Customer Reviews

Candle Man, Book One: The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Theo Wickland has the most boring life imaginable - and his guardian, Doctor Saintly, wants to keep it that way. How would you like to lead a life where the most exciting thing your calendar is a birthday trip to the graveyard, and every day you get painful and mysterious medical treatments from the oh-so-inaccurately-named Mercy Tube?

A mysterious present and a burglary leads to Theo escaping the boredom of his old life and getting entangled in the war between the Society of Unrelenting Vigilance (the sort-of-good guys)and the Society of Good Works (the definitely-bad guys). Theo and his new friends in the Society of Unrelenting Vigilance must go on the run in an amazing underground world beneath London and meet some particularly frightening ghosts and gruesome beasts like Garghouls and Smoglodytes. (The last ones are my favourites - they're weird and gross at the same time!)

And Theo soon discovers that he has a special power passed on by his - no wonder the Society of Good Works wants him dead!

The story is fast-moving - you'll never get bored, and the ending is amazingly exciting! The characters (especially Theo and his enemies) are strange but interesting. The only bad thing: this is book 1 or a trilogy, so you'll have to wait a bit for the second story in the series!

Best children's book I've read an ages. Full of great characters, fantastical settings and cool twists in the tale. Great dialogue and especially taken with some of the imagery used. I'll be buying more copies for my nephew(12) and niece (9) before Christmas. Fans of Darren Shan and Philip Reeve will love it as will comic book readers and fans of steampunk fiction. Couldn't put it down. Want to read Book Two now, not in 2010!!!

Theo has never been around more than three people in his life: his guardian, the butler, and the maid. He has been told he has a serious illness, having to be put inside the Mercy Tube every day, always having to wear gloves, and he's never allowed to do anything too exciting for fear of over-stimulation.

The truth is much creepier. Theo soon realizes that his guardian is not the good man he believed him to be, and that Theo himself is quite powerful in ways he never knew.

CANDLE MAN is a new steampunk series for middle grade readers, with the second book just recently released. Theo is a fun narrator, finding himself as the reader goes along. It's interesting to see how The Society of Good Works is actually a bad group, and just how they disguise their plots as good deeds. It's definitely a lesson in manipulation and secrecy, but good old creepy fun for younger readers!

I loved that the book is set in London, as it fits the atmosphere really well and it makes sense that the various creatures, like Gargoyles, could come to life there. One of the most interesting characters was the butler, as he's a bit conflicting. You can't say he's perfectly good, but you can't say he's truly bad like other characters, either. He's certainly a fascinating man to think about.

THE SOCIETY OF UNRELENTING VIGILANCE is a quick read overall, and sure to excite fantasy fans!

Reviewed by: Lauren Ashley

Below is a review written by my 10 yr old son who has just started reading this series.

Theo is a teenager who is confined in a mansion, banned from the outside world by his caretaker, Dr. Saint. He makes Theo believe that he has an illness that requires him to wear gloves and sleep in a tube. Later Theo learns he doesn't have an illness but has inherited from his ancestor, the Candle Man, the power of MELTING PEOPLE HAHAHAHAH!!!!! Theo finds out that Dr. Saint is a member of the evil alliance called The Society of Good Works. Ghosts and ghouls from the Society of Unrelenting Vigilance are trying to save Theo from being killed by Dr. Saint and help him attempt to defeat the evil Dr. Saint.

I like this book because it always kept me on the edge of my seat. I have started reading the sequel I would recommend this book to kids who like nonstop action.

If you like action and suspense books like Gregor the Over Lander, then you will like this book. This would be suitable for ages 9-12 years.

I am enjoying the current popularity of steampunk, even as it confirms that cyberpunk is truly dead. Likewise, I am enjoying Egmont USA's debut on the scene. Imprints seem to start with an impressive list, and I'm definitely looking forward to what this one will put out in the next year or so based on what I've read. (I'm also looking forward to the sequel, coming out this fall.)

CANDLE MAN is a nice middle grade/young adult crossover title. It's written for a younger audience, but contains a complexity that will keep adults entertained. Plus, it's good for kids to read books that revel in shades of grey. CANDLE MAN has few characters that are true evil, despite resembling Saturday morning cartoon villains. In addition, the forces of evil speak only of kindness and doing good works. It's a nice introduction for kids to the use of rhetoric to conceal what's really going on. (The adventure story is pretty good too.)

