Customer Reviews

Triskellion

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In the midst of their parents' ugly divorce, fourteen-year-old twins Adam and Rachel Newman are sent to their mother's home village in Great Britain to stay with their grandmother - but Triskellion proves to be no safe harbor amidst the storm.

From the moment of their arrival, the twins are treated with suspicion and hostility, with every building in town marked by a strange "symbol of three intersecting crescents forming a continuous pointed clover leaf, bound by a large circle." It is from this symbol (a triskellion) that the village takes its name.

Essentially cut off from civilization with no telephone, Internet, and hardly any television, the boys' suspicions deepen further after the pair meets Gabriel - a boy their age who seems to vanish at will. When a communiqué of the local beekeeper thrusts the isolated hamlet into the spotlight, Adam and Rachel discover there's more than a town's secret at stake as their entire world is rocked to its foundation.

Will Peterson makes his young adult debut with a page-turning, nail-biting, two-for-one special. Part paranormal, part mystery, TRISKELLION is unlike any other book in its genre. Peterson explores legends of the past, the psychic connection between twins, archaeology, and prophecy in one fell swoop.

While I still don't understand the significance of the bees, or how they're tied to certain characters' psychic abilities, and I was somewhat disappointed to find more questions than answers at the end, TRISKELLION kept me up for three nights straight, desperate to find out what happened. Good thing there's a sequel.

Reviewed by: Cat

I picked this up last month for three reasons: it was on sale; it had an interesting cover; the summary on the back included the phrase "archaeological adventure." Utterly and totally impossible to resist, and luckily it turned out pretty good!

Triskellion is about 14-year-old twins Rachel and Adam Newman who are sent off to stay with their grandmother in the English countryside. From the moment they arrive, they know Triskellion is an unusual place-- and soon they'll find out exactly how unusual it is. Dangerous gun-toting residents, a mysterious past, and some very big secrets mean Rachel and Adam will have to use their wits and extremely good intuition to solve the mystery that is the town of Triskellion.

From the get-go I assumed the plot would be a mix between The X-Files and Escape to Witch Mountain, and I was pretty much right! The twins have freaky brain powers, and the writing itself feels kinda like those X-Files novelizations (but better). It starts off a little slow, but by the time I was a third in I was hooked. The last third especially flew by fast; I actually stayed up 'til 3am to finish it! I'm glad I did because I honestly don't think I could have slept if I hadn't. The plot is by turns fascinating and ridiculous, and as a bonus you get a little romance and some archaeology.

The characters were decently crafted, though I think Adam tended to lack a bit in the personality department. Rachel was definitely well-done, and Gabriel-- the friend the twins make who can do freaky brain stuff, too-- was a really good mix between dangerous bad boy and heroic good boy. Most of the secondary characters were just outlines of people, but Jacob Honeyman, the local beekeeper (seriously), was by turns sympathetic and disgusting, and Hilary Wing was a nicely-done maniacal villain.

I did have a few problems, mostly with one particular scene where the twins tell someone their secrets and that person basically accepts them as fact, even though anyone else would think the twins were lying. No doubt, no denial, and the only explanation is that after looking at a few dead bodies with their hearts missing, they can believe anything. It just doesn't seem like a good enough reason. I am thinking now, though, that maybe in the next book it might be explained more.

There are several questions that never get fully answered, like just who Gabriel is or what's so weird about the dead bodies (besides the no hearts thing) or even what part the bees play in the whole thing. I would say, though, that you can read this book and maybe not feel the need to read the next, like maybe you've got enough answers to satisfy curiosity. It reminds me of Skellig that way. The ending is happy but also a cliffhanger, and I hope that all the questions are answered sufficiently in the next two books (it's a trilogy). I do plan on reading them! Er, but book isn't coming out until sometime later this year, and book three won't be out until 2010. Darn!

Overall, I had a wonderful time reading this, and I'd easily recommend it for people who like paranormal mixed in with a bit of Celtic/nature mythology (and possibly sci-fi), including children. Oh! Also, if you go to the website, there's a map and some extras available for download.

Imagine, if you will, a cross between The Dark Is Rising, Hot Fuzz and The Wicker Man.

Now, don't you wish they'd written books like that when you were a kid?

The Triskellion trilogy kicks off with a book that is just that: a classic adventure with a modern twist.

Rachel and Adam are twins, sent over from America to stay with their grandmother while their parents' marriage disintegrates on the other side of the Atlantic. They arrive in the small west country village of Triskellion to a somewhat lukewarm reception. There is something decidedly odd about these villagers.

But they don't know the half of it.

The twins uncover a whole host of dark secrets and, with the help of a mysterious young friend, begin a search for a hidden artefact. An item that will change their lives, and those of every villager, for ever.

The archaeological quest, which turns out to be a race against both time and a bunch of baddies, is reminiscent of first The Dark is Rising novel. No pale imitation this, it is every bit as exciting and magical.

The mysterious villagers with a whole bunch of hidden secrets and a tendency to meter out their own form of justice had a dark whiff of The Wicker Man or Hot Fuzz. Although without the adult content. Obviously.

The name on the cover is Will Peterson but the book is actually co-written by Mark Billingham and Peter Cocks. Mark is better known as the author of a hugely successful crime series - although I remember him as one of the Norman soldiers in Maid Marian & Her Merry Men - and he and Peter have written a bunch of TV shows together including The Cramp Twins. Their partnership clearly works well. I found myself completely wrapped up in this and so did my son Ethan. We both read it ahead of the Firestation Junior Book Swap yesterday at which Peter was a guest.

We will both be reading the rest of the trilogy.

The authors set out to write a multi-layered book that just happened to be for teenagers. It never patronises, is thoroughly entertaining and I'd recommend it to any grown ups who like a bit of supernatural adventure and would really suggest it as a must-read for any kids you have who are ten or older.

This was a wonderful story, very well written and superbly read. I really hated for it to end. The story drew me in from the first page. LOVED IT! It was interesting, exciting, scary and special. I was very happy to learn there will be another. Can't wait!!

I had the paper back and I purchased the second book in hardback because I enjoyed the first book so much and I decided I wanted to have both in hardback. This is a series I would like to keep.