Reviews

I found this a rather entertaining YA romp, slightly spooky for the season. We have here a reimagined England where Visitors (aka ghosts) run rampant at night, and only the young can see or hear them. Agencies of kids and young adults emerge to fight off these spectres, such as the titular Lockwood and Co. Lucy is our POV, a new recruit into Lockwood and Co and a girl who can hear what others can't.

The world building is well done - the Problem explained through the story and the means of fighting off Visitors explained thoroughly. I love getting a more paranormal fantasy with some real spooky parts. The Red Room was particularly vivid for me.

The characters are kind of between middle grade and young adult, and that seems to be where the writing sits as well. I personally found it fitting for the story. Found family and friendship are at the heart of the novel. The mysteries within made for an intriguing plot, and while I saw the couple ending twists coming mile off I still found it enjoyable to get there.

I loved the Bartimaeus trilogy by the same author, and am thrilled that this one is on the same level but a whole different story and atmosphere. Will definitely check out the rest of the series!

israahafiz's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

lizardwaterpuppy's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

hazelnutpie's review against another edition

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5.0

Well, now I won't be able to sleep or go to the basement of my house by myself, but this is a good book.

cslatick's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

ultramarine316's review against another edition

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4.0

A very engaging supernatural action/mystery but one better suited for more mature readers as there is some rather morbid subject matter.

The premise is that sometime during the 1950s, ghosts suddenly became a huge problem, manifesting near the site of their remains and attacking the living. This is something that is public knowledge and which people have adapted to, using substances like iron and silver to repel ghosts and hiring psychic agencies to locate the remains of ghosts on their property. The ability to actually see and hear ghosts well enough to detect them before they attack is something that is only present in some children, fading as they get older, so that these agencies are made up of children who are (in theory) under the protection of adult supervisors. Lockwood and Co. is an agency made up of three children, Lucy, George, and Anthony Lockwood, who found the adult supervisors at other agencies to be more of a hindrance than a help and started their own.

There is brief but frequent mention of death by accident, murder, and suicide in relation to the origins of the various ghosts they deal with, the plot revolves around a murder mystery, and there is reference to children who work as psychic investigators being killed in the line of duty.

However, there’s also a lot to recommend the series: a good female protagonist (though working with two boys, so hopefully young male readers will give it a chance too), strong world building, and an exciting plot. (And, as an adult who reads children’s books, I appreciated the fact that there was an actual reason here that children were allowed to be involved in something so dangerous other than just gross, criminal neglect on the part of their parents!)

I think that if a reader has finished Harry Potter then they shouldn’t be phased by the darker themes in this series. I would also recommend it to young adult readers who are not fans of romance as it is, so far, devoid of that.

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