Life at St Halibut’s Home has been idyllic for two months, ever since the children buried their matron (don’t look like that – it was an accident!) Helpfully, the not-so-dear departed matron left behind a surprisingly large stash of money, which will keep them in black-market lemon sherbets for the rest of their lives. Tig, Stef and Herc just have to make sure nobody finds out they’re on their own,
But when they find out that St Halibut’s is to be inspected by DEATH (the Department for Education, Assimilation, Training and Health), they start to panic. They’ll need to convince the inspector that everything is peachy or they’ll be sent to the Mending House – where badly-behaved orphans go, never to return. As the big day approaches, the children start to think they might just pull it off. But when the inspector arrives, things don’t just go wrong, they get spectacularly out of hand . .
Well, this is a first. I'm happy to admit that a good book can often make me cry, especially if animals are involved. However, this is the first time I've welled up over an animal that not only doesn't exist in real life, but doesn't even exist in the story. Here's the line:
He felt his eyes begin to sting at the thought of a loyal, waggy‐tailed spaniel eagerly awaiting his master's return ‐ a master who would never return...
Honestly. I'll have to stop reading books at all if things go on like this.
And that would be a shame, because I'd miss out on gems like this. I thought Orphans started out slowly, but just before the above quote things started to pick up pace, and all the strange asides and funny quirks started to make sense and fold in beautifully together. Sophie draws in dangling plot threads brilliantly and gives us a very satisfying conclusion. For one heartbeat I even felt sorry for the villain, right at the end!
The illustrations are brilliant, too, really adding to the story. The only problem I have in a line near the end telling us that St Cod's is right beside the Mending House, when on the map they're clearly some distance away with other buildings between. But that's a minor problem, really, in a fantastic read full of action, adventure and humour. I hope there's more to come in this series, because I'd love to find out what happens next. Just brilliant.
The Orphans of St Halibut's publishes on the 1st October, 2020.
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