The Light Thieves is an exciting and dramatic story bursting with ideas to question your thoughts. Can't wait for the next installment

A good read. Found it quite interesting that the book went from what seemed like a dystopian, eco-moral, type start to what seems like it's not that at all and actually a story about how we shouldn't necessarily trust technology. Was a little disappointed to not get an answer to the mystery behind HH's deceptions and the black dot on the sun. Was the cliff hanger enough to make me, an adult, want to read the next installment? Maybe. Would a child in my class want to if they'd enjoyed this volume? Probably.

A Place Called Perfect has long been one of my favourite 9-12 series, so when I found out Helena Duggan was writing a new series I was incredibly excited.

The Light Thieves definitely did not disappoint and I loved the combination of environmental thriller and a little bit of fantasy. Throughout there was an arc about friendship and getting along. I cannot wait for the next installment of this series to get back into the world that has been built here.

Thank you to Netgalley and Usborne Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Light Thieves follows a world where the Earth has tilted onto the side, and the story of Grian, his friends Jeffrey and Shelli, when his sister goes off to a new city created by billionaire tech genius Howard Hansom to fix the problem of the Earth tilting. But when the three reach the city, Grian's sister is nowhere to be found, and mysteries abound.

This was a great adventure! I loved Grian's character, the relationship with his friends, the fervour in which he searched for his sister, and the heart of the story lying in environmentalism and capitalism – two things which I think kids Grian's age are passionate about and are interested in, and I loved seeing these topics being covered in middle grade fiction. The story covers all kinds of themes: friendship, dependence on technology, responsibility to nature and the environment, but with a mystery that leaned towards the thrilling and dark at some points (but in a very compelling way!), and also the ability to inject some much-needed humour at some very deliberate moments. I really enjoyed this book!

The Light Thieves by Helena Duggan is really inventive and unusual. Set in the near future, Grian and his sister Solas live in a world that has come off tilt and the eco warriors want to help to fix it. Howard Hansom has the monopoly on ‘h’ products (reminded me of Apple and their I’ products!) and has the answer to solving the earth’s problem.
Howard Hansom advertises a place where all is perfect and people live together in harmony. Solas runs off to live life there as an eco warrior, followed by Grandad. When Grian receives a message from Grandad asking for help, he also runs away, but with his new friend Jeffrey from next door.
This is the perfect adventure, set with a science fiction background which will interest and thrill children in Yrs 5 & 6. Grian and Jeffrey have many adventures, meet some fabulous characters as well as coming across some great bits of tech!
The story has been left on a cliffhanger, perfect for book 2!

This feels like the start of a fab series!

A utopian future begins to dissolve into a seemingly doomed dystopia as the world struggles to understand what has happened to the balance between the earth & the sun.

Wonderfully inventive & full of mystery.

The Light Thieves
By Helena Duggan
Published by Usborn

The Light Thieves' by Helena Duggan is the first part of a fantastic new futuristic and eco-adventure series. Full of thought-provoking, dark at times decisions needing to be made but thrillingly exciting too.

The world has shifted on its tilt and a dark mark has appeared on the sun. But the majority of the population believe in the tilt and trust billionaire Howard Hansom as the man to save the world. Helena Duggan writes boldly, wildly almost outrageously combining humour, fear and friendship to keep you on the edge of your seat.

But it is the quirky, clever and lovable characters of Grian, Jeffrey and Shelli, who capture your heart and keep the tension throughout their friendship. However, the suspense throughout this dark mystery makes you questions your own decisions, who you trust and how you live your life. Nature NEEDS to be respected. We as humans NEED to make changes. Thinking of others should be commonplace.

'The Light Thieves' is an exciting and dramatic story bursting with ideas to question your thoughts. I very much NEED to read the next instalment!!!

Joanne Bardgett - Year 3 teacher of littlies, lover of children’s books.
#Netgallery
#Usborne

When the earth tilts on its axis and a dark mark appears on the sun, billionaire and tech genius Howard Hansom has a plan. He explains that people need to move to the idyllic new city he has built in a pivotal position in order to tilt the earth back to its original point. Most people flock to this city, but others are suspicious of Howard Hansom, including Grian’s grandad. When Grian’s sister runs away to the city, and his grandad also disappears trying to find her, Grian, his next-door neighbour Jeffrey, and Shelli, a Wilder who lives in a community in the woods and rejects technology, decide to find out what’s really going on.

I am a huge fan of Duggan’s ‘A Place Called Perfect’ series. She creates fully realised worlds, loveable characters and her plotlines are bursting with intrigue and adventure. ‘The Light Thieves’ did not disappoint. It deals with themes like climate change, our dependence on technology and the importance of friendship. A brilliant class novel, with plenty of plot points that is sure to hook every reader. As a bookseller in the authors hometown, I am really looking forward to release day to push this into the hands of everyone I see.

