Island of Doom

September 1, 2012
Modo is back for one last adventure. Horrendously ugly, but superhumanly strong and able to change his face and form briefly, Modo has been a valuable agent of the Permanent Association, a secret group dedicated to protecting Britannia. But three months after The Empire of Ruins (2011), he has been effectively suspended from duty for disobeying Mr. Socrates, the man who has raised but never parented Modo. When French teen agent Colette (The Dark Deeps, 2010) contacts Modo, he and Octavia, along with Mr. Socrates and Tharpa, are drawn back into conflict with the wicked Clockwork Guild, which seeks to bring down the British Empire and everyone else as well. The Guild has continued to advance, with resurrected creatures made from dead bodies (think Frankenstein's monster); meanwhile, the Association has powerful steam-powered, armor-clad soldiers of their own, who were once the children harnessed by the Guild to bring down Parliament (The Hunchback Assignments, 2009). Adding to the drama, Modo's parents may be alive, and Colette and Octavia vie for his attention despite his true, awful face. Beneath the action runs the question of "who am I"; while the answer may prove elusive, this final showdown helps Modo face the question and begin to answer it for himself. By turns touching and pulse-pounding, this conclusion will leave fans fully satisfied. (Steampunk. 11-14)

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January 1, 2013
This fourth volume has British spy Modo searching for his biological parents while the ill-intentioned Clockwork Guild does the same in hopes of harnessing the source of Modo's shape-shifting abilities. Fans are left to figure out some of Modo's origin story themselves, but with the return of favorite characters and a riveting final battle, this sci-fi/steampunk series wraps up strongly.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)