The Tower at the End of the World (9) (The House with a Clock in Its Walls)

Not a direct sequel, in that it immediately follows The House with a Clock in Its Walls, The Tower at the End of the World is a nice follow-up to the original, taking place years after the first encounter with the evil Izards. Now they must deal with the son, who does not want to destroy the world like dear old dad. Rather, he wants to rule the world with his minions. He also has a clock and a countdown. Can Lewis, Rose Rita, Mrs. Zimmermann, and uncle Jonathan foil Ishmael Izard’s evil plot in time! Of that, there’s never any doubt.I will say Brad Strickland finally put the creep back in CREEPY with things in the shadows coming after poor cursed Lewis.

Brad Strickland is as true to the original characters as can be, but they have all grown. Adventuresome, delightful and lively!

"The Tower at the End of the World" is yet another great plot by Brad Strickland utilizing the late John Bellairs's characters. While definitely not as good as some of Strickland's past attempts (most notably the books he completed such as "The Ghost in the Mirror", or even his own "The Hand of the Necromancer"), it's still a fun read for Bellairs fans. For those of you who liked the immensely popular "House With a Clock in its Walls" (and who didn't?), you'll be happy to know that this adventure is a sort of sequel with a mysterious, though rather one dimensional villain with a very familiar name. Lewis Barnavelt is back along with Uncle Jonathan and all their friends.The new dust jacket illustration and frontispiece within are marvelous, catching the essence of the late Edward Gorey's style very well. But the publishers needs to let S. D. Schindler do the entire dust wrapper, not just the front! One of the special aspects of the original Bellairs novels were the illustrations - you've got an artist who can do them almost as good as Edward Gorey, so please let him do the entire jacket!I have one small gripe. While "The Tower at the End of the World" is a lot of fun, Brad Strickland seems to be sticking to the same old formula a little too much. This is unfortunate. The past three or four stories have all been basically the same, only in different locales and with different characters. That's why I believe "The Hand of the Necromancer" is one of Strickland's best since he used some original ideas and even was bold enough to introduce a new character. Even though many of John Bellairs's novels were similar, they were never totally similar, if you know what I mean; they each had original elements that made them interesting and unique to read. Brad Strickland needs to incorporate some totally unique elements himself. And a note to Dial: we need more 160 to 170 pagers, not 145!Overall, though, well worth a read!

I've read all the Louis Barnavelt books. Great fun and adventure for kids.

I've read all of the Lewis Barnavelt books. Loved everyone.

Enjoyed action and character relationships. Fun ending

Originally published at Fantasy Literature.In The Tower at the End of the World (2001), the ninth novel in John Bellairs & Brad Strickland’s LEWIS BARNAVELT series, Strickland once again pays tribute to the late Bellairs by returning to, and expanding the plot of the first novel in the series, The House with a Clock in its Walls.At this point, Lewis is 13 years old and has just finished reading Sax Rohmer’s FU MANCHU series. (I love that kids are learning about classic fantasy literature in these stories!) Lewis is upset that FU MANCHU is over, so he’s sulking (we can relate, right?). To cheer him up, the adults decide to take Lewis and his best friend Rose Rita on a trip to Lake Superior.While on vacation, several unsettling things happen. A stranger gives Lewis a letter that has indecipherable ancient runes on it. Lewis sees shadowy figures that others don’t see. Then, while boating, a mysterious island with a tower appears out of nowhere and, when they visit it, they find skeletons.When they return home, the strangeness continues and Lewis keeps having bad dreams and seeing weird illusions. It seems like somebody wants him to think that that evil wizard from the first book is back, though Mrs. Zimmerman assures Lewis that Isaac Izard is dead and gone. The worst bit is when Lewis finds out that he will die in 48 days!The stakes are high in The Tower at the End of the World, making the story intense, scary, and occasionally gross. Even the adults are in danger. Kids will learn about folklore and fantasy literature (and not just Fu Manchu).But the villain in this installment is a silly caricature (the villains seem to be getting worse as the series goes on) and the plot is too reminiscent of previous volumes. It feels like Strickland is recycling the elements that have worked before.Though I appreciate his tribute to Bellairs’ first book, this sequel is a bit weak. Recorded Books’ audio edition narrated by George Guidall is very well done, though.

Perfect for my collection

Fantastic service,great book!!!

The story seemed to get bogged down quite a bit and I don't think it is one of the best in the series.

Tgyu