Thank you NetGalley and Usborne for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this. A Place Called Perfect is a powerhouse of imagination and The Light Thieves is just as clever, creative and compelling. Almost like a parable, there’s genius is in the recognisable dangers and deceit that the heroes are fighting.. Unputdownable. Can’t wait to get a copy into the hands of readers in class.

Imagine if your Hansom could capture pictures of everything you did? The Light Thieves is a fantastic adventure mystery set in a futuristic world where everything can be done via your Hansom watch. I liked the relationship between the group of friends, particularly the dynamic between tech-savvy Jeffrey and the more suspicious Shelli. I can't wait to read the next one in the series.

Helena Duggan has done it again! Moving on from the Place called Perfect Series - The Light Thieves is sure to be a resounding success.

The Light Thieves is a 'hook you in' book which leaves the reader constantly on the edge of their seat - wanting to find out what the next chapter holds.

Grian lives in a world where the sun has developed a 'smudge on it,' therefore the days are never truly sunny . The world has been told that that its axis has tipped and one day the sun will disappear.
Billionaire - Howard Hansom has promised that he can reverse this process as long as the world buys into his plan and people move to his artificially created town where he runs it through his electronic artificial equipment.

When Grians sister goes missing - it's his job to find her - but then his Grandad goes missing too.
Who will save the world - Grian or Hansom?

Along with his newly acquired friends - Jeffrey and Shelli (a Wilder who live in the woods away from all forms of technology), Grian overcomes and battles enemies both physical and AI.

A fantastic read - perfect for those ages 8+

Such a thrilling book! It was hard to put down. Literally every chapter ended in a cliffhanger. Definitely the best adventure book I have read recently. It is full of mystery, suspense, courage and friendship. I can't wait to read the sequel already. Thank you so much for the advanced copy.

Handed to my desperate 12 year old son (big fan of A Place called Perfect trilogy) who promptly devoured this book in a couple of hours. Always feel guilty when a book which may have taken over a year to write, edit, publish is scoffed so quickly, but then again, it is sign of a brilliant book meeting it’s hungry and appreciative consumer.

For three years, things have been strange, or has they? The earth has shifted on its axis and there are shadows on the sun. What is happening, and is the earth dying?

Grian’s sister takes off and is possibly on a quest to save the earth, Grian’s adventure, a quest to find his lost sister takes him out of his comfort zone, to Area 13.
A mission? Conspiracies? Solving a mystery. These gripping themes made for a compelling and satisfying read.
Another big hit for Helena Dugan.
Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ahead of publication in exchange for an honest review

This book is SO good. There are so many different talking points that could be used in the classroom based on this book; the dependance of our society on technology, the damage we are doing to the environment, the power someone with wealth can have. It was so thought provoking but also really gripping. From the first. page, I was sucked into the mystery and couldn't put it down. I was desperate to find out what happened next. I know several children who will want to get their hands on this book once it's out and I will definitely be getting it for our school library. I'm also heading off right now to buy Helena Duggan's other books.

The Light Thieves is a fantastic and fascinating technological thriller!

Let's start with the mystery at the heart of the book. It's totally gripping! There are strange, cloaked figures floating around, letting themselves into people's houses, hunting people through the streets. There's a missing sister and a missing grandfather. A tech genius who's just too good to be true. It's complex and exciting and utterly mysterious.

The characters are great too. I really liked how Grian wasn't actually that bright. He struggles with a lot of things and depends on his friends for help, and that really worked for me. He had courage though, and I loved his determination to keep going. Jeffrey was a fascinating character, and one I'd like to see more of. His relationship with his parents was hinted at frequently and is definitely something I'd like to see explored in later books. Shelli was also brilliant. With her close affinity to animals and apparent powers over them, and her disdain of modern technology, she was the ideal third member of the group.

At the heart of The Light Thieves is technology and our relationship to it. This was handled really well, I thought. So much of the technology was quite recognisable, maybe just a little bit more futuristic. The themes were certainly familiar, with technological assistants learning all of our likes and dislikes, tracking our movements, coordinating with other systems on our behalf and so on. There's a really interesting debate here about the need for privacy versus the convenience of having a computer system essentially running your life for you, and valid concerns about what happens to all of that data. I'm sure this aspect of the book is something that'll only become more relevant with time as huge corporations sell us more labour-saving devices that pry on every aspect of our lives.

The Light Thieves is action packed and mysterious, with some very important things to say about our reliance on technology. I cannot wait to see where this series goes next!

As a huge fan of the Perfect series, I was very excited to read Helena Duggan’s latest offering, The Light Thieves. Different in style to her previous releases, her new book is less creepy but equally as gripping.

When Grian’s sister and grandfather disappear, he finds himself embarking on a strange and unexpected adventure, where it is impossible to tell good from evil, right from wrong. Can he rescue his lost family members or will he risk the fate of the world?

I thoroughly enjoyed The Light Thieves: it would be a brilliant class story time book as it could lead to some interesting conversations about the role of technology. Whilst I found parts of it a little predictable, it was a unique storyline and I was fascinated to see where Duggan would take the characters. I look forward to reading the next book in the series when it is released. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.