Customer Reviews

Demonkeeper

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

You know those cracks in the sidewalk that seem to leap up and trip you when you aren't paying attention? You'll never see them the same way again! You'll laugh, you'll be amazed, and you'll be like us--holding our breath until the next one comes out!

This book will really sink its teeth into you! Clever characters and exciting action sequences propel you from the first page to the last. Plus, there's just the right amount of blood, guts, and gore to delight readers.

This book is awesome! I love the characters and the story. It's fast paced, scary (but not too scary), and funny too! I hope there is a sequel because I want to keep reading more! It would make a great movie too!

Teenager Nathaniel "Nat" Grimlock is a Demon Keeper in Seattle. He lives in a big old house filled with all sorts of demons, and it is his job to keep them there. The worst of the demons, the Beast, is kept under wraps in the basement. Nat is aided in his efforts by three minions, personal demons whom he keeps in a little box.

Unfortunately, when Nat meets Sandra "Sandy" Nertz, a junior assistant librarian, who is a sophomore in the local high school, she decides that he is just the ticket for her to sow her wild oats. Despite the warnings that his former mentor gave him about dating, Nat finds himself doing just that. Let the games begin!

When the Beast escapes and begins roaming Seattle looking for prey, and Nat's mentor's former protégé' and nemesis, the Thin Man, returns to town, seeking to usurp Nat in his role as the Demon Keeper, all hell breaks loose. It is up to Nat to see if he can somehow set things right.

This is a fast-paced book that was evidently written with the pre-teen members of the population in mind. It is filled with non-stop action, a great deal of silly humor, and inventive, funny, and creepy characters. Heck, even I liked it, and I am as far from a pre-teen as one can get and still be breathing. Buy this book for the pre-teen in your life, and do not be surprised to see it devoured in one sitting!

With his mentor gone, teenaged Nat is the sole human in charge of a house filled with demons. He is still learning the ropes of living in a house that is literally alive, not to mention dealing with the Beast in the basement that would love to escape and indulge his appetite which includes a taste for animals and humans. While Nat isn't totally alone - he has the companionship of his dog Bel and three minions, Pernicious, Nikolai, and Flappy - he still longs for human friends and enters an uneasy relationship with junior librarian Sandy and street urchin Richie. Nat tries not to let these friendships interfere with his demon keeping duties but little does he know that he's going to need their help when things go horribly wrong in the house and his predecessor, the Thin Man, heads back to town wanting his job back.

"Demonkeeper" is a deliciously creepy yet wickedly funny novel aimed at readers aged 9 -12. Author Royce Buckingham has done a wonderful job of creating a world filled with demons, especially the house Nat lives in which is filled with usually inanimate objects like rugs, lamps, and plants that are alive. The book is filled with nonstop action, starting from the very first page and readers will sympathize with both Nat and Richie who seem to go from one bad situation to another without ever feeling safe. Buckingham has a wonderful sense of humor and does a great job of mixing horror with humor. While there are plenty of scary moments and plenty of implied gore especially involving the beast, nothing is graphically described so it's not too tough to read for younger readers. Underneath the fun and scary moments, there is a sense of sadness throughout the book. Outside of Sandy, whose parents are mentioned but not seen, all of the children in the book are orphans forced to survive on their own. The only "adult" in the book is the Thin Man who is hardly a role model.

"Demonkeeper" is a wonderfully inventive, Stephen King-like novel for children.

My grandchildren love this book. I've read part of it and it's excellent for young readers. The characters come to life and you are transported to their world.

