Ravenmaster's Secret: Escape from the Tower of London [Turtleback]

Elvira Woodruff (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2005

Best-selling author Elvira Woodruff's thrilling novel set in 1700s London. Now in paperback!

It's 1735. Forrest Harper's life inside the Tower of London consists of three ways to pass the time: chores, chores, and more chores. His only friends are the spirited ravens he tends with his father. So when vicious Scottish Rebels are captured, Forrest can't wait to prove himself by standing guard. If only Forrest's prisoner hadn't turned out to be the noble and daring Maddy. And if only Maddy wasn't about to be executed. . . .
Now, as Forrest chooses between friendship and family, safety and escape, he and Maddy must flee, somehow navigating the cold, dank corridors of the Tower.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

She lives in Martin's Creek, Pennsylvania, with her husband Joe, who collects antique books, and has a large collection of books about castles. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Turtleback
• Publisher: Demco Media; First Edition edition (November 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 060634179X
• ISBN-13: 978-0606341790
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,106,668 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Ravenmasters Secret, December 18, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Ravenmaster's Secret: Escape From The Tower Of London (Paperback)

The Ravenmasters Secret is a great story for everyone of all ages. The Ravenmasters Secret gets you wondering what you would do if you were in the same shoes as the main character. The main Character is Forrest who he and his family live in the tower of London, he is the Ravenmasters son. He takes care of ravens and also feeds the prisoner which he is in charge of, forrest has many differnet chores around the fortress. In the story he gets caught into a deep secret which he and is friend, the rat catcher, Ned risk their lives to save a scottish rebels daughter who is a prisoner,named Madeline, she is the same age as Forrest and Ned.
Forrest gets into many tough situations which I would not have the courage to risk my life for. In the book you learn about the different lifestyles and theculture of England around 1735.
The Ravenmasters secret is based on a true story, but not real characters, it is based on several attempts of the escape of the Tower of London. The Ravenmasters Secret is a wonderful book which once you start you can't stop until you find out the conclusion to see how the plan to escape turns out.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful and Touching Story..., December 25, 2008

By 

Katie McCurdy "Legacy of a Writer" (U.S.A.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Ravenmaster's Secret: Escape From The Tower Of London (Paperback)

I just finished this book last night and had to come and right a review. It was amazing!! It grabbed my attention right from the beginning and held it the whole time! I stayed up all night just to finish it.

It is such a wonderful story and the ending is, although a little sad, is still satisfying to know that Forrest learned where true happiness and contentment can be. I highly recommend it for old and young alike!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Forrest, Maddie and Rat, December 12, 2007

By 

Andrew Hume "Calhoun Fourth Grade" (Calhoun School, New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ravenmaster's Secret: Escape From The Tower Of London (Paperback)

In 1735 a boy named Forrest Harper lives in the Tower of London. His dad is the Ravenmaster and someday Forrest hopes to be the Ravenmaster. One day the town is going to have a hanging, so his family goes. At the hanging, some mean boys start teasing him and make him watch the hanging. He wants to prove that he's not a little boy because he's small, so he tells them that he is going to have a tough Scottish prisoner in his part of the Tower. But it turns out that his prisoner is young rebel named Maddie. He befriends Maddie but she is going to have to have her head chopped off! Meanwhile, his friend Rat is an indentured apprentice to a rat catcher. The rat catcher loses a bet with a nasty chimney sweep who makes kids work until they die. Because of the bet, Rat now has to work for the chimney sweep. How can Forrest help his friends escape their terrible fates?

"Dree yer ain weird" means "face your destiny" in Scottish. I think that Elvira Woodruff means that as a moral because Forrest Harper has to find out his destiny. The Ravenmaster's Secret is suspenseful because you want to know what happens to Forrest and his friends. If their plan doesn't work out perfectly then Rat, Maddie and Forrest will die. Forrest will die because he is a traitor to England. It is interesting reading a book set so long ago and in a different country with a different community. Some people do not like death, so if you're one of those people this may not be the best choice. I think it's a good book even though it has killing. That's the way things were back then.

by Jane Celine