Brightstorm

Brightstorm is a wonderfully creative adventure, aimed at middle readers, but perfect for anyone who enjoyed the Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. The Brightstorm twins are orphaned and sold, but their determination sends them on a journey of a lifetime to discover the secrets behind the mystery of their father's death.

The world-building is natural and beautifully imagined with dynamic, interesting characters, from the twins themselves to the crew they join on their adventure and the people and creatures they meet along the way. It is a well-paced adventure that makes it very difficult to put down. I am very grateful that the subtitle 'a sky-ship adventure' implies there will be more to come (as does the ending!) While the story is self-contained, it will leave you wanting more.

I loved Brightstorm! Action packed plot and amazing characters! A great His Dark Materials read alike for middle grade readers.

arctic explorers with airships and a mystery to solve? sign me up! and then they throw in telepathy wolves for free! this is a really good story and would highly recommend to 4th-7th graders.

thanks to the publisher for an ARC, this is my honest review.

This book was a charming romp, a delightful adventure story. It felt rather like the novel version of a comic book movie. You could generally tell who the good and bad characters were, and yet, the character development was good, and there were a few surprises at the end. I could see this becoming a movie easily, and I'd read the sequel. I recommend this book to middle-grade readers, particularly reluctant readers who might be drawn in by the simple story with beautiful descriptions of a grand adventure.

A young adult/middle grades book is gladly share with readers — and enjoy as an adult. I loved the creativity in this story, and I would gladly add this book to my reading choice list for readers young and old.

When I was a kid, I used to love reading just a chapter or two before bed. Today, I frequently binge read books, but I really missed the suspense and anticipation between reading sessions. I’m so thankful that I chose to read this book the way I read books when I was a kid, as I felt myself relishing in that childlike sense of enthusiasm for reading I thought I lost long ago. My time with Maudie and Arty was an absolute treat, and I was genuinely pleased with the novel’s pacing and the ending. When I reached the end, I found myself wanting to spend more time with the characters I’d grown to love and wanted to continue exploring the wonderful world Vashti Hardy has constructed. This is how I know I’ve found a very special book. I really can’t recommend this one enough! Special thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book!

Brightstorm is British author Vashti Hardy’s middle grade fantasy novel that is action packed and fraught with danger. It is a very Lemony Snicket-sque, steam punky, fast paced adventure novel focusing on the orphaned children of a deceased and disgraced explorer. The twins, Arthur and Maudie Brightstorm, are determined to clear their beloved father’s name and finish his life’s work. Along the way they meet unlikely friends and dastardly foes.

The characters were well drawn and each had idiosyncrasies that made them believable and likable. Much of the story seems to focus on the male twin, Arthur, but both are well thought out characters and enjoyable to read. The steam punk world is richly described and is filled with fun gadgets and Victorian like modes of dress and values. The plot moves swiftly as the twins navigate their grief for their father, and their disbelief in his guilt. They meet a host of characters to help the, on their way, some more fleshed out than others. The villains are perfect for the age group the book is geared towards, a bit over the top and reveling in their evilness.

I give this book a solid 4 stars. There were some scenes that could have been expanded on a bit, but overall, the book is well written and enjoyable. I would certainly like to see what happens to the Brightstorm twins and the rag tag group of friends and allies they collected to help them on their quest in a second novel.

Maudie and Arthur Brightstorm are from a family of explorers but when they receive word that their dad is missing, presumed dead and worse, that he cheated to get to South Polaris it is too much for the kids to believe. They pair up with another balloon group to reach South Polaris first, find their dad and claim first place. An exciting fantasy that includes incredible inventions, a true sense of exploration and a sense of family. From the thought wolves to the amazing skyships this is perfect for kids who yearn to explore new worlds and love adventure stories. I recommend it for anyone who loved LEVIATHAN or anything by Jules Verne. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

I wish I had read this as a kid, eight year old me would have been very into it! But let's be honest, twenty-seven year old me is still VERY into it.

A marvelous, rip-roaring adventure, packed with danger and daring, dastardly villains, brilliant lead characters and lashings of mystery and nerve-jangling suspense. Positively tocking brilliant.
From the moment you open the front cover until the moment you reach the conclusion this book does not stop! The prologue is action packed and perfectly formed to draw you firmly into the story, within seconds I was invested in what happened

Brightstorm gave me everything I could ask for in a middle grade book. Let’s start with the plot, this story was so well put together, I loved the way the story introduces these characters and weaves them together to form friendships. I think it was a brilliant way of allowing the reader to connect to new characters quickly while also moving on the plot and allowing us to see two important parts of the story progress simultaneously.

The whole story was filled with adventure and had me turning page after page keen to figure out what was happening.