This was so interesting..

As a prior fan of Marcus Sedgwick, I was excited for this one. The aesthetic was on point, the characters were beautifully written and the story unfolded slowly and in a very satisfying way.

5 stars

I thought this was just okay. Despite an interesting premise and opening chapter, the story felt choppy and lacked the suspense that the synopsis seems to hint at. I didn't feel particularly attached to the characters either.

This book covers quite a few topics but not always in an effective way. For instance, it raises good points about environmentalism but also borders on preachy at times. The Hum was interesting though; I had no idea it really existed.

There are references to lockdown and I appreciate the book exploring how people cope/react to it. However, I didn't care to read about the characters breaking the law and breaching safety measures.

Overall, a rather forgettable tale.

The book opens with a date and time and the first sentence is that "Cassie has now been missing for six hours."

This instantly draws the reader into the mystery surrounding Cassie's disappearance. Fitz is telling us his and Cassie's story and the surrounding story of their school, their band and families all against the backdrop of Lockdown 2020.
We find out that Cassie has been hearing a noise that no-one else seems to be able to hear. We also find out that her life, whilst seemingly perfect with well-to-do parents, isn't quite what it seems. But where has Cassie gone? Can Fitz work it out? Should he tell the police or not because he is worried about Cassie and what she wants?

This isn't my normal read (I'm a primary school TA) but it was a stunning book. Just remembering how hard Lockdown 1 was for everyones mental health, especially children of all ages without the ability to see friends makes this books story feel so real. The hunt for Cassie is quite scary - as an adult I certainly know the worst does happen in real life sometimes, and Cassie's mental health is at the forefront of this story. We find that Fitz is the best kind of friend you can have.

Outlier review here, sorry. But this book did nothing for me. 😕

Cassie Cotton has been missing since a few hours. Her friend Fitz, who is also in the same band as she is, ponders over why she must have disappeared and is determined to find her. What adds complications is that Cassie has always been unusual, more so since she claims to hear a weird humming noise from Earth. She believes this to be a distress call by the planet grappling with climate change because of human activity. Though Cassie is the prime focus of the narrative, the emotions come from Fitz’s perspective, as the story is written in his first person pov.

There are a few good themes in the book: friendship, bullying, music, respect for the planet and its resources, and parental relationships. As it is set in the present, it also offers a glimpse into children's feelings about the sudden change in lifestyle because of the lockdown. The story is set in Scotland and makes good use of the location.

One reason it fell short for me was the implementation. There are a lot of missing blanks in the story development. I mean, even something as basic as the characters’ age (or the grade they study in) isn’t mentioned. So when the story begins, you have no idea what age group the children belong to. I had to keep revising their age in my minds as clues were provided, but right till the end, I wasn’t sure of anything except that they were in the higher teenage bracket. Cassie’s parents are known environmentalists but they keep arguing with each other, to the point of being abusive. No reasons provided. Fitz’s mom has probably left his dad and him. Why? No reasons provided. With hardly any proper background, it was quite difficult to understand character motivations and empathise with them. And when the secret crush angle was added, I lost whatever little interest I had left.

Moreover, the writing style isn’t linear. While the present timeline is focussed on locating Cassie, a lot of the content is Fitz’s pondering over various past incidents, not necessarily in chronological order. So it feels quite disconnected, especially at the start. The content is also quite dire. (I mean, I know Barrington Stoke’s children’s books deal with dark topics frequently, but this beats them all in gloominess.)

Overall, it's a book about children but I'm not sure if it's a book for children. I didn't understand the point of it. But looking at the positive response it has received from other readers, I think I missed out on something here. Please go through their opinions before you make up your mind about this.

The recommended target age for readers as per the publishers is 12+.

My thanks to Barrington Stoke and NetGalley for the ARC of “Wrath”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

I really enjoyed this latest story from Marcus Sedgewick. It's very current and I'm sure that my Year 7 and 8 pupils would enjoy the mystery of the strange noise. There are enough hints of a background to the two main characters to make them realistic and interesting, but not so much that it becomes a distraction. I'll be buying a copy for our school library, to add to our 'quick teen reads' section.

Thanks to Netgalley and Barrington Stoke for giving this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wrath walks the line of drama, tiptoeing into psychological thriller for just long enough to keep the reader entranced. I really liked the characters and how the story felt almost ethereal at times, even if the narrative didn't lend itself naturally to much action through the plot. I would quite like to hear the titular song one day, too.

I do think some of my teen patrons will like Wrath, and it's an easy sell for them. The story's engaging without bogging the reader down with extraneous details. There are open ended questions to consider afterward. Fitz is an interesting, relatable narrator. It's got scenarios that many of my teens will immediately identify with, and it's relatively short to boot. I'm not sure that it will bring mass appeal for the community I serve, but I do know that this will absolutely end up in some of their hands, and they will enjoy it.

I liked the concept of this book but I just wasn’t enjoying it throughout. It didn’t feel like something I wanted to reach for and didn’t gravitate to pick up again

Cassie has always been different, but during the pandemic shut down she admitted that she hears things. She believes that it is the Earth calling out because of all the bad things being done to it. Shortly after school lets out, Cassie disappears. Fitz wants to help find her, but he isn’t sure what to do first. He gives information to the police, but they don’t seem to act on his information. Will Fitz find out the truth about Cassie’s disappearance?

