Gr 5—8—The Grey Griffins are back in a new series, and they're off to Iron Bridge Academy, a Hogwarts-type school that prepares promising young students for the fight against the forces of evil. Once Max, Harley, Natalia, and Ernie arrive at the school (which has long been closed due to mysterious circumstances), the changelings there begin to vanish, and it becomes apparent that The Clockwork King is behind the disappearances. Max has been having realistic nightmares that lead him to believe that the mad scientist is horrifyingly merging students with clockwork creations. The authors have jumped on the steampunk bandwagon without really embracing the steampunk aesthetic. Yes, there are clockwork automatons, an airship, and a place called New Victoria where humans, pixies, and hobgoblins linger on the streets together, but the main characters are skeptical of those who embrace Victorian fashion. Despite some awkwardly inserted background information from the previous books, it is still difficult for someone unfamiliar with them to keep track of the various characters, their histories, and their roles. Fans of the "Grey Griffins" series will be thrilled to revisit their old friends in this action-packed adventure, but newcomers would benefit from starting with The Revenge of the Shadow King (Scholastic/Orchard, 2005).—Heather M. Campbell, formerly at Philip S. Miller Library, Castle Rock, CO
The monster-hunting kids from the Grey Griffins books (The Revenge of the Shadow King; The Rise of the Black Wolf; The Fall of the Templar) battle the Clockwork King. The race to stop him barely begins in this first series entry. Steampunk elements provide a fresh take on a familiar story line, but this series-within-a-series struggles to stand on its own.
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