Evenfall: The Golden Linnet by Alexander Armstrong
Description:
“An ancient magic. A deadly enemy. A reluctant hero.
12-year-old Sam’s world is blown apart when he discovers that his family was once at the heart of a secret society that had long protected the world. Now a powerful enemy is closing in, destroying all in its path to find the Order’s hidden palace of Bellasis and the source of its powerful magic. Only Sam can stop them. But first, he must bring the Order together again.
The clock is ticking. Dark forces are massing. Sam must undertake perilous journeys, determine friend and foe, and discover his true powers. For this boy holds the future of the world in his hands…”
My review:
I am giving this book a rating of 2 out of 5.
** Please note: I am not the intended audience for this book (I read it for market research purposes). **
Throughout this book, there’s a lot of complicated language that I imagine would be challenging for young, inexperienced readers to understand; therefore, I wouldn’t say this book is especially accessible to children who aren’t confident readers (even some parents/guardians/other caregivers reading this to children are likely to stumble on some of the complex terminology used!).
The ‘adventure’ takes a long time to get going, which I can’t imagine is a great hook for young readers. A lot of what happens seems random or coincidental as well. I’m aware this book is written for a younger audience who may not be as discerning as a YA or adult reader (it’s aimed at readers aged 9-12 years), though I’m certain young readers would get bored easily if they can’t follow the story properly.
While I realise the age of the main characters represent this book’s readership, I believe their journey is pretty unrealistic in that 13-year-olds are highly unlikely to cope with a life-threatening journey alone; especially when they’ve never so much as left their home, apart from to go on a few camping trips, which impacts relatability for readers (it’d be different if this story was set in a fantasy world, but it isn’t). If there had been a slightly older sidekick, perhaps a 17-year-old with a driving licence, I think it’d more believable – particularly when the protagonist’s sidekick’s family were associated with the police, so would be likely to embark on a nationwide effort to locate their missing child and his friend before the characters got chance to become involved in the adventure.
Additionally, with social media, I’m sure these children would be the focus of concern from fellow customers in all the shops, takeaways, petrol stations, etc. they walk into, too. This definitely impacts the believability of many of the story’s events.
Links between some aspects of the story are tenuous at best, which limits the level of awe/wonder/excitement a young reader would usually be expected to feel when there’s a revelation they’ve been reading for. An example of this is the random association between lyrics of a song and a secret room in a cathedral, which Sam seems to pick up on instantly with very little in the way of discovery/action associated with the search for these supposedly key details.
Also, random pieces of backstory are thrown in to explain away storyline actions that aren’t something normal 13-year-olds would be able to do – e.g. on p.250, Sam supposedly knows how to use a paraffin lantern because he’d just happened to use one the year before during a power outage, yet, this same character who seems to instinctively know where he needs to be, what to say, and when just happens to ask questions about other parts of the story when it’s convenient to the plot.
However, some of the protagonist’s choices do effectively showcase his naivety, which enhances believability a little. For instance, hitchhiking proves to be a mistake for Sam.
In terms of likeability, I feel that Sam and Ish are fairly easy for a young reader to connect with, which is definitely positive, though some of their actions are questionable (i.e. Ish being able to drive competently at 13 years old) and a lot of their dialogue is outdated or unrealistic (e.g. what 21st century 13-year-old would say “[.. ] Then two more pitched up. They all had a conflab on the bridge about twenty minutes ago […]” on p.301? Perhaps children speak that way in boarding schools or private schools, but from my experience working with children in mainstream schools, this is not a phrase I’d expect a 13-year-old boy to say).
Some of the settings are nicely described, which helps to immerse a reader in the story, but again, given the complexity of the language used in places, there are details that may be overlooked because a child cannot access the text.
Given that many celebrities don’t have the time (or skill) to write books themselves (I was a ghostwriter once upon a time, so know this is the case for a lot of well-known people), I’m assuming either multiple ghostwriters worked on this project, or several editors changed certain aspects of it and the final proofreads didn’t flag these inconsistencies in style, language, tone, etc.
An example of language/style inconsistency:
- This quote is from a time the main character was drugged: p.234, “Sam’s hunger for sleep was unseemly. He gorged on it. The blackness gathered, marvellous in its totality.” vs. a quote from the moment he uncovered his late mother’s belongings in the very place she passed away: p.192, “Sam picked up the purse. He could feel his heart breaking all over again at the sight of his mum’s driving licence.” It could be assumed that the character’s reaction to discovering his mother’s belongings would be more impactful in terms of emotional weight/processing his experience, yet, as you can see, it isn’t portrayed that way.
On a more positive note, the illustrations are good!
Ultimately, I get the impression that this book has done well more so because the author is a familiar famous face than due its suitability for a younger audience. While I’m sure there’ll be some readers out there who’ll like this book, my rating reflects the fact I wouldn’t recommend it to my nieces and nephews, given that there are so many other books available they’re more likely to enjoy that offer a better level of readability for their age groups.
Read in: March 2026
Format: Paperback
I’m including the date and format in which I experienced this story for transparency, since whatever is going on in the world (and a reader’s private life) at the time of reading, along with a book’s reading format, can impact an individual’s enjoyment of a story.
Disclaimer: I purchased this book. All opinions expressed in this review are mine and have not been influenced by the author or publisher in any way. This book review does not contain affiliate links.