Ukrainian version is more “cartoonish”, which makes it special. If a cartoon series were made based on Lockwood and Company, it would be in this style. By the way, the title of the book and the rapiers held by the characters on the cover are glossy, so they sparkle when the light refracts.

Plot (no spoilers, except for book 1, maybe some for book 2)

This book has a detective component, but it has the same disadvantage as the first part of the series – the thief is easy to guess. Apart from the main characters and other agents, there are only 2 people who can be suspected, so it’s not difficult to determine who the villain is. I think the battles with ghosts are worse than in the first part. The final battle in “The Screaming Staircase” was better, you could directly feel the hopelessness there: the main character wanted to commit suicide, her friend fell to his knees and twisted, if not for Lockwood, their adventure would have ended there. Sorry, but the cult monks are cooler in the first book, and the giant ghost of an 18th century scientist who wanted to see the world of ghosts and what awaits the living after death in the second.

Claims. (Spoilers for part 2)

I found 3-4 mistakes in the text, where exactly I did not note, but they are there.

I have 2 complaints about the plot. Why didn’t Saunders go to Fittes or Rothwell? His excuse that Lockwood & Co. is the closest to go doesn’t work for me. Why didn’t Winkman’s mercenaries have guns? I know, though, because it would have ended too quickly-Lucy and Lockwood would have been killed, and George and Quill would have died in the catacombs.

The relationships of the characters.

I liked them. Skull is a good character, I hope he will take an active part in the next parts. His sarcasm and jokes can make you laugh.

The final twist.

I think it’s cooler than the first book. We finally find out what Lockwood has in his secret room. The author knew well what the readers’ assumptions were, so he played on them, which makes this twist even more unexpected.

Final rating.

8,6/10.

I gave the first book 8.2/10.

It is the case that with each subsequent book, the story grows, develops and becomes more and more interesting on the rise)

In the second book we will have even more adventures, terrible dangers, loyal friendship and deadly artifacts )

The characters in Stroud also grow from book to book, not only in age but also morally.

We’re getting to know them better, and they also know each other…

If you liked the first book at least 30%, the second and subsequent 100% must-read ))))

I liked both the first and second books in this series, but I bought the second one on pre-order when they were just being prepared for publication. And maybe it was the covid or something else, but there were a lot of typos in The Whispering Skull – I didn’t even expect that from Ababagalamaga. And although the story was interesting, I couldn’t enjoy it to the fullest, because as soon as I started to delve into that world, I was thrown ashore by some mistake or typo.

Maybe everything has been corrected by now, but I’m still hesitant to pick up the third book in this series… 🙁

I devoured this book in 2 days! Incredible adventures, characters, atmosphere, dynamics and contrast of emotions. In a word, WOW. A new character comes into play and immediately becomes a favorite. From now on, Lucy has a new friend who will be useful to her more than once. After their triumph, Lockwood & Co. is gaining popularity and our agents have a new mysterious and dangerous task. For the first time, they will be threatened not only by ghosts and bureaucracy, but by something more severe. And all this in the fragrant atmosphere of a warm summer, and the frosty otherworldly darkness of the cemetery

I advise everyone to watch it

Still, Jonathan Stroud is an incredible writer. Not every author can keep a reader glued to a book until they finish the story.

I can say with confidence that I am a Stroud addict. I adore his work. All his books have hooked me. His writing style is just incredible. I am very sorry that his books are translated so slowly in Ukraine. But that’s okay, I’m ready to wait and wait for Ababagalamaga’s edition. And this is the only drawback of this book (for me).

All the events of this story take place in London. 50 years ago, the Problem happened. Suddenly, ghosts started appearing out of nowhere and killing the living. And the main danger is that only children can see the dead (and they lose this ability when they grow up). Each of them has their own Talent: Sight (the ability to see ghosts clearly), Touch (the ability to feel the emotions of ghosts), and Hearing (the ability to hear the voices of the dead). So, only children can save humanity.

“The Whispering Skull” is the second book in the cycle of “The Lockwood & Co. Our favorite team, consisting of Lucy Carlisle, Anthony Lockwood, and George Cubbins, is once again faced with a very unusual case. In addition, Lucy is constantly bothered by her skull, which keeps whispering nonsense to her. Also in this part, we learn something about Anthony Lockwood’s past. More details about the Problem are revealed and new intriguing characters are introduced. In general, the story becomes more interesting with each part.

I recommend reading this story (especially for children and teenagers). It is very dynamic. You will not have time to open the book before you finish it and want more.

P.S. I have often encountered comments that the main characters behave like small children, although they have such an important mission (to save the world from the invasion of ghosts). Much of the criticism is also aimed at the dialogues, that they are there just to be there. But this is a story about teenagers. (Didn’t Harry Potter have this problem?) Every action of the protagonist, every rim, all of this happens to teenagers, and we shouldn’t expect cold logic and reserved feelings from them. Would this story be so interesting then?