Stoneheart Trilogy, Book One, The: Stoneheart (The Stoneheart Trilogy, 1)

A city has many lives and layers. London has more than most. Not all the layers are underground, and not all the lives belong to the living. Twelve-year-old George Chapman is about to find this out the hard way. When, in a tiny act of rebellion, George breaks the head from a stone dragon outside the Natural History Museum, he awakes an ancient power. This power has been dormant for centuries but the results are instant and terrifying: A stone Pterodactyl unpeels from the wall and starts chasing George. He runs for his life but it seems that no one can see what heвЂTMs running from. No one, except Edie, who is also trapped in this strange world. And this is just the beginning as the statues of London awake... This is a story of statues coming to life; of a struggle between those with souls and those without; of how one boy who has been emotionally abandoned manages to find hope. From Booklist On a school trip to the Natural History Museum in London, a 12-year-old loner named George is banished for something he didn't do. Angry, he lashes out and breaks off a dragon's head carved onto the wall of the museum. Next thing he knows, a pterodactyl carving comes to life and begins to chase him. From Gunner, a walking, talking statue, George learns that he has entered another layer of reality, and that his arrival has started a new war between good spits (statues that are imbued with a soullike essence by their inspired makers) and evil taints (soulless carvings). With the advice of various spits, and the companionship of a girl named Edie, George seeks answers from two Sphinx statues, whose enigmatic clues lead the pair into a terrifying adventure. Creatively building on the plentiful gargoyles and other creepy stonework of its urban setting, this lengthy novel, the first in a planned trilogy, will draw capable readers for its suspenseful chase scenes, scary creatures, and highly original premise. Tixier Herald, Diana Copyright В© American Library Association. All rights reserved Review A fantastical, fast-paced adventure. -- Publishing News 20050318 Thrilling stuff. -- The Scotsman 20061202 An admirable debut. -- The Sunday Times 20061203 A highly original page-turner. -- The Sunday Times 20061203 A supernatural thriller with an intriguing premise. -- The Mail on Sunday 20061210 'highly original ... the unrelenting thrills never let up' -- School Librarian 20061210

edie And The Gunner, A Statue Of A World War I Soldier, Have Been Captured By The Walker, And It's Up To George To Save Them. But First He Must Deal With The Three Strange Veins, Made Of Marble, Bronze And Stone, That Have Begun To Grow Out Of His Hand And Curl Around His Wrist. Legend Has It That Unless He Successfully Completes Three Challenges, The Veins Will Continue Up His Forearm, And Eventually Pierce Through His Heart.

as George Struggles To Face The Choice He Has Made, He Is Determined To Use His Power For Good, Even As Others Wish To Harness It For Evil.

narrated By Jim Dale

publishers Weekly

fletcher Has An Intriguing Premise At The Heart Of His Ya Debut, The First In A Planned Trilogy, But The Execution Is Flat. Twelve-year-old George Chapman Is Living A Life That Feels Pale And Gray And Washed Out, Missing His Father And Struggling To Fit In. On A Class Outing To A Museum, He Is Blamed For Something He Didn't Do; In Anger, He Breaks A Carved Dragon's Head Protruding From A Wall. Moments Later, A Stone Pterodactyl On Another Wall Comes Alive And Chases George Through The Streets Of London. A Man Named Gunner Comes To His Rescue; He Turns Out To Be A Spit, A Statue Made In The Image Of A Living Person And Brought To Life Imbued With A Bit Of That Person's Spirit. Taints, Conversely-like The Gargoyles And Dragons That Suddenly Pose Such A Threat To George-are Dangerous Precisely Because They Have Nothing Human In Them. Stone Carvings Spring To Life Everywhere, Furious With George For His Act Of Destruction; A Riddle Contest With A Nasty Sphinx Reveals That George Needs To Find Something Called The Stone Heart To Save His Life And Repair What He Has Broken. His Quest Takes Him To An Alternate, Unseen London (one Of Many Un-londons), And Eventually To A Minotaur's Maze In The Heart Of The City. There Is An Ironic Lifelessness To Fletcher's Tale, Particularly His Protagonist Who Doesn't Ring True; George Is A Bit More Likeable At The Finale, As He Prepares To Fight The Murderous Walker In The Sequel, But It May Be Too Late For Readers. Ages 10-up. (may)

copyright 2007 Reed Business Information

A blockbuster fantasy with an international release. When the statues and gargoyles of London start coming to life, twelve-year-old George Chapman becomes entangled in a timeless battle between those with souls and those without When twelve-year-old George accidentally decapitates a stone statue in London, England, he falls into a parallel dimension where he must battle ancient "live" statues and solve a dangerous riddle.