1. Plot: The plot is of great quality and has twists and turns at every appropriate moment.  For example, Ludo (the Manoush that has a di-chimichi father [Jacob] and a Manoush mother that is loved by Laura Reid) is supposed to be peaceful from what was seen of him in City of Secrets stages out a revolt against Lucia when Jacob dies.

Characters: I love all the characters and all their defining quirks and personas but the one I love most is Rodolfo Rossi.  From Enrico's hatred of Batho, to Fabrizio's hatred of Luciano to Laura's depression, they are all different and unique.

Description: It doesn't have much description but each city state in Talia is linked to a place in Italy.  ( eg Lithanuora - Pompeii)  So you don't need much description.  All you need to do is imagine its Italian counterpart.  Again, there is little description on character looks but you don't need much.  Just leave it to your imagination. (eg Enrico Poggi blue clothes and spy lifestyle - image).

Conclusion:  I give 9/10.  The only improvement needed is to speed the plot up a bit.

Reviewed by Emily

 

2. We really can't believe that this will be the last book in the series, there has to be another!  Mary Hoffman has managed to draw lots of conclusions to the series but the ending did leave you wanting more.  Set in a town in sixteenth century Italy, Laura, the main character is also able to time travel and as a Stravagante she arrives in Fortezza and meets a swordsmith. She also meets the love of her life Ludo.

Some reviewers claim that this series has gone on too long and that the sixth book isn't very good, we don't agree, we loved it!

Reviewed by Elizabeth and Lucy

 

3. When Laura realises she's a Stravagante (aka a time traveller) in 21^st Century Islington, she discovers more than she bargained for: a warring time period, love at first sight and her mission to destroy him. Both her loyalties and intellect are tested when she finds herself split between two sides of a horrifying civil war.

On reflection, I found the book fairly mediocre compared to other forms of literature I have read. It was an interesting read and I liked the mix of/comparison between modern day England and 16^th Century Italy, however, overall I found it an average novel. It didn't move me or make me want to read the other books in the series. In fact, as someone who hadn't read the other books in the series, a background or explanation about what had happened previously in the series would have been appreciated at the beginning of the novel to help my understanding of the book. Without it, I was a little confused at some events. I also found the historical element of the book confusing - is it based on reality or not? The historical note doesn't help: "It begged to be part of Talia" - I assume Talia is Italy? Certainly the map looks like Italy and Talia is a cognate of Italia, "Italy" in Italian. I prefer historical books which are true to history and are therefore educational.

The randomness of the destination of the time travel also confused me - why 16^th Century Italy from modern day London?  There is no author's note explaining about her choice of setting or the accuracy of the novel. It is easy to catch an author's enthusiasm for a topic from an author's note so without it, I remained unengaged in the topic at hand. I am probably a bit biased against the novel in that I am more interested in English history, consequently the Italian history in the novel didn't appeal to me quite so much. However a gripping storyline might have awakened some curiosity. Also, personally, I don't believe in love at first sight, which is a big theme in the novel and therefore I found a big chunk of the novel slightly tedious.

The modern day characters i.e. Laura, her friends, their families and her family, were all fairly bland and unoriginal but likeable all the same. Laura's self-harming issues added some depth to the book along with the secret of her disabled sister. However, these topical issues were not explored deeply enough for my satisfaction - it seemed as if Mary Hoffman was scared of decreasing her audience with controversial, "big" issues. The target audience of the novel must be teenage girls and self-harming is an important subject for this audience, so I think investigating this issue in the novel would be appropriate. Other characters and relationships, apart from Laura and her own, were not explored or developed well in my opinion. There was no background given for her friendships and relationships, which are important in the teenage years. Also, after the secret of Laura's disabled sister came out towards the end of the novel, I found, sadly, that her relationship with her parents and her sister was not explored suitably. The book ended without any of the meaningful topics being explored.

In conclusion, "Stravagante: City of Swords" did not make me laugh, cry or think about anything important. I would recommend it to teenage girls aged between 13 and 16 who like romantic, historical thrillers that aren't too raunchy, educational or tense. Those who are interested in Italian history may also find it interesting though I can't say how accurate it is. Those who like books where they can get their teeth into intellectual, controversial topics, books which make them roar with laugh, sob or highlight issues they hadn't previously thought about, would definitely prefer another book such as "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett or "Breathing Underwater" by Julia Green.

Reviewed by Ella

 

4. This book is about a girl called Laura and she can travel in time and space, which I found was really cool. She finds a dagger-shaped paperknife in a Goldsmith's antiques shop, and it speaks to her. It has a sharp blade which takes her to the City of Swords. When an old prince died there was a fight on who will rule the city, and shockingly Laura gets herself caught in the fight. The story goes on and tells you how she gets out of this fight.

I really enjoyed reading this book and would defiantly recommend it to children aged 10 - 13 and people who like a lot of action and historical genres. I do think that this book has bits with historical genres in it. I would rate this book a 9 out of 10, as I particularly don't enjoy books with historical genres in them.

Reviewed by Sharukaa

 

5. I enjoyed the book because whenever I read a history book or a factual book I get bored after a while because all it is tells you about is facts and there is usually not an actual story line.

I also like the book because its description is very good and helps the reader [me] to imagine the scene or event happening.

Although it is a very, very, very good book it took a while for it to get going, BUT on the whole I would rate it 4.5 stars out of 5.

I look forward to buying for myself the rest of the books in the series. 

Reviewed by Ellie