On a walk in the woods near the family's new home, Maya is suddenly compelled by a glinting pair of yellow eyes to run away from her brother and deep into the trees. What she finds is shocking - three dead bodies with a figure standing over the third. Terrified, Maya stumbles back and recounts the horror to her parents, who call the police. But the police can't find any bodies, and it's clear they think she's a prankster. Even Maya's parents don't really believe her. They think she's seeing things and they're worried that she's ill.
| Buried Thunder by Tim Bowler | |
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| Category: Teens | |
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Reviewer: Jill Murphy
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| Summary: Atmospheric mystery thriller with a hint of mysticism. At times it's truly chilling. Bookbag loved the way in which Bowler ties up the physical mystery but leaves the metaphysical one for readers to decide upon themselvs. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 352 | Date: February 2011 |
| Publisher: OUP Oxford | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 0192728385 | |
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But back at the hotel her parents have just bought, Maya knows something is desperately wrong. She hears scrabbling coming from outside her room at night. She can feel evil. She sees those yellow fox eyes at every turn, calling her into the forest and away from safety.
And when a real body does turn up, Maya's worst fears are confirmed.
Buried Thunder is an atmospheric mystery thriller with a hint of otherworldliness about it. Who is killing and mutilating foxes? Who murdered Rebecca Flint? What did Mo, the mute boy, see in the woods? What has the delinquent boy, Zep, have to do with it all? And who would bear a grudge against Maya and her family, who have only been in town for a few days? This mystery is cleverly plotted and the denouement is as cleverly worked through as any whodunnit.
But then there's the other mystery. What did Maya really see in the woods? A vision? A premonition? And the yellow-eyed fox - is it leading her into danger? Or is trying to save her? There is often an edge of mysticism in Tim Bowler's books and - wisely - he doesn't offer up answers. Some things just can't be explained away and we must all find our own understanding.
As with all Tim Bowler books, this one comes highly recommended by Bookbag.
My thanks to the good people at OUP for sending the book.
I think they would also enjoy another book by Tim Bowler, Bloodchild, an absorbing mystical thriller in which an accident leaves a young boy with visions but no memory. There's also The Rope Ladder by Nigel Richardson, which features a grief-stricken young boy who somehow meets a copy of himself.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Buried Thunder by Tim Bowler at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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