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Interdimensional Explorers – Alien Apocalypse by Lorraine Gregory
The Blurb On The Back:
If the fate of the multiverse was in your hands, what would YOU do?
Eleven-year-old Danny is Apprentice Caretaker of a super-secret Interdimensional Lost Property Office. It’s not an easy job, but luckily Danny has best friend Modge and cousin Inaaya to help him out!
But then a very special star is stolen from the vaults. If Danny doesn’t get it back, the whole universe is in danger. Buckle up and get ready for a rocket ride across the cosmos and an adventure like no other!
It’s a few months after INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS.
11-year-old Danny has finally got his badge from Centralus HQ and is now officially an Apprentice Caretaker of the Interdimensional Lost Property Office. Together with his best friend Modge (who is interested in learning more about the different creatures across the various universes) and his cousin Inaaya who has a nerdy interest in all things multiverse related, he’s really looking forward to getting stuck in.
When Danny’s grandfather wins a cruise and decides that he needs a holiday to recover from the effects of his heart attack, he leaves Danny, Modge and Inaaya to look after things in his absence. But what Danny didn’t know is that the busiest day in the ILPO’s calendar is about to occur - Returns Day - when the most valuable and rare items in the multiverse are returned to their owners and Danny’s grandfather hasn’t trained him on it!
Desperate that Returns Day go well in order to help restore the reputation of Centralus, Mrs Arburknuckle arranges for Niggle Nerfellius W’erbleton Og, the two-headed apprentice to senior caretaker Murdling Pie to come and show Danny, Modge and Inaaya the ropes. Frustrated that he isn’t trusted to work out things for himself and annoyed by Niggle’s smug and patronising demeanour, Danny is certain that he’s up to something, even though Modge and Inaaya think that Danny is just jealous.
But when an item goes missing from the vault of Danny’s Lost Property Office, Danny is certain that Niggle stole it and is determined to go after him. Accompanied by a more skeptical Inaaya and Modge, they set out to track Niggle down, only to discover that a nefarious conspiracy is in play - one that could bring to an end the entire multiverse!
The second in Lorraine Gregory’s INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS humorous SF series for readers aged 9+ is an entertaining, fast-paced, action-packed read with lively illustrations by Jo Lindley. I emphasised with Danny’s insecurities as to his friendship with Modge and Inaaya and his worry about losing them as they grow apart. The plot has plenty of twists and turns and there’s a wider series suggestion that someone at Centralus is a secret baddie.
I picked this up without realising that it is the second in a series. I had not read book 1 (INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS) but Gregory does provide a handy summary as to the key events and it is very easy to pick up on what has happened and where the characters are.
Gregory is one of those children’s authors who writes characters who are easy to empathise with. Danny is a bit of a lost soul in some ways - not particularly academic and uncertain as to what he wants to do in life he sees the IDLPO as a chance for him to do something cool and can’t see why Inaaya and Modge wouldn’t be keen to help him to manage it. It is easy to empathise with his confusion and anxiety as he realises that Modge sees his future as involving caring for animals in the multiverse while the incredibly nerdy and academic Inaaya has loftier pursuits in mind. At the same time, Gregory doesn’t soft-soap Danny’s behaviour as he is quite selfish and isn’t thinking about what his friends want to do and I liked a scene where Inaaya makes clear how difficult it is for her to balance the academic expectations of her parents (who are sending her to private school) and her interest in what the multiverse offers.
I really liked the biscuit munching, animal loving Modge who seems to think with his stomach and seems convinced that even the most dangerous animals in the multiverse just need a noggin scratch and a belly rub. Inaaya is equally entertaining and I liked how Gregory allows her to take over some of the narration with her more scientific, factual notes of what happens in the story.
There is plenty of plot here - a surprising amount given the target readership - with Gregory throwing in plenty of twists and turns, which I enjoyed (although I say that as someone who is a plot person more than a character person). There is also a nod here that there is someone at Centralus HQ who is also a baddie given the issues that the trio keep finding in the IDLPO and I would be interested in reading more about it in the later books. That is not to say that there’s no humour - I found myself chuckling regularly as I read the book with Gregory having a fine eye for the absurd and silly. Mention should also be made of Jo Lindley’s fun and lively illustrations, which have a lot of energy to them and do a great job of bringing numerous scenes to life.
If I have a criticism it’s that I did find myself agreeing with Mrs Arburknuckle when she complained about how irresponsible Danny’s granddad was in swanning off on a cruise without making sure Danny was trained properly. I get that it’s tough to recover from a heart attack (especially when you’re basically working two jobs) but he didn’t seem to pay much attention to whether Danny would really be able to cope. There’s also a sub plot involving Danny’s granddad having gone on the cruise with the aunt of two brothers who bully Danny, which for me didn’t really work because it didn’t go anywhere - but I think that’s probably because I hadn’t read INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS and therefore was missing some of the background.
All in all though, this is a thoroughly entertaining read and I would be keen to both go back and read the first book but also check out book 3.
The Verdict:
The second in Lorraine Gregory’s INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS humorous SF series for readers aged 9+ is an entertaining, fast-paced, action-packed read with lively illustrations by Jo Lindley. I emphasised with Danny’s insecurities as to his friendship with Modge and Inaaya and his worry about losing them as they grow apart. The plot has plenty of twists and turns and there’s a wider series suggestion that someone at Centralus is a secret baddie.
INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS - ALIEN APOCALYPSE was released in the United Kingdom on 14th March 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
Eleven-year-old Danny is Apprentice Caretaker of a super-secret Interdimensional Lost Property Office. It’s not an easy job, but luckily Danny has best friend Modge and cousin Inaaya to help him out!
But then a very special star is stolen from the vaults. If Danny doesn’t get it back, the whole universe is in danger. Buckle up and get ready for a rocket ride across the cosmos and an adventure like no other!
It’s a few months after INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS.
11-year-old Danny has finally got his badge from Centralus HQ and is now officially an Apprentice Caretaker of the Interdimensional Lost Property Office. Together with his best friend Modge (who is interested in learning more about the different creatures across the various universes) and his cousin Inaaya who has a nerdy interest in all things multiverse related, he’s really looking forward to getting stuck in.
When Danny’s grandfather wins a cruise and decides that he needs a holiday to recover from the effects of his heart attack, he leaves Danny, Modge and Inaaya to look after things in his absence. But what Danny didn’t know is that the busiest day in the ILPO’s calendar is about to occur - Returns Day - when the most valuable and rare items in the multiverse are returned to their owners and Danny’s grandfather hasn’t trained him on it!
Desperate that Returns Day go well in order to help restore the reputation of Centralus, Mrs Arburknuckle arranges for Niggle Nerfellius W’erbleton Og, the two-headed apprentice to senior caretaker Murdling Pie to come and show Danny, Modge and Inaaya the ropes. Frustrated that he isn’t trusted to work out things for himself and annoyed by Niggle’s smug and patronising demeanour, Danny is certain that he’s up to something, even though Modge and Inaaya think that Danny is just jealous.
But when an item goes missing from the vault of Danny’s Lost Property Office, Danny is certain that Niggle stole it and is determined to go after him. Accompanied by a more skeptical Inaaya and Modge, they set out to track Niggle down, only to discover that a nefarious conspiracy is in play - one that could bring to an end the entire multiverse!
The second in Lorraine Gregory’s INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS humorous SF series for readers aged 9+ is an entertaining, fast-paced, action-packed read with lively illustrations by Jo Lindley. I emphasised with Danny’s insecurities as to his friendship with Modge and Inaaya and his worry about losing them as they grow apart. The plot has plenty of twists and turns and there’s a wider series suggestion that someone at Centralus is a secret baddie.
I picked this up without realising that it is the second in a series. I had not read book 1 (INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS) but Gregory does provide a handy summary as to the key events and it is very easy to pick up on what has happened and where the characters are.
Gregory is one of those children’s authors who writes characters who are easy to empathise with. Danny is a bit of a lost soul in some ways - not particularly academic and uncertain as to what he wants to do in life he sees the IDLPO as a chance for him to do something cool and can’t see why Inaaya and Modge wouldn’t be keen to help him to manage it. It is easy to empathise with his confusion and anxiety as he realises that Modge sees his future as involving caring for animals in the multiverse while the incredibly nerdy and academic Inaaya has loftier pursuits in mind. At the same time, Gregory doesn’t soft-soap Danny’s behaviour as he is quite selfish and isn’t thinking about what his friends want to do and I liked a scene where Inaaya makes clear how difficult it is for her to balance the academic expectations of her parents (who are sending her to private school) and her interest in what the multiverse offers.
I really liked the biscuit munching, animal loving Modge who seems to think with his stomach and seems convinced that even the most dangerous animals in the multiverse just need a noggin scratch and a belly rub. Inaaya is equally entertaining and I liked how Gregory allows her to take over some of the narration with her more scientific, factual notes of what happens in the story.
There is plenty of plot here - a surprising amount given the target readership - with Gregory throwing in plenty of twists and turns, which I enjoyed (although I say that as someone who is a plot person more than a character person). There is also a nod here that there is someone at Centralus HQ who is also a baddie given the issues that the trio keep finding in the IDLPO and I would be interested in reading more about it in the later books. That is not to say that there’s no humour - I found myself chuckling regularly as I read the book with Gregory having a fine eye for the absurd and silly. Mention should also be made of Jo Lindley’s fun and lively illustrations, which have a lot of energy to them and do a great job of bringing numerous scenes to life.
If I have a criticism it’s that I did find myself agreeing with Mrs Arburknuckle when she complained about how irresponsible Danny’s granddad was in swanning off on a cruise without making sure Danny was trained properly. I get that it’s tough to recover from a heart attack (especially when you’re basically working two jobs) but he didn’t seem to pay much attention to whether Danny would really be able to cope. There’s also a sub plot involving Danny’s granddad having gone on the cruise with the aunt of two brothers who bully Danny, which for me didn’t really work because it didn’t go anywhere - but I think that’s probably because I hadn’t read INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS and therefore was missing some of the background.
All in all though, this is a thoroughly entertaining read and I would be keen to both go back and read the first book but also check out book 3.
The Verdict:
The second in Lorraine Gregory’s INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS humorous SF series for readers aged 9+ is an entertaining, fast-paced, action-packed read with lively illustrations by Jo Lindley. I emphasised with Danny’s insecurities as to his friendship with Modge and Inaaya and his worry about losing them as they grow apart. The plot has plenty of twists and turns and there’s a wider series suggestion that someone at Centralus is a secret baddie.
INTERDIMENSIONAL EXPLORERS - ALIEN APOCALYPSE was released in the United Kingdom on 14th March 2024. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.