Redwulf's Curse (Tom Marlowe Series #3)

by Chris Priestley

Overview

Tom and Dr. Harker are back and this time their adventure takes them outside London. They visit Mr. Gibbs, a friend in Norfolk, who has recently unearthed fabulous Anglo-Saxon treasures from an archaeological excavation. They are believed to have belonged to the East Anglican king, Redwulf. Local legend tells of a ghostly guardian of the king's tomb and a curse against anyone who threatens it. When not one but two murders occur in the household, it is hard to dismiss the legend. With everyone feeling threatened and the atmosphere of hostility increasing, Tom and Harker investigate and discover that Mr. Gibbs's wife seems to be behind the attacks. But when he glimpses a solitary figure on the horizon and a body is found in the sand dunes, Tom begins to wonder if there is, in fact, truth to the legend. Will he be able to solve the mystery before it’s too late?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780552554831
Publisher:	Transworld Publishers Limited
Publication date:	04/28/2008
Series:	Tom Marlowe Series , #3
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.71(d)
Age Range:	12 Years

About the Author

Chris Priestley's first book, Dog Magic!, was shortlisted for the Children's Book Award. Death and the Arrow, his second book in the Tom Marlowe Series, was shortlisted for the Edgar mystery novel award.

Table of Contents

Editorial Reviews

"An intriguingly dark atmosphere and chilling setting . . . gripping from the start."  —School Librarian

"The action never lets up, with surprising discoveries and reversals in every chapter."  —Booklist on The White Rider

"The mystery has enough excitement and intrigue to keep even reluctant readers turning the pages."  —School Library Journal on Death and the Arrow

From the Publisher

Well paced and filled with spine–tingling detail, the story will intrigue reluctant readers, mystery seekers, and history buffs alike.

Booklist

Gr 6-10-Young Tom Marlowe and his friend Dr. Harker have had enough of the smog-filled air of London. It's 1716 and an invite to stay in the country with Harker's friend Abraham Gibbs is readily accepted. Once they arrive in Norfolk, they discover Gibbs's excavation of Redwulf, an East Anglian warrior king of the seventh century. It now appears that a supernatural figure is wreaking vengeance on those who have dared to disturb the king's grave. Tom becomes wrapped up in a series of strange events involving a mute giant, stolen treasures, and a neighboring landowner who may be in league with the devil. This third book in the continuing saga sticks closely to the formula already established. Action moves at a fast clip, effortlessly combining the essence of a good old-fashioned murder mystery with ghostly undertones. With its unique 18th-century setting, the book is certain to interest readers who are looking for good adventure. This stand-alone novel is a rousing addition to any mystery collection.-Elizabeth Bird, New York Public Library Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Plainly modeled on Hound of the Baskervilles, this new Tom Marlowe Adventure takes the young sleuth-in-training and his capable mentor Dr. Harker out to the tidal bogs of 18th-century East Anglia, where a wealthy friend of the Doctor's has been rummaging around in an ancient barrow said to be protected by a supernatural guardian. Conveniently enough, the crime-solving pair arrives just after the first of two murders. Priestly folds in plenty of atmosphere, in the form of nightmares, mysterious voices and sightings, gales, heavy fogs, scratched messages on walls and vicious animal attacks-along with a gallery of suspects from smugglers to an eccentric local lord. He wastes it all, however, by having the unremorseful surprise culprit suddenly confess publicly, then fall off her horse and die. A fizzle, compared to the previous episode, Death and the Arrow (2003). (Fiction. 11-13)

Kirkus Reviews