Book Title: Raven's Gate
Author: Anthony Horowitz
Series: The Gatekeepers #1
Series: The Gatekeepers #1
Date Started: April 16th 2014
Date Completed: April 16th 2014
Genres: Adventure, Thriller, Fantasy, Action, Mystery
Rating: Three stars
Review:
I was actually quite surprised by Raven's Gate. Although it did turn out to be a rather simplistic, classic kid's adventure, it was genuinely engaging. I can see how the plot is going to be more complex with the following instalments of the series leading up to a very good climax.
Matt has never been a 'good kid'. But who can blame him after his parents died with he was eight, and he was forced to live with relatives that wanted him as much as he wanted them. But when Matt crosses the line, he's carted off to the middle of nowhere to a place where the villagers stare at him; where strange lights can be seen from the forest; and where the strange abilities Matt has tried to ignore his entire life are starting to be noticed.
Horowtiz writes for TV drama, though I must admit that didn't completely come through for me. Although the action was described well and certain parts of the narrative were made very engaging, it did seem a little simplistic for me throughout the book.
The reason for the middling rating for this book was because it fell into the trap of being a filler book: a book that's there pretty much to either set up the story or fill a couple of hundred pages for later books. I'm always harsh about this kind of thing because I think a book should be able to hold it's own story and narrative without having to depend on what's to come later - if I'm reading a book I want things to be happening now because I'm an impatient person. This is sometimes okay, if things are happening, but until the last section of the book, there wasn't really much that stood out to me as a big event (though I do take into account that things did happen that influenced the plot).
On the other hand, amidst the information dumping to explain the situation, Matt's backstory did really interest me; especially the way he reacted to it and seemed genuinely heartfelt (in contrast to his usual self).
There are only really two characters that really impact on the story, being the two good guys that are included all the way to the end. This made interactions with everyone else a little less interesting, but did allow a lot more development from those two.
Matt was a really good protagonist, though he did seem wiser than fourteen years old at times, but then very stupid at others times. Having said that, he did develop hugely throughout this rather short book; he was quite naive and a little annoying at the beginning, yet by the end he has accepted some sort of responsibility and acceptance at what was happening to him, and took charge of that to make his situation better.
I really didn't like Richard at first, but he's an example of Horowitz's amazing character development. Richard, when we first see him, isn't really a nice person, and only cares about his journalism. And he definitely doesn't believe in all the strange things going on until it's too late, where he grudgingly has to accept it if he wants to stay alive. This was written very realistically in my opinion, so I'm very interested at his inclusion in the later books.
The book is really faced paced, even though nothing massive happens. It's also nice and easy to read, so it's a quick one if you want something entertaining and different.
I'm going to continue on with the Gatekeepers series because I'm excited at where's it's going to go. I think any age group can enjoy this series, though younger readers might appreciate the classic adventure more.
Image Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18470187-raven-s-gate
I was actually quite surprised by Raven's Gate. Although it did turn out to be a rather simplistic, classic kid's adventure, it was genuinely engaging. I can see how the plot is going to be more complex with the following instalments of the series leading up to a very good climax.
Matt has never been a 'good kid'. But who can blame him after his parents died with he was eight, and he was forced to live with relatives that wanted him as much as he wanted them. But when Matt crosses the line, he's carted off to the middle of nowhere to a place where the villagers stare at him; where strange lights can be seen from the forest; and where the strange abilities Matt has tried to ignore his entire life are starting to be noticed.
Horowtiz writes for TV drama, though I must admit that didn't completely come through for me. Although the action was described well and certain parts of the narrative were made very engaging, it did seem a little simplistic for me throughout the book.
The reason for the middling rating for this book was because it fell into the trap of being a filler book: a book that's there pretty much to either set up the story or fill a couple of hundred pages for later books. I'm always harsh about this kind of thing because I think a book should be able to hold it's own story and narrative without having to depend on what's to come later - if I'm reading a book I want things to be happening now because I'm an impatient person. This is sometimes okay, if things are happening, but until the last section of the book, there wasn't really much that stood out to me as a big event (though I do take into account that things did happen that influenced the plot).
On the other hand, amidst the information dumping to explain the situation, Matt's backstory did really interest me; especially the way he reacted to it and seemed genuinely heartfelt (in contrast to his usual self).
There are only really two characters that really impact on the story, being the two good guys that are included all the way to the end. This made interactions with everyone else a little less interesting, but did allow a lot more development from those two.
Matt was a really good protagonist, though he did seem wiser than fourteen years old at times, but then very stupid at others times. Having said that, he did develop hugely throughout this rather short book; he was quite naive and a little annoying at the beginning, yet by the end he has accepted some sort of responsibility and acceptance at what was happening to him, and took charge of that to make his situation better.
I really didn't like Richard at first, but he's an example of Horowitz's amazing character development. Richard, when we first see him, isn't really a nice person, and only cares about his journalism. And he definitely doesn't believe in all the strange things going on until it's too late, where he grudgingly has to accept it if he wants to stay alive. This was written very realistically in my opinion, so I'm very interested at his inclusion in the later books.
The book is really faced paced, even though nothing massive happens. It's also nice and easy to read, so it's a quick one if you want something entertaining and different.
I'm going to continue on with the Gatekeepers series because I'm excited at where's it's going to go. I think any age group can enjoy this series, though younger readers might appreciate the classic adventure more.
Image Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18470187-raven-s-gate
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