Home
  • Home
  • Latest Issue
  • Past Issues
  • Authors & Artists
  • Articles
  • Reviews
  • News
  • Forums
  • Search

Playing with Phyre

  • View
  • Rearrange

Digital version – browse, print or download

Can't see the preview?
Click here!

How to print the digital edition of Books for Keeps: click on this PDF file link - click on the printer icon in the top right of the screen to print.

BfK Newsletter

Receive the latest news & reviews direct to your inbox!

BfK No. 186 - January 2011
BfK 186 January 2011

Cover Story
This issue’s cover features Ally Kennen and her latest book, Quarry. Ally Kennen is interviewed by Julia Eccleshare. Thanks to Marion Lloyd Books for their help with this January cover.

Digital Edition
By clicking here you can view, print or download the fully artworked Digital Edition of BfK 186 January 2011

  • PDFPDF
  • Printer-friendly versionPrinter-friendly version
  • Send to friendSend to friend

Playing with Phyre

Graham Marks
(Catnip)
208pp, 978-1846471117, RRP £6.99, Paperback
10-14 Middle/Secondary
Buy "Playing with Phyre" on Amazon

Haden Akatine has lost everything. His family, his home, his community have been wiped out by the evil Sardar, ‘a breed of men who had a heartless disregard for life’ under the command of their tyrant lord, Dasmed Usshien. The only other person left alive is the mute, Decker. Revenge is now Haden’s quest, and together the two set off to reach the Sardar stronghold, Ghadra. They are unaware that they are travelling towards even greater danger. In Ghadra, the sciencer, Pero Esquabar and his assistant, Mowler have just put the finishing touches to a weapon that in the hands of Usshien will pose the ultimate threat.

This is not a book to read slowly or reflect on too deeply. Like the Western, from which it draws many of its themes, action is everything and there is little room for shades of grey. The characters will be recognisable to young readers familiar with film and computer games: the young hero driven by grief and his desire for revenge; the evil tyrant; the bumbling scientist – and the comic relief of a parrot with an uncanny ability to mimic speech. Contemporary prose, colloquial dialogue and minimal description help move the action along. However, by framing his narrative as a story within a story, Marks adds his own touch to a standard format, allowing him to introduce a neat twist at the end. This book is aimed at good readers at the top of KS2 and would sit well in any secondary school library.

Reviewer: 
Ferelith Hordon
3
  • About us
  • Contact us
  • Help/FAQ
  • My Account