Review: Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb

Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb
By: Ally Malinenko
Release Date: September 12, 2012
Series: Lizzy Speare Book 1

Description:
MEET LIZZY SPEARE…

…a normal twelve year old girl with a talent for writing, who has a very not normal family secret. And when Lizzy’s father vanishes, that secret will change her life in ways unimagined. (Spoiler Alert! It turns out that Lizzy, or Elizabeth S. Speare, is the last living descendant of William Shakespeare. Shhh! Don’t tell anybody!)

Then Lizzy and her best friend Sammy are kidnapped, awakening in the faraway land of Manhattan. Their host is Jonathan Muse, whose job is to protect Lizzy from becoming the latest victim in a family feud nearly five hundred years old. Could that be why the mysterious, eye patch-wearing Dmitri Marlowe is after her? (Spoiler Alert 2—he’s the last living descendant of Christopher Marlowe, a friend and rival of Shakespeare’s. But keep it to yourself!) Is Marlowe after Lizzy’s family fortune rumored to be kept in Shakespeare’s tomb? Does he seek artistic immortality? Or Revenge (with a capital R) for a death long, long ago?

In a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse, Lizzy and Sammy are thrust into the realm of the mythical and fantastic—from satyrs and Cyclopses to Middle Eastern cab drivers and Brooklyn hipsters—in what is truly “an improbable fiction” as the Bard himself once wrote

Review:

It took me a while to read this book only because this is not my typical type of read, which I'm okay with because it was definitely interesting none the less, because it was about Shakespeare and I love Shakespeare.  Many have remade his plays and even made them into movies throughout time, but I don't think anyone has ever done Shakespeare in this way and that alone intrigued me.

We meet Lizzy and her best friend Sammy as they are introduced in the beginning of the book as regular kids, but in come a mysterious character on her birthday.  Turns out Lizzy Speare is a direct descendent of William Shakespeare and her kidnapper - Jonathan, was his muse.  But they weren’t really kidnapped just taken to safety.  The person who is really missing now is her father.  This is the adventure where Lizzy learns more about herself, the world around her and about her past. 

 There are all kinds of mythical creatures throughout this book and it just makes you wonder if they really do exist out there and we just don't think about it.  It's possible; anything is possible if you think about it.  There are muses, selkies, Cyclops and just all fun mystical creatures that you could imagine them all hanging out at a bar.  This would be something very visually appealing in move format.  There are a lot of great scenes where the imagery is very imaginable on the screen and that definitely bodes well for the author. 

There is a bit of rivalry that starts off in the time of Shakespeare himself, where another playwright believes he would be very famous, but something happens and he comes to a tragic end.  So now the descendants are battling it out, centuries old grudges and Lizzy just wants to find her father.  Marlowe the decedent of the other play write from Shakespeare’s time believes that much is owed to him and his family for what could have been so he has taken Rupert and is ready to hold him hostage for what is rightfully his. He sends Lizzy and her crew to random places all while following clues written in verse that must be figured out.  It’s like a treasure map of clues and the prize is Lizzy’s dad, or at least she hopes that’s what it will be.

It was a very fun adventurous story to follow and I’m glad I finally got a chance to read through it.  Lizzy Speare although young did show me what loyalty is, by sticking to her dad even though he was keeping secrets from him.  She also seemed to have her own mind which is always good in a lead.  I enjoyed reading about the different characters and the mythical creatures.  That Cleo hehe I can completely imagine him with his mind tricks.  Great book if you like reading things along the lines of Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, etc, very fun read.

Disclaimer:
I received this book from the author Ally Malineko, so that I may give my honest opinion and a review. Whether it is good or not please do not let it discourage you from purchasing/reading the book yourself and forming your own opinion. What might be good for me may not be good for you and vice versa. With that said, Happy Reading Everyone!!!