Ronan Boyle and the Bridge of Riddles (Ronan Boyle #1) - Hardcover

Lennon, Thomas

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1419734911 ISBN 13: 9781419734915

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams, 2019

Synopsis

First in a fun and fantastic series, Ronan Boyle and the Bridge of Riddles is an instant New York Times bestseller set in a world of law-breaking leprechauns from actor and writer Thomas Lennon with illustrations by award-winning creator John Hendrix.
 
Fourteen-year-old Ronan Boyle is the youngest and lowliest recruit to the secret Garda, the Irish police force that handles the misdeeds of numerous magical creatures. Ronan’s parents are in jail for a crime they didn’t commit, and he’s convinced that they were framed by the wee people. So despite his small size, poor eyesight, and social awkwardness, Ronan is determined to learn all he can from the Garda in order to prove his parents’ innocence.
 
To show he’s got what it takes, he’ll have to confront a fiery leprechaun, a sinister harpy, and a whole world of monsters.
 
“Perhaps the finest children’s novel of all time (in the ever-burgeoning leprechaun crime-drama sub-genre).” —”Weird Al” Yankovic
 
“A touching, funny read for smart kids young and old. Flat-out laughed out loud!” —Patton Oswalt
 
Ronan Boyle series:
Ronan Boyle and the Bridge of Riddles (#1)
Ronan Boyle and the Swamp of Certain Death (#2)
Ronan Boyle Into the Strangeplace (#3)
 

About this title

About the Author

Thomas Lennon is a writer, comedian, and actor who has worked on a number of things you probably love, including Reno 911! and Night at the Museum. Lennon lives in Los Angeles with his wife, the actress Jenny Robertson, and their son, Oliver.
 
John Hendrix is the illustrator of Nurse, Soldier, Spy and author/illustrator of Shooting at the Stars and The Faithful Spy, which won the 2018 Society of Illustrators Gold Medal and received four starred reviews.
 

Reviews

Gr 4–7—At the age of 14, Ronan Boyle is the youngest recruit to the Garda Special Unit of Tir Na Nog, the Irish law enforcement agency tasked with investigating crimes involving the wee folk. While Ronan enrolls in the Garda as a means of finding evidence to free his parents, museum curators framed for the theft of an artifact, he learns that chasing after law-breaking faeries and other magical beings is not for the faint-at-heart. Ronan's training includes shillelagh class and weaponized poetry, as well as tin whistling for beginners; he needs all these skills and more when he and his captain set out to catch some leprechaun wine thieves. After encountering a dizzying array of faeries, and with the aid of a smarter-than-average Irish wolfhound police dog, the criminals are apprehended and Ronan returns to the human world with a lead on his parents' case. In the author's forward, Lennon states this book is his "love letter to Douglas Adams," and his efforts to emulate Adams' linguistic zaniness are evident throughout the book. However, Adams' genius is a challenging muse to follow, and this story reads like frenetic slapstick. Additionally, Lennon relies on the stereotypical trope of the Irish fondness for alcohol, and an overabundance of footnotes slows the pacing. VERDICT While the premise of the series is enticing, this first entry has trouble finding its voice. Hand readers Eoin Colfer's "Artemis Fowl" series instead.—Nancy Nadig, Penn Manor School District, Lancaster, PA

Edition details

• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• Publication date: 2019
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1419734911
• ISBN 13: 9781419734915
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Hendrix John
• Number of pages: 304