Review: Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb by Ally Malinenko

…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.

Helpful Links: Goodreads | Amazon

*Received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review

My Review: 5 Must Devour
I have to tell you that this book definitely had me intrigued. You see I love adventure and I especially love adventure that involves the secret world of magic!!

On the night of Lizzy's 12th birthday her entire world is turned upside down as she and her best friend Sammy are whisked away by a strange man claiming that she is the last living descendant of William Shakespeare. As a whole new world is revealed to Lizzy she learns that she is being hunted. Confused with who she can trust Lizzy stumbles through a world full of mythical and magical creatures that she never knew existed to find the one man she knows she can trust, her father.

I immediately found myself swept up in the story of Lizzy as she searched for her father and family secrets. This story was fast paced and easy to read. I remember picking it up to read a couple of chapters and the next thing I knew I was half way through the book! The characters were fun and Ally Malinenko did a great job making you feel like you were right there in the middle of all the action and excitement.

As I was racing through this story I constantly found myself wondering what Marlowe's real motive was for hunting Lizzy. There were times in the story that I wondered if Marlowe really wasn't just a misunderstood character. Like Lizzy I was left wondering who the real villain was. Of course that is what makes a great villain--one that you feel empathy for and leaves you thinking that there is definitely more to the story. Ally Malineko did a great job unraveling just enough of the mystery to solve this adventure's secrets and yet left it open for more adventures to follow.

Being a huge fan of 39 Clues I found myself thinking that this could be the next big adventure series! Filled with magic, mystery, humor, action and suspense the story of little Lizzy Speare will definitely leave you wanting more!

Favorite Character Moment:

"We just stripped the cables, flipped the switch, and fried the witch," Sammy said with a grin." (Kindle, loc. 4004). 

I chose this as my favorite moment because I like humor and because I think it shows some of Sammy's true character.

"Devouring worlds, one book and recipe at a time."