The Considine Curse by Gareth P Jones

The Considine Curse by Gareth P Jones
Buy The Considine Curse by Gareth P Jones at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: Confident Readers
Reviewer: Linda Lawlor
Summary: Mariel's mother never told her she had relations in England. And when they return to the family home for Grandma's funeral, Mariel soon finds out why: her cousins are the oddest people she's ever met. . .
Buy? Yes	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 208	Date: August 2011
Publisher: Bloomsbury
External links: Author's website
ISBN: 978-1408811511
Share on:
Video:

Fourteen-year-old Mariel and her mother emigrated to Australia when she was very small. It's just the two of them, apart from her mother's succession of boyfriends, and Mariel has always believed they have no family and are alone in the world. Then one day her mother tells her that her maternal grandmother has died and that they're going back to England for the funeral. And what's more, when she gets there she will meet her five uncles and six cousins for the first time since she was a baby. Mariel is both angry and mystified. Why did her mother keep the information about the family a secret? What right did she have to deny Mariel the opportunity to belong to a big loving family group? And what was it about Grandma that made her mother hate her so much? But Mariel's mother, true to form, won't answer any of her questions, and relations between them remained strained throughout the book.

Things definitely don't improve when Mariel arrives, cold, wet, and wrongly dressed for an English winter, at the church. Her uncles and aunts are kind enough, welcoming the two of them with open arms, but her cousins, who go around in a tight-knit little group and apparently have no friends outside the family, are unwelcoming to the point of rudeness. They tell her immediately that she had better go away, that she isn't a proper member of the family and that Grandma never loved her. Mariel is hurt, but determined not to be frightened off by a little unpleasantness. In fact, once the funeral is over a couple of the cousins even try to apologise, and show a little friendliness. But then the threats start, and Mariel finds herself both confused by her extraordinary cousins, and terrified by their aggressive behaviour.

There is a menacing atmosphere right from the very first page of this book, as Mariel finds herself drawn more and more into the net of family life. The uncles are bewildered about why Mariel's mother fled the country and changed her name all those years ago, and eventually persuade her that now Grandma is dead she should come home to live. Mariel longs to get back to the safety of Australia, and is horrified at this news: there have already been a couple of attempts on her life, and the whole area is talking about the number of farm animals and pets which are being attacked and killed each night. And yet, despite her repulsion and terror she is curious, and cannot persuade herself to keep her distance.

Mr Jones uses the first person narrative in this book, which means the truth is revealed to the reader as Mariel comes to see what is happening. We share her turmoil as she struggles to cope with the mystery of life of Louvre House and of her grandmother's passionate, possessive love for the children of her five sons. The unusual ending will keep most readers guessing until the final paragraphs, the writing is simple and clear, with short uncomplicated sentences for the most part, and it will make for easy (if rather bloodthirsty) reading for both boys and girls.

There is a bit of a mismatch between the cover and blurb, which have a rather cartoonish, light-hearted feel, and the story which can be quite dark at times. Also, it's as confusing for the reader as it is for Mariel to sort out all the different characters that appear in the first few pages, particularly the uncles and aunts, and the occasional element, like Amelia's odour-problem, don't seem to go anywhere. Still, young readers who plough their way past these parts will be rewarded with a good story and even the occasional thrill of fear as they follow the steps in Mariel's journey towards understanding the mysteries, and the horror, of her family history.

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the Bookbag.

Further reading suggestion: A lot of people are trying to kill poor Stanley Bound in The Space Crime Conspiracy, also by Gareth P Jones, but its zany premise and delightfully eccentric cast make this an excellent read. And for more life-threatening thrills and mysterious characters, try Night on Terror Island by Philip Caveney.

Please share on: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

You can read more book reviews or buy The Considine Curse by Gareth P Jones at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
Template:Waterstonestext

Comments

Like to comment on this review?

Just send us an email and we'll put the best up on the site.