Wrath is a very short stand-alone mystery that was almost too short. This novel would be perfect for reluctant readers that don’t want to commit too much time and energy into a story, but if a bibliophile picks it up, they should be ready to just sit down for 90 minutes and get it finished. The clues lead the characters around Scotland and the ending is complete, but not quite satisfying. Wrath was a good quick escape read but isn’t a first choice to recommend for everyone.

Having thoroughly enjoyed Floodland I was excited to read Sedgewick’s latest offering from publisher Barrington Stoke, whose books I am often recommending to reluctant or struggling readers. Wrath did not disappoint; I was hooked from the first paragraph and finished the book in one sitting.

When Cassie goes missing after telling Fitz about the strange noise she can hear all around her Fitz is desperate to find out what has happened to his friend. Narrated by Fritz in a series of flashbacks we find out about Cassie's turbulent home life, tensions between their bandmates and the mysterious society she was planning to meet.

Fitz is a great protagonist and his relationships with his father and Cassie were well written and felt genuine. It was great to see him develop from awkward teen who never knows what to say to hero in the exhilarating finale.

Part climate fiction, part mystery there is plenty in the story to keep readers engaged. I particularly liked that it brings issues of family relationships and mental health during the pandemic to the fore, exploring the characters feelings both during and post lockdown, a great way to start conversations with younger readers about issues they have faced themselves, or may still be dealing with.

This was okay as a youth oriented story but failed to capture me as a growing reader. Perhaps a print copy could make a stronger connection.

When Cassie mysteriously goes missing, Fitz is consumed with guilt and scared for the safety of his friend. Questions about what he should tell his Dad, and the police plague his thoughts.
Set in Scotland after the lockdown, this contemporary story explores issues facing teenagers today.
This is another great addition to this excellent series for low progress readers, explore issues facing young people through stories that they are keen to read, in an accessible and supportive format.

I have read a number of Marcus Sedgwicks books and to be honest I don't think it matters whether the target audience is kids,teenagers or adults as he writes really well for all age groups. Although this is aimed at younger and is particularly with learning difficulties, it doesn't make much difference,this is a good, strong story by an excellent writer with a strong central conceit - that the Earth has an underlying "voice" which some people can hear when others hear nothing. I liked the book a lot so heartedly recommended.

Marcus Sedgwick is a master of creating mysterious and intriguing situations, and his newest young adult novella is no exception. Cassie has gone missing, and Fitz – who tells the story -- is desperate to figure out where she is. Multiple flashbacks build the characterisation of Cassie, a complex character with a troubled home life – and someone who hears a disturbing ‘hum’ coming from the earth that she feels may indicate the end of the world. She just wants someone to believe her. The pace is quick and the text accessible, as is always the case with Barrington Stoke titles, and the setting in Scotland is evocative. I was also struck by the references to Lockdown – it is the first book I have read that explicitly uses the Covid Lockdown as part of its narrative.

This book is ideal for reluctant readers in from Year 8 and up (there is language) or for anyone who wants a quick, intelligent read with ecological themes.

Cassie is different. Hearing things that others can’t. Using the freedom of feuding parents she finds a new experimental sound for her band. She just wants to be heard, understood, seen.
Fitz doesn’t get this unspoken message until it’s too late.
Cassie is missing. Fitz means to find her.
Marcus Sedgwick transports readers to post lockdown Scotland in his latest novel Wrath. Though this book is a quicker read than his others it is not less thought provoking. Written in his beautifully detailed, somewhat eerie style this book is suitable for young teens and adults alike.

Wrath is a novel by Marcus Sedgwick about Cassie, an usually different person and the more socially awkward Fitz. Cassie hears a loud hum that others cannot and believes this is the sound of the Earth damaged by humans. This leads to her being trolled in her school and eventually Cassie disappears, leading Fitz to try and find her.

This was a surprisingly intricate and well-written novel that read intelligently. Sedgwick has created a young adult piece of art that carried me head first through each page of it's wacky and wonderful mystery. The change in timelines from past and present gave us the slow drip of what happened previously but it also kept me interested until the very last word. I don't usually like a story that involves current events but Sedgwick lightly touched upon lockdown and turned that into the front of a teenage love story and the implications of this limited freedom. Sedgwick described the feelings and awkwardness of young romance that gave us the rare care and conviction that was needed to showcase just how much these characters are effected by these going-ons.

This was a short read that built upon its foundations, using the end of the world as an improbable entrance to Cassie and her efforts whilst looking at ecological and social messages that prove captivating and multi-dimension. A very thrilling read for all to enjoy.

We read this book in one afternoon. We did not intend to but once we started , we just couldn't stop. It is one of the most beautifully moving books I have read in a long time. It is exciting and talks of family and young love but in a gentle and moving way. It talks of distress and mental health issues, bullying too. By the end of this book we were all in tears (mainly happy relieved ones) but I'm not sure that the younger and older members of the family were crying for the exact same reasons. This will become a family classic, we loved it.