The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier Review

Book Nerd Review by Chloe

This much-anticipated follow-up to Jonathan Auxier’s exceptional debut,Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes, is a Victorian ghost story with shades of Washington Irving and Henry James. More than just a spooky tale, it’s also a moral fable about human greed and the power of storytelling.

The Night Gardener follows two abandoned Irish siblings who travel to work as servants at a creepy, crumbling English manor house. But the house and its family are not quite what they seem. Soon the children are confronted by a mysterious spectre and an ancient curse that threatens their very lives. With Auxier’s exquisite command of language, The Night Gardener is a mesmerizing read and a classic in the making.

In Victorian England, Irish sister and brother Kip and Molly’s parents have to go work far away, so they go to England to stay until their parents send for them. The work place gives them a job at the Windsor house. Lady Windsor is not pleased that the siblings were sent to her and says “this place is no place for children.” However, they get to stay. Several days later, Master Windsor comes home. That very night Molly has a nightmare and she is trying to go back to bed when she hears a bad Thump Thump Thump. She goes to the hallway to see what it is. In the hall she finds a top hat. After Molly sees Master Windsor meet 2 strange men and give them a bag of coins, she gets real suspicious. Who were these men? Will Master Windsor keep giving them money? What about that strange hat in the hall? To find out, read The Night Gardener.

The descriptions in The Night Gardener are very enjoyable. They make is seem like I am in the book. The way that Molly and Kip discovered the secret of the “hills” in the front lawn was a creepy cool part of the book. The secret knothole that asked for a “drop of your soul” was very cool also. Hester Kettle was a very funny witch. How nice of her to give the kids the house map. My favorite part though, was the moonflowers in the forest garden. This was a nice addition to a tense part of the book. My other favorite parts were the stories and back-stories of the characters. Learning about what came before really tied the book together for me. Overall, The Night Gardener was a very enjoyable book.

You can purchase The Night Gardener at the following Retailers:

    

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Author Sotlight

JONATHAN AUXIER is a struggling writer. His first novel, Peter Nimble and his Fantastic Eyes was an ABA New Voices pick and Bookpage Magazine "Best Book" of 2011. His new novel, The Night Gardener, arrives in bookstores this spring. He lives in Pittsburgh with his wife Mary and their adorable pet umbrella.

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Chloe

Hi, my name is Chloe. I am in the fourth grade and I am eleven years old. My favorite subjects in school are English, reading, and math. My hobbies are reading, ballet and figure skating. For my birthday, my parents got me a Kindle Fire HD7. We go to the library often. I have books in my backpack, in my desk at school, in my mom's car, in my room, in my skating bag, in my dance bag - Everywhere! My favorite kinds of books are history, mystery and fantasy. I love reading!

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