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Curse of the Werewolf Boy (Maudlin Towers) Hardcover – July 10, 2018

by Chris Priestley (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 39 ratings
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For fans of Lemony Snicket, Neil Gaiman, and Nightmares! comes a funny and deliciously creepy, action-packed adventure by acclaimed author Chris Priestley.

Mildew and Sponge don’t think much of Maudlin Towers, the blackened, gloom-laden, gargoyle-infested monstrosity that is their school. But when somebody steals the School Spoon and the teachers threaten to cancel their holiday break until the culprit is found, our heroes must spring into action and solve the crime!

But what starts out as a classic bit of detectivating quickly becomes weirder than they could have imagined. Who is the ghost in the attic? What’s their history teacher doing with a time machine? And why do a crazy bunch of Vikings seem to think Mildew is a werewolf?

This brand-new series from Chris Priestley, full of delightfully original wit, is perfect for young readers who like their mysteries with a bit of bite.

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Previous page
  1. Reading age
    9 - 11 years
  2. Print length
    256 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Grade level
    3 - 4
  5. Dimensions
    5.78 x 0.97 x 8.44 inches
  6. Publisher
    Bloomsbury Children's Books
  7. Publication date
    July 10, 2018
  8. ISBN-10
    1681199327
  9. ISBN-13
    978-1681199320
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 3–6—Friends Arthur Mildew and Algernon "Sponge" Spongely-Partwork share a mutual disdain for their education at Maudlin Towers School for the Not Particularly Bright Sons of the Not Especially Wealthy. It's no wonder that they're quite flummoxed when Mildew spots an odd little Viking sprinting along the ditch at the end of the sports field. They set out to discover the identity of the mysterious Viking as well as the whereabouts of the School Spoon. Without the Spoon's return, their teachers have threatened to cancel the school holidays. It's imperative the boys persevere despite encountering multiple red herrings, a ghost in the attic, and a time machine. Young readers will enjoy the silly shenanigans as much as they will delight in putting the pieces together to solve the mysteries. The unconventional characters, mildly menacing ghostly presence, and dramatic plot twists are sure to keep readers hooked. Quirky Britishisms sprinkled throughout the text plus the engaging illustrations add to the narrative's strong Victorian flavor. VERDICT More humorously odd than creepy, this engaging read is sure to serve as a solid warm-up to Trenton Lee Stewart's The Mysterious Benedict Society or Lemony Snicket's "Series of Unfortunate Events."—Julie Shatterly, W. A. Bess Elementary School, Gastonia, NC

Review

"Scare yourself silly." - The Observer on "Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror"

"Wonderfully macabre and beautifully crafted." - Author/illustrator Chris Riddell on "Tales of Terror from the Black Ship"

"Inventive, deadpan, sardonic and cruel... is a creepy autumnal treat." - The Financial Times on "Tales of Terror from the Tunnel's Mouth"

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bloomsbury Children's Books; Illustrated edition (July 10, 2018)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1681199327
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1681199320
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 9 - 11 years
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 3 - 4
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.6 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.78 x 0.97 x 8.44 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 39 ratings

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Chris Priestley

Chris Priestley

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
39 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

sherri winston
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the funniest books I’ve read...ever!
Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2017
Priestley’s story of two less-than genius school-boy detectives was the highlight of my fun-filled holiday weekend. The author juggled numerous silly storylines that included gloomy, ghostly atmosphere, ghosts, time travel, bullies and true-blue friendship. The writing was crisp and sharp as a knife, filled with humor both dry and slapstick. The British-isms flutter throughout adding charm, while the twisty-turn-y plot takes you to unexpected places. I simply loved this book and disrupted my family numerous times with my school-girlish giggle. They didn’t appreciate the intrusion, but then, I didn’t care. Thank you Mr. Priestly for a delightful book that rises above the would-be hilarity of toilet and booger humor with something that shows wit, insight and dare I say, brilliance. Sherri Winston, author of The Sweetest Sound, President of the Whole Fifth Grade
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Pop Bop
4.0 out of 5 stars Witty, Funny, and Much More Engaging Than Expected
Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2018
If you were to read the blurbs for this book, and the first few chapters, you would be justified in expecting the tale to be a good but fairly standard and predictable British boarding school comedy. That's fine as it goes, and fair enough. It turns out, though, that the story has much more to it than expected, including a clever, devilishly twisty, and yet still fast paced and clear mystery/detectivating plot.

At first we just follow our heroes, Mildew, (the brighter and more confident one), and Sponge, (who starts out a bit dim and queasy but bucks up). This is a classic double act pairing reminiscent of Laurel and Hardy and the like. Fine. Mildew gets most of the best deadpan lines and throwaway bits, but Sponge is more than just a straight man, and he gets to puncture Mildew whenever Mildew goes off a bit too far. We meet the masters and students of Maudlin Towers, and there are many set pieces and bits of business that establish the school daze groundwork. Priestly goes big and exaggerated on a lot of this, which is amusing and likely to be engaging for a younger middle grade reader.

The humor here is rarely edgy, but if you like deadpan observations, and sly little quips and throwaway lines, then this will do nicely. Nothing here is ironic or mean spirited, and the author doesn't mock the genre. So this isn't farts and underpants stuff; it's smarter and more satisfying than that.

