The Book of Dead Days [Paperback]

Marcus Sedgwick (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 11, 2006 | Age Range: 10 and up

The days between Christmas and New Year’s Eve are dead days, when spirits roam and magic shifts restlessly just beneath the surface of our lives. A lot can happen in the dead days. A magician called Valerian must save his own life within those few days, or pay the price for the pact he made with evil so many years ago. But alchemy and sorcery are no match against the demonic power pursuing him. Helping him is his servant Boy, a child with no name and no past. The quick-witted orphan girl Willow is with them as they dig in death-fields at midnight, and are swept into the sprawling blackness of a subterranean city on a journey from which there is no escape.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Gr. 6-9. Set during the dead days between Christmas and New Year's in a crumbling, old, European-like city, this story is as dark as a winter's night, illuminated with flashes of shooting-star brilliance. Once an urchin, Boy now belongs to Valerian, a magician. Although the master treats the child poorly, Boy follows his orders dutifully; Valerian is all he has got. So when Valerian reveals that he has only a few days to live (a pact with the devil is coming due), Boy winds his way through the fetid stink of the city, following Valerian's mysterious and dangerous instructions in a race to save his master's life. Sedgwick's highly visual writing makes for a true movie of the mind. It is reminiscent of Philip Pullman's work, with each detail adding to the fullness of Sedgwick's alternative world. Also like Pullman, Sedgwick draws characters so magnetic that readers will find it hard to look away. The plot is convoluted in places, information is dispensed a bit too slowly, and a few key points want explanation (about one, a character says, "We may never know"). Perhaps the loose ends will be tied up in the sequel, which is planned for 2005 (hopefully a note about it will be on the final dust jacket). This is a haunting novel, and the possibility of more is definitely enticing. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"In a wonderfully dark, atmospheric tale of power, corruption and betrayal, Marcus Sedgwick manages to keep the reader guessing until the very end. A real page-turner with a truly chilling twist." Booktrusted News (Booktrust), Issue 6 "Set long ago in dark times and brought to life through evocative, strongly visual writing, this novel is packed with drama, mystery and intrigue." -- Wendy Cooling The Bookseller, 18 April 2003 "Against the stinking, freezing background of an underworld set in a timeless past, this is a dark melodrama kept sharp by surprise." -- Julia Eccleshare Guardian, 5 July 2003 "An exquisitely dark Faustian drama set among the shadows of an old European city. The finely drawn characters and enthralling story-telling make this Sedgwick's greatest work to date." -- Joanne Owen, Borders Bookshop Bookseller Buyer's Guide Highlights, 11 June 2003 "...has a very real sense of place. ...The hero of this beautifully paced and sometimes blood-soaked adventure is Boy...and there's a very tangible sense of evil in Sedgwick's tale too, along with the careful blending of "real" magic with the seemingly magical effects of encroaching technology...After just a few pages, you know you're in safe hands with Sedgwick.Here is a macabre melodrama inventively told". -- Philip Ardargh Guardian, 19 July 2003 "Sedgwick has created a world as dark and compelling as the story he tells." Mail on Sunday, 20 July 2003 "The Book of Dead Days marks a shift to fuller, more descriptive writing than that in Sedgwick's earlier books, but there is no loss of subtle menace and power." Independent, 28 July 2003 "You'll just have to read it for the twist." Times Educational Supplement, 1 August 2003 "Sedgwick has created a wonderfully tight novel which understands its own boundaries and is able to utilise them to its advantage. ...Sedgwick's plotting is tight and ingenious... Sedgwick too has a wonderful way of revitalizing the myth and making it more accessible, bringing the essentials to the fore but having it remain almost Dickensian in the telling. Rather than merely retelling, the essentials are represented and told in an engaging fashion. The Book of Dead Days is a gripping read..." SFRevu "The Book of Dead Days is to be commended for the beauty of Sedgwick's turn of phrase." Dreamwatch "The Book of Dead Days is to be commended for the beauty of Sedgwick's turn of phrase." Dreamwatch --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books (April 11, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385747047
• ISBN-13: 978-0385747042
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.6 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #659,169 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Dead and dismal February 1, 2006

By E. A Solinas HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Can a Faustian pact be avoided? And if so, what's the cost? That's what our heroes -- and enemies -- are trying to do in "The Book of Dead Days," a chilling historical fantasy where a nameless boy searches for the means to save his master, and for the clues to his own past.

