Customer Reviews

The Secret of Indigo Moon (The Dopple Ganger Chronicles)

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I had previously started to read Shadowmancer by G.P. Taylor but hadn't gotten in too far before I set it aside so I wasn't expecting much out of his new series. The quote on the back cover of the book calling G.P. Taylor, "The new C.S. Lewis" didn't help either. Yet, sometimes out of nowhere there comes a revelation. When I opened The Secret of Indigo Moon, book two in The Dopple Ganger Chronicles I had one of those moments.

The story is standard fare for youth fiction. A young man and his twin friends live at a school for abandoned children and stumble upon a theft and decide to investigate. Enter their enemy from the first book, along with a soft-hearted henchman, and a cast of interesting if unoriginal characters and you have the ingredients for a story that any middle schooler would enjoy. But it wasn't the story that was the revelation. It was the presentation.

Open the book and you immediately find yourself in an amazing world of line art, comic book pages, fantastic fonts and typeset pages. Illustrations give form to the characters that imagination can sometimes leaves incomplete. Huge two-page drawings, like the clock on page 2 and 3, cause the reader to switch between reading to interpreting (you have to tell the time yourself,) and then back to reading on page 4 then to comics on pages 5 and 6. The multimedia experience keeps the reader involved from the start. I loved it!

It seems that anyone can write a teen fantasy judging from the volume of new titles on any bookstore shelf. But something different can serve to get a teen who perhaps doesn't read to become a reader or those give those who like to read something different. G.P. Taylor isn't the new C.S. Lewis but he did come up with a great idea for a series of books.

This book was provided free of charge by the publisher as a review copy. The publisher had no editorial rights or claims over the content or the conclusions made in this review. Visit [...] for more information on this book.

So what do you think goes bump in the night? Bet you didn't think it was a crazy magician sneaking around in a secret room in the basement intent on stealing a golden sarcophagus to fund another one of his demented inventions. But let's not stop there. Let's have identical twin and troublemaker Saskia Dopple be hiding in the sarcophagus when it's stolen. Add an undercover private eye, an architect named Indigo Moon and manga illustrations and this has got to be the whackiest book I've read in a long time.

Just like the last book, this one's incredibly fast-paced and has quite the complicated ending, but this time the quirkiness seems a bit forced. Even so, it was definitely worth the read.

I really enjoyed G.P. Taylor's first volume in THE DOPPLEGANGER CHRONICLES, THE FIRST ESCAPE. So when I saw that he had a second one out, I snatched it up. And after reading it through, I think I ended up liking THE SECRET OF THE INDIGO MOON better than the first.

The story picks up where the last one left off with some creepy sounds coming from the basement of Isambard Dunstan's School for Wayward Children. And Erik Ganger, the only boy living in the school, hears everything and goes to investigate. And that begins a furious ride to discover the truth behind some recent burglaries, a missing headmistress, and the Secret of Indigo Moon. Some old characters re-surface, and some new ones are added to the mix, making this ride just as exciting as in THE FIRST ESCAPE.

Like the first book, THE SECRET OF INDIGO MOON is told through traditional prose, comics, and atmospheric black and white photos. One thing I noticed right away was the improved quality in the comics. It seemed like the illustrators took a little more care and time rounding out the drawings and changing them up from the harsh lines and edges of the first one, really making it look classy and still fun.

New mysteries are added on in the last few pages, and the Dopple twins definitely have quite a few things to think about as they prepare to embark on another adventure. And it will be worth looking into what comes next for the young detectives...

In the sequel to The First Escape, I felt that G.P. Taylor put together a wonderful story that was a mixture of a Hardy Boy-esque mystery and Eleanor Updale's Montmorency adventures. Just like in the first book, the story starts with Erik and the twins at the orphanage; however, this book picks up pace much more quickly than the first one with the book starting with Erik noticing burglars in a secret passage. Thus starts another adventure and mystery with the Dopples & Ganger.