Have you ever felt out of place, like no one understands you? Have you ever wondered how you fit in the world? Demonkeeper, by Royce Buckingham, is about a boy whose parents died and now is taking care of demons in an old creepy house in Seattle, Washington all alone. So relax and enter the world of demons.
Fourteen year old Nat sits at home all day, maybe once and a while going to the library to get a book. Nat lives in an old creepy house in Seattle, Washington filled with bundles of chaos called demons. After Nat's parents passed away he was send from home to home until one day an old man came and took him home. The old man made Nat his apprentice and taught him how to be a demonkeeper. While Nat was apprenticing his master died and he had to look after the demons all by himself. Due to all of these events Nat is quiet and unsocial and becoming the demonkeeper just made it worst. One day when Nat decided to stray from his responsibilities his life just got an extra douse of chaos.
Demonkeeper is like no other book that I have read. It send s the message that everyone has a place in the world but Royce Buckingham still manages to include action and humor into the novel. Another book that had mythical element is Alfred Kropp, which is also about a boy whose parents died and goes on an adventure to try to save the world and is included with action and humor. The thing that is different between these is Alfred Kropp doesn't have a clear and strong message like Demonkeeper does.
A great thing about Demonkeeper is that the action starts with the first page that you read. Royce Buckingham uses great verbs and descriptive details that give you a feel of the environment and setting. Another great quality about this book is that it keeps you on the edge of your chair, and keeps you wanting to keep flipping the pages and finding out what's going to happen. One moment you thing something is going to happen, but all of a sudden the unexpected happens, which makes this books action nonstop. Also, this book is a very fast and easy read. Royce Buckingham doesn't need to write 300 or 400 pages, in just 216 pages he creates a great novel while using good description, but keeping the story still easy to understand. The part that I didn't like about this book is that it left you without knowing about what happened with Nat and Sandy, another character, in the near future, and also that there is no sequel to the book. This isn't too big of a problem that you don't know how the book ends, but it would be interesting to find out what happens to them.
I think that Demonkeeper is meant for 11 to 14 year olds. It's pretty easy and quick and easy read, but there are some graphic scenes of very descriptive blood and gore which probably isn't suitable for younger ages. This book is an action adventure mixed with fantasy. This book is action packed from the start and also has fantasy from the demons that Nat takes care of. So pretty much throughout the book the audience stay constant.
Ultimately, I think that whoever likes action adventure or fantasy books this book is for you. Even if you're not into those kind of books just try this book out, it's not too long and trust me you'll love it. So all in all, Demonkeeper is a great action adventure book for 11 to 14 year olds.

Nat's got problems. He's in charge of keeping demons from destroying the earth, but he doesn't quite know how. His former master died suddenly, and now he's all alone in a big house where the demons who are meant to do his bidding would rather test his mettle. He has no friends, but has a crush on the local assistant librarian. The demon in the basement would really like to eat him, and a scary thin man with a lisp wants to take over his house and rule the world.

One intriguing aspect of the story is that the demons are clearly a metaphor for the forces of chaos that can overwhelm children who are "lost" and without proper guidance, especially those who lack a proper home and are shuffled through foster homes. Only those children, it seems, are able to see the demons that inhabit the world Buckingham creates.

The basic setup sounds a bit like Joseph Delaney's The Last Apprentice series but set in modern times, and a bit more uneven in tone. At first I thought that the dialogue was a bit fake, as if the author was trying to imagine the way kids speak (calling each other "wussy" and "dude" and reading teen magazines that are bad parodies of the bad real ones, and hanging at the mall) and getting it off slightly, but then it struck me that their mannerisms would fit just perfectly the attitudes when I was a teen in the '80s -- I had the distinct sense of the characters being similar to the kids in The Goonies, except more urban and faced with a real and deadly threat. There is definitely a retro vibe to the story, which threw me off at first, but gradually grew on me: it creates a strange mix between what is supposed to be a truly terrifying and gory horror (pitched at a level appropriate for non-squeamish kids) and a kind of goofy atmosphere: as when one of the characters calls the bad guy a "bony freak" and this mastermind (with a lisp) who has devoted his life to evil and chaos becomes petulant and corrects the young boy, "Ian Fortusss, not 'bony freak'!" Sometimes the demons seem truly like demons and other times more like Pokemon.

If I had one major complaint it is that the world is not broadly developed, and the story seems more like a Goosebumps episode (a quick and scary scenario without much scene-setting or context) than an introduction to a rich alternative take on our world (as you find in the Harry Potter stories). Still, it's a quick and entertaining read. The main character is probably around 16 years old - but my guess is that this would be most appealing to children who like a bit of scare in their fantasy, between 9 and 13.

Plenty of action, vivid as a cartoon, in this high action story. Easy to recommend for reluctant readers. The orphans are more street savvy and much less sanctimonious than usual. I love the author's very fresh new take on the nature and origins of demons. We all feel like we see them out of the periphery once in a while. His story action moves swiftly, but his plot has backbone, even if that backbone is gnarled, twisted and scary.

I truly loved this book. The reading is easy, extremley interesting, next to impossible to put down. I wasn't sure what to expect when starting this book. I must say I wish I had 3 little minions like Nat does. This book has all great qualities. A great adventure ride, mild gore, teenage kids, and of course demons. If you are looking for a wonderful story, fast and easy to read, and leaving you wanting more (a sequel would be nice) read this book.