Book Review: Ewan Pendle and the White Wraith – Shaun Hume

Hi everybody!

Further to Monday’s post, as promised, I have finished reading Ewan Pendle and the White Wraith! I would like to thank Shaun for giving me the opportunity to read and review the book – being an independent/ self-published author, I may not have come across his work (at least for some time) had he not approached me directly.

A lot of reviews I saw initially compare the book to the Harry Potter series. Whilst I suppose it is true there is a similar introduction and is loosely based around the same concept I hope to steer anybody away from the idea that it is any kind of fan fiction. It is not. It is a novel of its own kind and has its very own story to tell.

 

Ewan Pendle and the White Wraith

 

Goodreads – Ewan Pendle and the White Wraith

“Ewan Pendle is a wonderful epic fantasy that’s perfect for Harry Potter withdrawals!” – AUTHOR Kayla Krantz

Ewan Pendle was weird. Really weird. At least, that’s what everyone told him. Then again, being able to see monsters that no one else could wasn’t exactly normal …

Thinking he has been moved off to live with his eleventh foster family, Ewan is instead told he is a Lenitnes, one of an ancient race of peoples who can alone see the real ‘Creatures’ which inhabit the earth. He is taken in by Enola, the mysterious sword carrying Grand Master of Firedrake Lyceum, a labyrinth of halls and rooms in the middle of London where other children, just like Ewan, go to learn the ways of the Creatures.

 

My Thoughts…

I will be perfectly honest and say it took a few days of picking the book up in stages to get me introduced to the characters and get into the novel. There is quite a bit of set up (as with any fantasy style book which does not follow “normal life” conventions) and I took my time getting my head around/into it. In contrast, I must have read the rest of the book over about 5 hours across two evenings!

The novel focuses on the life of Ewan Pendle, who spends his childhood being passed around from one foster home to another, never settling for more than a year before he is moved on again. It is common for foster children to feel like they do not fit in, but there is something unusual about Ewan that means he really does not fit in. He sees dragons eating out of dustbins. Creatures roam the world and it is the duty of the Lenitnes to both understand and protect various Creatures (and humans) from each other. To do this, the students are inducted to train at Firedrake Lyceum, run by Enola Whitewood.

Ewan enrols at this unique school upon the invitation of Enola, where he finally gets the chance to make friends and begins to learn and acquire some of the power that being Lenitnes demands.

Shaun cleverly lays down the foundations for the plot early, leaving us guessing after each chapter how different characters are all going to come together. The first chapter thrills us with Betony and her secret mission; later we meet the mysterious Jack Mangrove and learn of plots to kill the real Monarch of England. Following all these twists and turns through the perspective of young Ewan kept me as a reader engrossed entirely! Young or old, we are all as green as Ewan to the world of the Lenitnes and Vilhmied and our understanding gradually begins to grow with him.

There are also those characters that you love to hate; the teacher that picks on you and makes you run laps around the “Pain Yard”, the typical “it” club of the school year who bullies everybody not in the clique… the class weirdos and that nerdy girl with braces.

This really is a book for all us misfits and I hope to see more from Ewan and friends in the future as there is a lot of potential for this as a series! I really hope that this author gets more exposure and readers because it truly is deserved.

My next read, which I’m admittedly about a quarter of the way through already is “The Green Mile” by Stephen King. Though I can’t make any promises, I wouldn’t be surprised if I can get the book finished and review published by Monday.

Until next time, peace out!

 

 

 

 

 

 

P.S. For a while I was the nerdy librarian girl with braces, greasy hair and usually had my nose buried in a book – surprise surprise.