From the Bookshelf of Mock Newbery 2026…
Find A Copy At
Group Discussions About This Book
No group discussions for this book yet.
What Members Thought

Wonderful audio production of a fabulous book!

Set during WWII when many children were transplanted from London to the countryside to escape the Blitz (this seems to be a popular setting, no?). There are some very familiar elements here (e.g. the villain is a creepy witch who preys on children) but it's got some unexpected twists. It's a good page-turner, but thematically it felt a bit shallow to me. Katherine isn't a super interesting hero and indeed most of the characters felt a bit flat. Except, I will say, I always appreciate a villain w
...more

The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle is a wonderfully spooky historical fantasy that will appeal to readers who love their stories cloaked in misty mystery and full of hidden passages and ghostly secrets. Fox’s skillfully builds tension as the chapters switch between the distant past and WWII-era present, twist and turn together, intertwining in a dance, revealing flashes of hints and clues to the puzzle that clever readers will relish putting together. Add in a protagonist who will warm you
...more

When Kat and her siblings are sent away from their London home to a boarding school in Scotland, Kat has a bad feeling right from the start. It might be safer in at Rookskill Castle in terms of the German bombs being dropped on London during WWII, but there's plenty of unsettling stuff. Lady Eleanor, the mistress of the manor, is cold and unsympathetic. The children are told to ignore th strange sounds coming from the older part of the castle, and worse yet are locked in their rooms at night. So
...more

I picked this one up because it is a novel about evacuees during the Second World War. Turns out this was not exactly what I was expecting but I enjoyed it none the less. The evacuee/war storyline really took second place to the magic and mystery happening at the castle the children have been sent to. There were some anachronisms that could have been fixed and things were a bit repetitive at times but overall I really enjoyed this. Enough so that I am going to read the companion novel that was r
...more

Feb 04, 2015
Rachel
marked it as to-read

Dec 22, 2015
J.j.
marked it as to-read

Dec 31, 2015
Tina
marked it as to-read

Feb 11, 2016
Erin Moulton
marked it as to-read

Feb 20, 2016
Bekah
marked it as to-read

Mar 05, 2016
Molly
marked it as to-read

Mar 13, 2016
Monica Edinger
added it

Mar 19, 2016
Wendy
marked it as to-read

Mar 30, 2016
Anamaria
added it



Oct 11, 2016
Parry Rigney
marked it as to-read
