The Mines Of The Minotaur (Companions Quartet) - Hardcover

Golding, Julia

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0761453024 ISBN 13: 9780761453024

Publisher: Two Lions, 2008

Synopsis

"The clock continued to tick calmly in the hall, out of step with the stormy sea of panic surging inside Connie. She could make no sense of this. How had she ended up on the beach? She felt a hum in her bones as if she had been meeting with some powerful creature. But what beast or being had the power to draw her out of her house without her knowing about it? And what had happened when they were together?"

Thirteen-year-old Connie Lionheart is the only Universal Companion, able to communicate with all the mythical creatures hidden in our world. She is the most important member of a secret society sworn to protect the bonds between humans and creatures. But her power brings great responsibility and great danger.

About this title

About the Author

Julia Golding is the author of The Diamond of Drury Lane, which won the Nestlé Children’s Book Prize and the Ottakar’s Children’s Book Prize in the U.K., where she lives. While working as a diplomat in Poland, Julia Golding traveled high and low, from the Tatra Mountains to the bottom of a Silesian coal mine. She later joined Oxfam as a lobbyist on conflict issues, campaigning at the United Nations and with governments to lessen the impact of war on civilians living in war zones.

Reviews

Grade 5–8—This fantasy follows Secrets of the Sirens and The Gorgon's Gaze (both Marshall Cavendish, 2007). Though certain humans have the secret ability to bond with particular types of mythical creatures, 13-year-old Connie is the only one who can communicate with all species. When she unintentionally begins to raise violent storms, she learns that her power has a dark side. It turns out that the evil shape-shifter Kullervo is to blame, but the far more frightening foe is bureaucrat Ivor Coddrington, who removes Connie from the Society for the Protection of Mythical Creatures and threatens expulsion to any member who associates with her. Connie prevails against both enemies with help from friends. The camaraderie and mutual respect shared by characters of all ages, ethnic backgrounds, and even species are believable and uplifting. A debate about constructing a wind farm to generate environmentally sustainable power (the winged creatures are opposed) thoughtfully integrates ecological issues into the story. Golding falters when it comes to creating and sustaining atmosphere; the setting is occasionally thin, and Kullervo never seems truly present or threatening. Despite these flaws, fans of the series will enjoy watching Connie and her friends triumph and grow.—Megan Honig, New York Public Library
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Edition details

• Publisher: Two Lions
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0761453024
• ISBN 13: 9780761453024
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 288