In a ragtag circus, Valerian the magician serves up many of the thrills -- with Boy as his slavish assistant. But that changes during the Dead Days between Christmas and New Year's, when Valerian is attacked and buried alive. Boy and his friend Willow cart him home, and hear Valerian's terrible story: Fifteen years ago, he made a Faustian pact to win the heart of the woman.

Now the time has come to give up his life and soul to a demon, and he's desperate to escape his fate. Boy and Willow agree to help him find the Book of Dead Days, which is hidden in a crypt somewhere in the city. But Boy doesn't realize how desperate Valerian is, or that he plans to sacrifice Boy in his stead...

Perhaps the worst thing about the "Book of Dead Days" is the fact that it ends with so many threads hanging -- the whole mystery of who Boy is remains unsolved. Up until that point, there are few weak spots at all. With a plucky heroine, slightly dopey hero and medieval magic, "The Book of Dead Days" is like reading the gothic twin of Lloyd Alexander's books.

Marcus Sedgwick has always had a sort of Edward-Gorey-like writing style, with the ability to make the everyday look a bit dark and bizarre. In the time of the Holy Roman Empire, he makes readers see the superstition, the cold, and the grime. Not to mention bone chapels, magical books and plenty of creepy underground tunnels.

And it somehow seems appropriate that Boy, the nameless hero, is a rather timid, pallid character for most of the book; he only shows his strength when he sees what Valerian really is. He and plucky Willow are the only characters who are what they seem to be; others can be creepily deceptive, and have their own (murderous) motives for what they do.

Though it ends with an obvious "to be continued," Marcus Sedgwick creates another haunting, vivid story in "Book of Dead Days." Just be sure to find out the rest of Boy's story.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Still have no idea what the "dead days" are after a re-read... that's not a good sign April 23, 2010

By Kris

Format:Paperback

I re-read this over the weekend since I have a number of friends who really liked it. But I still just thought it was ok - even upon re-read. I understand the idea of Boy not knowing anything about who he is - but I felt is was almost lazy to at least not give him a name. And Kepler and his role was a little too convenient. I don't know - I am ok with having loose ends - story arcs that keep you moving from one book to the next. But I felt like I have no information to motivate me into wanting to read the next - I feel like I have none of the little tidbits that I should have at this point. To me, a good novel which is part of a series, gives me just enough of a tease as to what I might find out, that I really want to read what's next. Here, not so much. I don't know - I also expected - both reads - to learn more about the "Dead Days" - but it was like the mythology associated with them, which is set up by the beginning explanation of the varying cultures' calendars - was totally absent. They were barely a passing thought. And that was disappointing the first time through. I was hoping I had just missed stuff or forgotten since the first read, but unfortunately, that was not the case. The ending was too neat - and not neat enough at all - all at the same time. I can't even decide if I want to read the companion/sequel or not.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars The Review of Dead Days April 24, 2006

By CoolTigersRule

Format:Hardcover

Boy is a servant for a man named Valerian, a mean man -or magician- that does magic shows at the Great Theatre. Valerian had found Boy hiding in a niche in a church listening to a conversation between Valerian and Kepler, an old friend of Valerian's. Boy doesn't remember a life before living on the streets or with Valerian; he doesn't remember his mother or father, or even having a proper name, other than Boy. Boy later finds out that Valerian will die at midnight on New Years Eve unless he acquired a certain book, that would tell him how to escape death among other things, but Boy wasn't told how or why Valerian would die. Boy and Valerian are later joined by Willow, a servant girl that had ran away from Madam Beauchance, another Great Theatre performer. Go along with Boy, Valerian, and Willow as they put clues together through a tale of danger, turncoats, and adventure.

One reason why I like The Book of Dead Days is that at times it was suspenseful; you'll want to keep reading to see what happens next. Another reason why I liked this book is that it was very descriptive and detailed; characters, events, details, and places were all describes well. I didn't like The Book of Dead Days because it got rather boring and redundant at times. I also didn't like this book because Valerian, Boy, and Willow spent the whole book doing just one thing; it was redundant.

I would recommend this book to anyone that likes suspense, action, fantasy, and fiction books. The Book of Dead Days does have some blood, violence, and skeletons; so anyone that doesn't even like the tiniest bit of those might not like this book. People might also like this book if they like books about magic or magicians.