Books For Keeps
  • Home
  • Reviews
  • Articles
  • Past Issues
  • Latest Issue
  • Authors and Artists
  • Latest News
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
September 1, 2020/in Fiction 10-14 Middle/Secondary /by bookskeeps
BfK Rating:
BfK 244 September 2020
Reviewer: Margaret Pemberton
ISBN: 978-1913102319
Price: £7.99
Publisher: Firefly Press
Genre: Fiction
Age Range: 10-14 Middle/Secondary
Length: 352pp
Buy the Book

The Ten Riddles of Eartha Quicksmith

Author: Loris Owen

Kip Bramley receives a very cryptic message that invites him to try and solve a riddle; this in turn brings an invitation to become a student at the Quicksmiths College of Strange Energy. The school is full of wonderfully eccentric staff and students and Kip feels far more at home there than he did at his previous school. He and his new friends Albert, Leela and Timmi soon find themselves embroiled in an adventure. The founder of the school Eartha Quicksmith, who lived during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, has left a message in which she reveals that the Earth will face a tremendous danger unless someone can solve a sequence of 10 hidden riddles and find her “Ark of Ideas”; however there are only 10 days in which to solve all the challenges. Everyone at the school is determined to find the treasure and Kip desperately wants to succeed as it might be a way to help his mother, who has been in a care home after being struck by lightning a few years previously. The problem is that not everyone has good intentions and the group of friends find themselves up against a dark and threatening opponent as they undertake their task. The question of whether they will succeed has us sitting on the edge of our seats as the adventure unfolds at a tremendous speed.

This is a real roller coaster of a ride, where people are not always what they appear to be and where having good friends becomes more important than Kip has ever realized. At the heart of the story is Kip’s desire to help his mother and bring his family back to the way it was when he was a small child. At Quicksmiths he finds a world where science and magic seem to combine and he hopes that he can channel his ‘strange energy’ into a way to help his family. The school seems to be a mix of Hogwarts and Back to the Future, with hoverboards called Skimmis and wonderful pets such as the Mowl and Kip’s own Pinky (possibly a hamster of gerbil). There is a lot of humour, masses of puzzles and a mystery that they just have to solve. I am looking forward to the next adventure for this group of heroes and also to finding out more of the secrets at Quicksmiths.

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
https://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/the-ten-riddles.jpg 499 316 bookskeeps http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png bookskeeps2020-09-01 14:33:002021-02-25 14:34:52The Ten Riddles of Eartha Quicksmith

Search for a specific review

Author Search

Search







Generic filters




Filter by Member Types


Book Author

Download BfK Issue Bfk 272 May 2025
Skip to an Issue:

About Us

Launched in 1980, we’ve reviewed hundreds of new children’s books each year and published articles on every aspect of writing for children.

Read More

Follow Us

Latest News

‘Exceptionally talented illustrators’ Shortlist announced for the 2025 Klaus Flugge Prize

May 15, 2025

Next stop Shakespeare’s Globe – finalists of Poetry By Heart competition 2025 announced

May 8, 2025

School Library Association announces Information Book Award longlist and new nationwide Book Club

May 7, 2025

Contact Us

Books for Keeps,
30 Winton Avenue,
London,
N11 2AT

Telephone: 0780 789 3369

ISSN: 0143-909X (this is our International Standard Serial Number).

© Copyright 2025 - Books For Keeps | Proudly Built by Lemongrass Media - Web Design Buckinghamshire
I’ll Believe You When…Unbelievable Idioms from around the World Just One of Those Days
Scroll to top