A half-Inuit albino and heir to a huge Northern Irish manor, Light has never exactly blended in. Since her father's mysterious disappearance in the Arctic, she's felt more alone than ever. Yet as she mourns for the father who was her whole family, Light starts to notice unexpected presences all around...Suddenly the mysterious world in which her father moved invades young Light's life with a bang. The Inuit folklore she vaguely knows comes alive all around her; the inscrutable, violent and sometimes horrific beings of the North seem to believe she has a role to play and, along with her tattoed butler and their new shark-headed friend, Tupilak, Light is drawn into an age-old intrigue between Setna, the ruler of the sea and Frost, king of the cold. Soon Light is aboard an ice-breaker bound for Nunavut, having been promised help in searching for her father, now suspected of being stolen away by the cruel and heartless Frost. Yet she scarcely realises the power of those who have chosen her for their enemy - and a terrifying journey awaits her.
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About the Author
Nick Lake is 29 years old and a children's book editor at HarperCollins. He lives in London with his English teacher wife, Hannah. This is his first novel.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Federhirn
Format:Paperback
The Secret Ministry of Frost has a lot going for it. It is an adventure novel for young adults, starring a plucky heroine, some mythical creatures, and set in the Arctic. In short, it should be a riveting read.
It isn't bad. However, the strange mixture of setting it in the present (along with Global Warming and other sensibilities), but throwing in Eskimo myths and the sort of explorers / rich Lordship families one might expect in a more Victorian setting results in a book that does not quite manage to sustain a coherent atmosphere throughout. Worse, a lot of the supposedly mythological creatures come across like 20th century gothic alien monsters, rather than old myths. Balloon people who suck out people's insides through intestines that are thrown around with spears? Creepy, yes, but I can't imagine Eskimo myths containing anything like this.
The story is quite fast-paced. It introduces a variety of show-stealing, often quirky characters. It kills them off at a similar pace. The enemies, meanwhile, are a faceless horde (with dozens of copies of each), which makes them appear more like the creatures in a video game than like convincing entities. The enemy boss character is left woefully undefined and unmotivated, so he never really seems anything more than a video game boss, either.
There is a lot in this book which I wanted to love. Unfortunately, it reads like a video game that has been novelised, rather than a novel of its own right. It doesn't hit the nail on its head when it comes to its own atmosphere, it doesn't really stick with characters long enough, and its villains are flat and characterless. It reads like Tomb Raider. I'd buy the video game, if it existed, but as a book, I cannot wholeheartedly recommend it.
It isn't bad. However, the strange mixture of setting it in the present (along with Global Warming and other sensibilities), but throwing in Eskimo myths and the sort of explorers / rich Lordship families one might expect in a more Victorian setting results in a book that does not quite manage to sustain a coherent atmosphere throughout. Worse, a lot of the supposedly mythological creatures come across like 20th century gothic alien monsters, rather than old myths. Balloon people who suck out people's insides through intestines that are thrown around with spears? Creepy, yes, but I can't imagine Eskimo myths containing anything like this.
The story is quite fast-paced. It introduces a variety of show-stealing, often quirky characters. It kills them off at a similar pace. The enemies, meanwhile, are a faceless horde (with dozens of copies of each), which makes them appear more like the creatures in a video game than like convincing entities. The enemy boss character is left woefully undefined and unmotivated, so he never really seems anything more than a video game boss, either.
There is a lot in this book which I wanted to love. Unfortunately, it reads like a video game that has been novelised, rather than a novel of its own right. It doesn't hit the nail on its head when it comes to its own atmosphere, it doesn't really stick with characters long enough, and its villains are flat and characterless. It reads like Tomb Raider. I'd buy the video game, if it existed, but as a book, I cannot wholeheartedly recommend it.
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book is geared toward young adults and older kids, I think, but as an adult, I really enjoyed it too. It's in the same vein as Lemony Snicket - a fun and quirky adventure story, but based largely on Inuit mythology, which is an unusual and interesting twist. I bought the book because I'm interested in the arctic and Inuit mythology, and they were creatively used in this story, with a misfit cast of characters who are all pretty likeable and have good strength of character. The plot was a pretty straightforward adventure plot, so there were no great surprises there and it didn't have any great depth, but it was a good yarn and was very much enjoyed.
By Jane
Format:Paperback
This is a fantastic book. It is really exciting, fast paced and keeps you on the edge of your seat. The characters are so interesting and very different - it reminds me of a Philip Pullman novel.
Highly recommended!!
Highly recommended!!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A quirky older children's novel that adults will enjoy too.
This is a tale of an albino girl called 'Light', who is half Inuit, half Irish. She lives in a large Manor in Ireland with just the family retainer, called 'Butler'. Read more
Published on 3 Jun 2009 by Annabel Gaskell
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Keeper
With a quirky character and a blend of Western mythos along with Inuit tales this takes the best of both worlds and thrusts the principle protagonista, Light, into a story that... Read more
Published on 12 April 2009 by Gareth Wilson - Falcata Times Blog
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great read
Entertaining adventure story with some darker overtunes; keeps things moving along at a good pace with several twists along the way
Published on 2 April 2009 by AndyL
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