As a mother who screens everything her 11-year-old daughter reads, I had high hopes for "The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance". I loved the cover, but since our daughter felt it was too dark, I was hoping this would be a good lesson to her not to judge a book by its cover. By the end of the first chapter, however, I was really making an effort to finish the book (and regreting judging this book by its gorgeous cover). It wasn't bad: it just wasn't as good as so many more offerings out there. If children are to outwit someone - something - it should be a challenge, especially if the kids are equipped with super powers or fantastic gifts. Nevertheless, I saw nothing too objectionable, so when I handed it to said daughter, I told her I didn't particularly like it, but she might like some of the elements in the book: twins sisters, a boy and girl joining forces to overcome stupidity, etc. The 4-star rating is hers. The following is what she felt about the book, in her own words:

"The book,"The Candle Man: Book One - The Society of Unrelenting Vigilance" by Glenn Daken is about a teenage boy called Theo has never seen the outside world because of a mysterious illness which is highly unusual: he can kill people with a single touch. Then, one day, Theo's perfectly organized world falls into chaos when a mysterious snow globe changes his life-forever. Join Theo as he finds out his guardian is pure evil, his savior is a garghoul and he just might be a hero.

"I would recommend this book to anyone interested in mystery and adventure of the fantastical sort. Personally, my least favorite part was in the end, which was super sad, when Theo finds out Clarice had died protecting him and her twin sister."

Candle Man is a great adventure book for young boys and girls alike. Though there are a bevy of characters to wade through and a few are a bit more cliched (at least for the adult reader) than others it is a fun and thrilling ride from beginning to end.

In speaking of the characters on in particular, the main foe of the story, Dr. Saint reminded me of the cartoon character Dick Dastardly. I half expected him to twirl the ends of a mustache (which he doesn't have by the way) and cackle "mwuahahahah!". He was, however the right amount of evil for this type of book. His cohort in crime Mr. Nicely was just the right combination of clueless and frightened in order to be appropriately manipulated by his master. Clarice, on the other hand was a surprise. One that I'll refrain from sharing with you so it doesn't spoil the story.

The combination of mystical creatures, folklore and Theo's history as well as the use of advanced technology for the time gave this book a very steampunk vibe. I think it will certainly open the eyes of any child who reads it to that particular category of books. There was a definite dark, murky and foggy feeling to the book though it was not depressing. It certainly lent itself well to the air of mystery. For that reason, even though it got slightly predictable (again for the adult reader), the twists and turns were enjoyable and certainly well structured for the target audience. There was definitely plenty of action to be had.

Having a strong boy and equally strong girl as main characters will make this a book that both genders can enjoy. I do, however, think boys will enjoy it more. The first in a series, Candle Man was an enjoyable read, one that I think middle-graders will want to read through until the final chapter of the final story.

Theo has spent all of his life inside and away from people. His guardian Dr. Saint has always told him that he has a deadly disease that makes it so he cannot be involved in modern society. So it's a treat for Theo when as a birthday outing Dr. Saint allows him to take a stroll in the cemetery near the house. Imagine his surprise when he happens to find a gift with his name on it randomly sitting on one of the headstones.

Aside from the strange gift, suddenly Theo is thrown into a world of hidden messages and strangers who keep telling him he's in danger. Eager to get away from his predictable and monotonous existence, Theo follows his deaf maid out the door one night and into the cemetery alone, setting in motion a grand adventure that Theo could never have imagined in his wildest dreams.

Candle Man started out strong. I was hooked. I was on the edge of my seat to find out why Theo was being held in captive and what was going to happen once he escaped. Candle Man had all the makings of a great adventure/fantasy book for kids.

Unfortunately it became tedious. Despite the fact that Glenn Dakin has created a fantasy/superhero plot line in a modern era, I got conflicting feelings from the writing style and the plot itself.

Allow me to explain. The style of writing that Glenn Dakin writes in is very elementary. This is to be expected as Candle Man is a book that is geared towards 10 - 12 year olds to read on their own. However, the writing became annoying after awhile. I mean even I would expect kids to get kind of sick of reading about "Dr. Saint" and "Mr. Nicely" who say things like: "Very nice Mr. Nicely" and "How saintly of you Dr. Saint." I didn't feel like Dakin was giving the kids he was writing for enough credit.

On the flipside, the plot is shockingly complex for a tween book. There were many, many characters to keep straight, plot twists and turns, conspiracy theories, and complex mysteries that never really came to the light of day.

I found that the writing style and the plot were just polar opposites. I found it to be kind of unfortunate because I felt Dakin had a good story and essentially a good series, but I just don't think I could work my way through another book in this series.

Since i started reading this book i couldn`t put it down until i finished it.I would recomend it to everyone!

This novel was a bit of a hit and a miss for me. It started out well by exploring Theo, his ability, and his world that is similar yet different from ours. I was pleased that Dakin took the twists that he did in regards to Theo's world, but in the beginning, there were so many parts that confused me. In this section of the novel, I personally needed more explanation. However, once the novel kicks into gear, everything starts to become much clearer for the reader. And Theo's world become much more fleshed out.

Despite this small misstep, I really enjoyed the novel. Dakin has a lovely ability to blend in unexpected twists and turns, which keeps me on the edge of my seat. The pacing was fantastic. There are very few down times within the novel and with the added mysteries to uncover, the reader is sure to be dying to figure out what will happen next. Overall, this novel is a wonderful to start to a new series, and I cannot wait to see what happens next.