3rd May 2020

Having written 12 novels in the original Cherub series, Robert Muchamore found himself with a main character who had now outgrown his role, and so we return in 'Series Two' with an all new main cast (suplemented by returning supporting characters) as Ryan heads out on his first mission.

I was slightly concerned after finding the original series to be a fantastic set of stories for real worl teenagers, that Muchamore might not be able to catch lightning again - but he does, and his new characters are as rich, compelling, and totally believable.

The author doesn't shy away from telling things as they are - and as the cover clearly indicates these novels aren't intended for younger audiences. The adventures the characters encounter are presented with realistic levels of risk, and not everything is going to be okay for everyone at the end of the day.

In an interesting take, it seems that this set of novels are going to form a multi-book plot arc (as well as continuing the trend of character arcs spanning multiple novels), which hopefully will allow the author to continue to explore deeper situations and provide more thrilling, realistic adventures.

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1st September 2019

Grey Wolves is the fourth novel in the Cherus prequel series ‘Henderson’s Boys’, set in the early days of the youthful secret agent service during World War Two. This time, Henderson has taken a group of his young operatives to occupied France.

As usual, Muchamore’s sense of realism prevails - his are some of the most authentic books aimed at teens that I’ve read, and the historical setting provides an opportunity to describe the realities of day to day living under the Nazis that is brutal and honest.

While the main plot is pretty solid, it lacks some of the finesse of Muchamore’s earlier modern-day works, and seems a little more straightforward. The constant presence of Henderson as a main character doesn’t help, as it makes the story feel less focussed on the children. The secondary plots are far more interesting, dealing with the character interactions and the setting - although some remain fairly adult in focus.

A good book, but not one that particularly stands out within the series.

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23rd January 2019

The final novel in Robert Muchamore’s original Cherub series is a bit different (this seems to be a trend in this sort of young adult series actually). James, now 17, has a little more agency and decides to refuse a mission on moral grounds - and creates a mission of his own instead.

It’s a great twist actually, and wraps James’ story up quite nicely in a way that concludes the long arc that we’ve followed as readers since he was much younger. The book retains some of the key elements from earlier stories, revisits a lot of the important characters, and is full of the usual action, and realism, that I’ve come to expect.

I really enjoyed this adventure and am quite disappointed that this main series has come to an end - despite the knowledge that there are already two spin-off series, one of which I’ve already begun reading.

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29th July 2018

The third book in the Henderson’s Boys series (which itself served as a prequel to the author’s modern-day Cherub series), and the one where the story catches up to where I had expected it to start two books earlier. Having successfully escaped France with the aid of a group of children, Charles Henderson has set up a training camp to bring the children up to the level of full spies so that they can join the country’s efforts to win WW2.

The book starts brutally. I was actually shocked by the levels of violence depicted in the opening chapters - and I’ve read all the author’s previous novels so was aware he didn’t shy away from realism. I think this was particularly bad though because of the historical setting and the attitudes of the time, as well as because it was directed at children. I suspect that this may be tough reading for more than just me.

Once that’s over and done with however, the plot becomes much more what I’d expected. A group of plucky youngsters fighting to prove their worthiness against the odds and against the expectations of adults. It’s a fun, tense and exciting adventure with a healthy dose of real emotion and fully believable characters from a range of backgrounds. The 1940s setting is well used, and while using the real attitudes of the time manages to show them in a disparaging light and twist some more ‘enlightened’ viewpoints into the narrative to put it into perspective.

Possibly the best action series for teenage readers I’ve ever come across. I’m totally on course to read all the rest.

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28th January 2018

Book 11 in the Cherub series kicks off with an introduction to a new character, Dante Scott, who we meet as a young child when his family are murdered by a gang of bikers. This sentence should be sufficient to make it clear this book is intended to be read by an audience who are capable of processing this sort of scene.

I was very pleased by how Muchamore structured this novel - the introduction giving little away as to where the book would go later on, and I was very impressed by one particular narrative device which occurred surprisingly far into the story.

It’s another good adventure for the Cherubs, painting a fairly realistic picture of the world and inserting teenage secret agents into the mix. There are strong indications that the series is preparing to wrap up, and one thing I did find disappointing about this story was its conclusion, which didn’t quite satisfy what I wanted from the end of the plot.

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17th June 2017

A novella in the Cherub series, with two small, simple plots following two of the secondary characters from the main series. Rat is on a mission, and Lauren back at headquarters getting in trouble.

It's straightforward but covers two of the most interesting and exciting aspects of the Cherub books - the training that the child agents go through, and their missions in progress.

It's a great quick read and could serve as an easy introduction to the series if someone was considering diving in to the whole thing.

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20th December 2016

The second book in the Henderson's Boys series, which is itself a spinoff from Muchamore's Cherub series, follows immediately on from the first, with a group of characters (adults and children) stranded in France during WW2 and falling into roles as British spies.

While it's a thrilling adventure with a lot of colour, I didn't feel it engaged as strongly as the first book, which painted a shockingly realistic picture of what the invasion would have been like for a group of children. This novel felt like it switched focus more to the adult character and that weakened it - one of the hallmarks of the series is the realistic scenarios that the young protagonists are thrust into, and I didn't feel any of them had sufficient page-time to be explored properly.

The plot is a good one, and the historical setting means that the characters can be cast into real events, which does add an element of authenticity. There are a lot of small moments that add detail, including some that go further than the usual young-adult novel would (as Muchamore often does). I don't know the history as well as perhaps I should, so can't say whether it is accurate, but I suspect that enough research has been done to make it so.

A bit of a mixed bag I suppose then - not as good as the previous book, but a good story nonetheless. I'm looking forward to continuing the series.

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