Curious, engaging, just plain odd.

Leo finds himself in a strange world through a thick mist and his encounters there are surreal and exciting.

I suspect that actually a lot of young readers will enjoy this book; kids are always more open to things that are a bit weird. Perhaps I am just too unimaginative now I am a grown-up! But there was a lot to enjoy here; the protagonist is engaging, the characters he meets are weird/wonderful and the world he enters has that great ability of being similar to what we know and yet totally different.

It is clear this is inspired by Alice in Wonderland. The references are many and enjoyable... although I am not sure all children will "get" them! It is (literally) transporting in a way that will always be successful. The writing style puled me up occasionally, being strangely literal for so odd a book. But this is easily forgivable.

This was great fun! For lovers of smart wordplay, this is reminiscent of a more subtle Phantom Tollbooth. While some readers may be frustrated by the ending...which is not an ending...I was happy to be assured of another installment.

The Lyme Brook Mist by Anton Corvus was a short read. A fun, curious tale, featuring a ridiculous political system. I lost myself in reading it, a joy I haven’t felt in fiction for a while.

Leo, a teenage boy from Newcastle, finds himself on an unintentional adventure. He meets some strange characters and goes on a Wonderland-esque journey. The alternate reality Leo ends up in is very different, but at the same time, very similar to the world he left.

The resulting situations are hilarious, mysterious and entertaining. The characters were endearing, sometimes surprising, and very British. I adored the references to some of my favourite writers, Edgar Allan Poe and Edward Lear. If you love Lewis Caroll’s work, you’ll probably enjoy this! It’s nonsensical in the best way. Once you understand what ‘beakery’ is, you won’t be able to get it out of your mind.

I would have loved The Lyme Brook Mist as a child, but I enjoyed it as an adult too! Anton Corvus is a wonderful storyteller. I appreciated the intentional ridiculousness of the plot, language play, and mystical elements.

I did, however, find myself a bit surprised by Leo’s vocabulary and knowledge. He was certainly very well-read for a 12-year-old boy! At times I forgot that the novel is set in 2018, as he referenced many Classical music pieces and literature works. I’m not sure if that’s particularly representative of a 12-year-old British boy in 2018, but perhaps I’m over-analysing.

One scene did ‘drag’ a little for me, involving a courtroom scenario. Otherwise, I enjoyed the plot, the mood, and especially the language and references. I love a bit of nonsense, and the Lyme Brook Mist ticked that box!

Review on my blog: https://emilyunderworld.co.uk/the-lyme-brook-mist/

I really couldn’t get into the writing style of this book. It was a case of everything being over explained. For instance, instead of saying ‘Leo put his coat on’, we get ....✨”“You’d better put your parka on, Leo,” said his father, opening the front door to gauge the temperature. Leo pulled his parka off the peg, put it on and zipped it up halfway.”✨

Sadly couldn’t finish this book, but thank you for sending me this advanced readers copy! 🥰

Anton Corvus’ novel The Lyme Brook Mist follows the misadventures of Leo, a young schoolboy, who finds himself suddenly transported to a fantastical, dystopian world while caught in the heavy mist of the Lyme Brook. As he explores the new land – similar to but so unlike his own – Leo meets many strange and wonderful characters in his attempts to get home again.

Corvus’ prose maintains a strong yet light-hearted narrative voice, character dialogue is delightful, quippy and reminiscent of interactions between characters in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. His language choice and character descriptions would certainly push the vocabulary of the target audience and begin to introduce a young reader to the world of classic literature. The plot is interesting and whimsical, though (and Corvus winks at this) not entirely original.

I remain impressed by the breadth of Leo’s vocabulary which, though perhaps a result of his upbringing, is a little unrealistic for the age of the character. There remains a sense of discord between the central character and the narrator himself; the narrator makes scenic remarks that are unrealistic for a 12 y/o boy. However, if this book were being read out loud to a child, it would very suit nicely.

On occasion I felt that the setting would have been better off earlier, I wonder that Corvus set his novel in 2018 purely to appeal to a contemporary audience. The alternate world which Leo finds himself in is far more charming due to its seemingly earlier setting and Leo’s consistent attempts to explain modern things like smartphones and Netflix were a little draining.

I will also add that I felt the description of the book doesn’t quite do it justice. Corvus’ novel is a homage to his literary heroes and this immediately clear, so I think it would be more valuable to provide an enticing synopsis rather than a list of authors and classic works referenced. This novel is given a Teen/YA Fiction label, but it is best suited for the children’s section of a book retailer.

I would like to thank the publisher for providing me with an ARC copy of this novel.

3.5 Stars

The Lyme Brook Misy is a unique YA fantasy. While it took me a while to get into the book, several chapters to be honest, it did take off and was pretty good. I think if you stick with it, you will enjoy the story. It has a lot of references to other books which is really cool.

Description from NetGalley...
“Anton Corvus combines elements of many of the great literary classic adventures (think Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland) with various dystopian classics (1984) then adds dozens of allusions to the works of classic writers (like Edgar Allan Poe, Edward Lear) to create a unique world of fantasy, mystery and mayhem in this spellbinding and frequently hilarious novel which follows the journey of an average teenage boy, Leo, through a mad world of weird characters and crazy situations.

Part tribute to his own literary heroes, part guessing-game based on literature, Corvus hides his references to the classics in the names of both people and things – trying to guess what lies hidden in each page is almost as much fun as reading the story. The deducing of the story from the clues provided will also appeal to all lovers of the mystery genre – can you work out what has happened before the end?”
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Thank you to @NetGalley @troubadorpiblishing #matadorpublishing for the digital ARC in return for my honest review.
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My thoughts...
I was excited to read this book from the description. It was Alice in Wonderland-esque, with a sprinkling of what was mentioned above in regard to classics references. It started off interesting enough, but it fell flat for me towards the middle. The scene with Punch, I felt, was too long and I lost interest. But, I continued because I’m stubborn. I did not want to DNF the book and I wanted to know the end. Overall, to quote Leo (a character in the book), “That was utterly bizarre.” Unfortunately, it was not for me. It might be perfectly bizarre and illogical for fans of nonsensical fantasy books.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of The Lyme Brook Mist in exchange for an honest review.

This book is weird and it knows it. Inspired heavily by Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Lyme Brook Mist transports you into a nonsensical alternate version of Newcastle full of whimsy, confusing legal systems, and a ton of references to classic literature and their authors.

This book is so incredibly meta that it fully tells you that its a Lewis Carol inspired story full of literary references in its own narrative. It's constantly going "look? See? Get in?" but in a way that makes a lot of sense once you let your brain switch to the nonsensical logic of the world. It's definitely a stylistic narrative so there'll likely be things some people like and others dislike (I personally was a bit bothered by how many dialogue tags this book had) but its definitely worth it for this unique adventure.