But wait. This isn't just school daze. The "School Spoon" has been stolen and unless it's found all will be punish-ed. Here's where the detectivating starts. MAJOR SPOILER. Not much later in, a time travel contraption comes on the scene. The boys are now traveling back and forth among eras, (always in the same geographic location, of course), trying to solve the spoon problem and a wide variety of other loose ends that have popped up here and there. This is the beautiful part - Mildew dismisses the time travel paradox and all of those tedious time travel complications as "nonsense", and so do we. The boys are free to gambol about, meeting and remeeting themselves at will, and changing history and stomping on butterflies wherever they encounter them, and yet it still all makes sense.

Amazingly, by the end everything makes sense and every odd loose end, (there are at least a dozen or two, including many you didn't realize were loose ends until the final scenes), is tied up nicely. And, (MILD SPOILER), it may be a comfort to those of you who are less then enamored of werewolf angles, that that is just a small and rather incidental part of the larger tale.

So, bright and funny heroes, a zipping plot with plenty of Marx Brothers style dashing about, and a satisfying conclusion. Just an excellent and amusing middle grade find.

(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
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Rachel Wylie
3.0 out of 5 stars Will look for more Maudlin Towers.
Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2018
"The British Empire was founded on people who had the courage to prod things without worrying about the consequences, Sponge. Come on. We must be brave."

This is a cute send up of tropey boarding school books/British mysteries. The humor is definitely British in flavor, owing, I expect, to the britishness of the author. It's clever and fast paced, and has all the necessary elements-- dumb adults, (sometimes accidentally) brilliant children, revenge, time travel, vikings, werewolves, and a very important spoon. Funny-creepy early middle grade book.
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Kathryn Calderon
4.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious and a fun read
Reviewed in the United States on September 6, 2018
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in an exchange for an honest review.

Plot

This book is so freaking funny. Mildew and Sponge go on one wild adventure. I love how ridiculous the whole plot is but it makes so much sense why Mildew and Sponge, who are children, take this all very seriously. The School Spoon has been stolen *GASP* and the holiday's for the boys of Maudlin Towers are about to be ruined. That just won't do for Mildew and Sponge. So what do our young Holmes & Watson decide to do? Why they will solve the case of the missing spoon. Simple. Easy. That is until they see a ghost and not just them but another boy sees one in the attic. Now they have to solve two mysteries. Ok, two is not too bad. Oh, wait. Is that a Viking they see? What is a Viking doing in their school? Wait. Wait. Wait. Why does the history teacher have some weird time machine contraption? How did that one teacher die? What is all this nonsense about a wolf? How did Romans get involved? How did Mildew get wrapped up into an article and school play??? STOP. This is too many mysteries for our main characters to handle. Never fear though these clever boys have wit, smarts, and friendship. They can handle anything. I know what you're thinking that all sounds preposterous. IT WAS. But this whole things was so reminiscent of my childhood that I loved it so much. Things got curiouser and curiouser. The more insane it became the funnier it became. 

If you are not someone who can look past your own personal brain then please don't read this. My biggest pet peeve is adults or young adults reading middle grades and in the reviews, they say, "I didn't connect" or "The voice was really juvenile." WELL YOU DON'T SAY???? Maybe, and I might be reaching here, it wasn't MEANT for YOU! I can't stand pretentious people who feel every book has to cater to them. This is a middle grade. It is full of ridiculous plots and hilarious kids not thinking through any of their decisions. To Mildew and Sponge, they don't need to question any of the Ludacris things they just need to save their holidays. This plot doesn't have any major depth. It is just fun and light for kids to easily understand. It is so much fun and if you enjoy that type of reading then PLEASE read this joy. 

Writing

As I said, this isn't all in depth. But, Priestley sure as hell knows how to write hilarious dialogue. The world-building is actually really good as well. I pictured this deary gothic school super vividly and I loved the look in my head lol. Now what I will say as a negative is that since the plot is a bit whacky there are times when the transition from one scene to the next is not as clear. This book actually could've been a bit longer. I found myself wanting more in certain parts because they would just end and boom next scene. Other than that the voice and tone were done perfectly. I felt like I really was in the mind of two young boys. The way they spoke and viewed school/teachers and just all the nonsense was so spot on. 

Characters

Mildew was the one more out there. He was less afraid but still afraid lol. Sponge was the one a little more afraid. They were both hilarious. I can't say much except think of two young boys in a school but maybe more back in the day before technology lol like the 1800s. They had wit. They were clever. They used creativity to get out of a lot of situations. They were literally the epitome of children. I loved them both equally. The side characters were equally funny. I just had so much fun reading this book.
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Top reviews from other countries

Add a little sparkle
5.0 out of 5 stars Great boy humour
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 10, 2019
Verified Purchase
Bought this after using extract during world book day. Using as a guided reading resource. Love introducing my class to new and exciting texts, especially ones which will engage reluctant boy readers.
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Great author
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 20, 2023
Verified Purchase
Nice book from an amazing author. I've enjoyed reading these to children. There are other books similar in this authors arsenal. Check them all out. ...
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