Once again the book is a mixture of comics, prose and illustrations. I noticed in this one how much the size and font of words shows the tone, even during the prose. I had the same problems with the comics as last time, but this time I noticed that the girls also look MUCH older in some of their close ups.

These books kept my children entertained for hours. the three books in the series were a delight to read and hear them read. the hard covers, illustrations and writings kept everyone's imagination going.

The Secret of Indigo Moon, The DoppleGanger Chronicles, by G.P. Taylor is a delight to the senses.
This is a great story about Erik Morrissey Ganger who thinks he is a great explorer and detective, and his side kicks, twins Sadie and Saskia Dopple who are always getting into trouble. This is their 2nd adventure together and it involves a secret tunnel under the school, a private eye, facing down an old enemy and finding out the secret of the "indigo moon". Wonderful adventure.

I started looking through the book when it arrived and was just amazed at the different type of graphics used. First page is picture with text, then the next page is just a picture-you get to think "what does that stand for,etc", then the next page you have only text, then a four panel cartoon with color. And it goes on like that throughout the book. And the graphics are used so smartly through out the story. I actually like this book a lot. I think it would be great for 8-15 and those who are not really into reading but like graphic novels or comics.

I received a complimentary copy of the book for review purposes from Tyndale House.

Sadie, Saskia and Erik have returned, this time in The Secret of Indigo Moon, the second installment in G.P Taylor's The Dopper Ganger Chronicles. After their last adventure, in which they narrowly survived being chased by madmen and murderers, they have now returned to Instambard Dunstan's. Of course, in true style they seem to automatically sniff out a new mystery and obviously, where the three of them are concerned, trouble is never very far behind. Especially when they discover a secret tunnel beneath the school, meet up with a shifty undercover private eye, and come face to face with one of their old, and very devious, enemies.
Just like the previous book, this story is fun and fast paced, and immediately draws you in. It is also full of fantastic descriptions, and it once again has the same incredible features- full page illustrations, comic strips, white pages with black text, and even black pages with white text. Not only that, but the three teens are faced with challenges which leave them questioning life, what it's all about, and who they really are. With almost non-stop action, and unexpected twists and turns, this is one irresistible mystery.

The Secret of Indigo Moon, the second book in The Dopple Ganger Chronicles, awesome! I loved how G.P. Taylor brought back a villain from the first book. You have to read this book its epic!

THE DOPPLE GANGER CHRONICLES: THE SECRET OF INDIGO MOON
By G.P. Taylor

In The Secret of Indigo Moon, Erik, Saskia, and Sadie are involved in yet another adventure. Burglars are using hidden a hidden tunnel beneath Isambard Dumstan' s School for Wayward Children. While investigating Saskia gets trapped in a sarcophagus and is stolen! Can Erik and Sadie rescue her before she is discovered or will they be captured as well?

The magician Potemkin is back and continuing his evil ways. Can Saskia convince Sadie and Erik that Madame Raphael is real? Or will Saskia be alone in her belife?

Prepare for a thrilling adventure that even the most reluctant middle grade reader will enjoy. The combination of traditional text, text art, and graphic novel adds to the appeal of this engaging sequel in the Dopple Ganger Chronicles.

The second in this series is no less exciting than the first. We received the first and third as review copies but missed out on this one. So, we borrowed it from another reviewer! What a blessing.

My daughter (10 years old) devoured the book. I think what makes these books so appeal ling to children and teens is the way the book is deigned, graphic arts pages with differing type sets, traditional pages, then the comic book pages. It is also visually interesting because the pages are all bordered in black.

The material in this one does have some themes that may not be appropriate for very young children such as the talk of murder and the pictures of guns. However, I did not find the story line to be inappropriate.

Again in this novel Sasha and Saski Dopple are paired with Eric Ganger. We are again introduced to the "bad" guys from the last story and introduced. Get ready for non stop action and antics as they try to discover the secret of indigo moon.

Thanks Tyndale.