Книги серии «Theodosia Throckmorton»

From School Library Journal

Grade 4–8—A combination of Nancy Drew and Indiana Jones, Theo Throckmorton is in big trouble. The 11-year-old lives in London in 1906 and spends most of her time in an antiquities museum headed by her father and filled with objects from her mother’s archaeological expeditions to Egypt. Bossy, clever, and learned in the lore of ancient Egypt, the girl constantly worries that the work-obsessed parents who ignore and neglect her will be destroyed by virulent ancient curses that only she can detect. When her mother returns from her latest trip with an amulet inscribed with curses so powerful they could unleash the Serpents of Chaos and destroy the British Empire, Theo finds herself caught up in a web of intrigue and danger. It pits her, along with some unexpected allies, against German operatives trying to use the scarab as a weapon in their political and economic rivalry with England. Theo must draw on all her resources when she confronts her enemies alone, deep in an Egyptian tomb. There, she makes some surprising discoveries, both personal and archaeological. Vivid descriptions of fog-shrouded London and hot, dusty Cairo enhance the palpable gothic atmosphere, while page-turning action and a plucky, determined heroine add to the book’s appeal. Unfortunately, Theo’s narrative voice lurches between the diction of an Edwardian child and that of a modern teen. The ambiguous ending, with its hints at the approaching World War, seems to promise a sequel. A fine bet for a booktalk to classes studying ancient Egypt.

— Margaret A. Chang, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, North Adams

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Starred Review

“You’d be surprised by how many things come into the museum loaded with curses — bad ones,” says 11-year-old Theodosia, whose parents run London’s Museum of Legends and Antiquities. The twentieth century has just begun, and Theodosia’s mum, an archaeologist, has recently returned from Egypt with crates of artifacts. Only Theodosia can feel the objects’ dark magic, which, after consulting ancient texts, she has learned to remove. Then a sacred amulet disappears, and during her search, Theodosia stumbles into a terrifying battle between international secret societies. Readers won’t look to this thrilling adventure for subtle characterizations (most fit squarely into good and evil camps) or neat end-knots in the sprawling plot’s many threads. It’s the delicious, precise, and atmospheric details (nicely extended in Tanaka’s few, stylized illustrations) that will capture and hold readers, from the contents of Theodosia’s curse-removing kit to descriptions of the museum after hours, when Theodosia sleeps in a sarcophagus to ward off the curses of “disgruntled dead things.” Kids who feel overlooked by their own distracted parents may feel a tug of recognition as Theodosia yearns for attention, and those interested in archaeology will be drawn to the story’s questions about the ownership and responsible treatment of ancient artifacts. A sure bet for Harry Potter fans as well as Joan Aiken’s and Eva Ibbotson’s readers. This imaginative, supernatural mystery will find word-of-mouth popularity.

Gillian Engberg

Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Theodosia Throckmorton is in a fix. Allowed to attend a reception given by one of the directors of her parents’ museum, she stumbles across Mr. Tetley of the British Museum—in most unusual circumstances! Since Theo has last seen him in a showdown in an ancient Egyptian tomb, his reappearance could mean only one thing: the Serpents of Chaos are back. Once again Theodosia will have to take on secret societies, evil curses, and dark magic too sinister to imagine, especially if it falls into the wrong hands. Blocked at every turn, Theodosia will have to rely on her own skill and cunning—along with a little help from the most unexpected places.

From School Library Journal Grade 4–7—Theodosia Throckmorton is a clever 11-year-old who spends most of her time removing curses from artifacts in the Museum of Legends and Antiquities in pre-World War I England. In Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (Houghton, 2007), she foiled the evil plans of the Serpents of Chaos, a secret society bent on bringing the entire world to chaos. Here, she causes a scene at a formal party when she recognizes a mummy being unwrapped as Mr. Tetley, a member of the Serpents of Chaos who had been missing from his job at the British Museum. Theodosia has more problems when all the mummies from every museum in London are found in the lobby of the museum where her parents work, and the police suspect her father of the theft. Theodosia has to get rid of mummies, curses, and governesses hired by her dreaded grandmother, and thwart the dastardly plan of the Serpents of Chaos. Archaeology and fantasy fans alike will find much to love in this magical tale chock-full of ancient Egyptian artifacts and details. Theodosia's first-person narration is often very funny as she deals with the adults around her, and the plot is quick and multilayered like a well-wrapped mummy.

— Samantha Larsen Hastings, West Jordan Public Library, UT Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist—Theodosia, the no-nonsense 11-year-old with an archaeological bent, last seen in Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (2007), once again must take on the secret society that’s working its evil ways on Edwardian England. With plenty of missing mummies and ancient Egyptian spells, as well as more mundane problems like a father in jail and a series of untenable governesses, Theodosia has her hands full. Clever and exciting, just like the previous book, this also features a layered relationship between Theodosia and her grandmother. Nonstop action in a delightfully English package. Grades 5-8.

—Ilene Cooper

Being able to detect black magic isn't all tea and crumpets—and for Theodosia Throckmorton, it can be a decidedly tricky business! When Sticky Will drags Theo to a magic show featuring the Great Awi Bubu, she quickly senses there is more to the magician than he lets on, setting in motion a chain of events she never could have bargained for. Meanwhile, back at the Museum of Legends and Antiquities, Henry is home for the spring holidays and makes an accidental discovery of an artifact that alchemists have been hunting for centuries. Soon, every black-cloaked occultist in London is trying to get their hands on it . . .

In this fourth book in the series, Theodosia sets off to Egypt to return the Emerald Tablet, along with its knowledge of some of the ancient world's most guarded secrets. Accompanied by her cat, Isis, (smuggled along in a picnic hamper), Theo plans to return the artifact, then explore the mysteries surrounding her own birth. But nothing ever works out as planned, especially when the Serpents of Chaos are involved . . . But nothing ever works out as planned, especially when a precious treasure appears suddenly, and then just as suddenly disappears . . . When the Serpents of Chaos get involved, Theo finds she's digging up a lot more than she expected!