Mister Monday (Keys to the Kingdom, Book 1)

Garth Nix has done it again, he has again come up with a new and creative plot in a magical world even more real than that of his Old Kingdom. The book follows the adventures of a young, asthmatic boy, who inherits a strange clockhand. It is not long after before things start going amuk, and strange forces threaten his world. The boy, Arthur Penhaligon, drawn into complete despair, ventures into a house only he can see, and into a world he where he should not be. This book is sort of a cross between Harry Potter and the Matrix, but with clear invention and an all together fun story. Hold on tight, and don't be left behind!

Now, I had read all of the Seventh Tower Books before this book came out, so I knew that Garth Nix was a good author. I saw the book and said " Hey, Cool, He wrote a new book!" This book was excellent, and brilliantly written. I would give it 30 thumbs up if I could! This book starts off with the main character, Arthur, going to a new school. on his first day of school, he is surprised by a mandatory run. He tries to jog and run for a while, but he is azhmatic and faints whle he is running. Then, a mysteriuos man called mister Monday gives him a key, with the thought that he would die any second. But the key altered his "record" and he lived, to the surprise of Mister Monday. That is where the adventure begins. That's all I'm going to say for now, but this is an awesome book, and its worth more than what they sell it for. I hope this review helps in your decision.

I'll be honest with you all. I would have never picked this book up in a store, and wanted to read it. I hadn't even heard of Garth Nix before I looked at the cover of this book. My mother got it for me, and the moment I opened the paperback covers, I was immersed in a rich, and deeply unique story-line. At first, it didn't make much sense to me, for I seemed to be reading it too fast, half-aware. As I got half-way through the prologue, I set down the book, and went off to do something else; clearly, I wasn't interested. Later, I willingly picked up the piece of writing again, and began to read. Then, I saw the reason why Garth Nix is such a highly-regarded author. The way he describes the plights of a young boy, possibly around my age, is so realistic that you can easily picture the scenery, events, and characters in your mind. The way he makes a clearly impossible act visible. All-in-all, reading the story of a boy who is destined to rule the universe may seem ridiculous, but will give you a thirst for Nix's next book (for Keys to the Kingdom): Grim Tuesday.

I think Keys to the Kingdom is my new favorite series by Mr. Nix. Once again, he has created a deep, detailed and believable world that leaves readers hungry for the next book. The story of Mister Monday begins in the normal world, where Arthur is starting his first term at his new private school. During a PE endurance run, his asthma leaves him gasping for breath, and he collapses. Just when he's about to pass out, he meets two strange men, who give him a small book and a key shaped like the minute hand of a clock. Once Arthur touches the key, his asthma attack suddenly stops as if it had never started. The two men begin to fight, and then they vanish, leaving a confused Arthur with the book and key, wondering if he had been seeing things. Things escalate from there, and as Arthur realizes the extent of the key's powers, he finds that lots of intruders from the House, another world, would be willing to kill to get it. Left with no other options after a mysterious plague sweeps his town following an attack by intruders, Arthur travels to the House to unravel the mystery of the key and the book. It's really amazing how, over and over again, Nix can imagine new, perfectly functional, interesting societies, with suspenseful and enthralling plots to match. I think Mister Monday is a great book for people of all ages, not just for teens and young adults.

Dark fantasy writer Garth Nix expanded his readership with his excellent "Seventh Tower" series. Now he expands further, in a darker, grittier, more realistic fantasy set in our world, where a confused young boy has to escape dark forces that want to use him for their own ends -- or kill him.Arthur Penhaligon has asthma. As a result, he ends up in the hospital regularly. But one day he encounters a strange man called Mr. Monday and his creepy butler, who leave him with a Key shaped like a minute hand and a little book with dancing letters. When he returns home after another stay in the hospital, Arthur finds that the Key seems to be attracting unwanted attention -- a statue of a Komodo dragon comes alive, and a winged man-dog tries to come into his house. What's more, a House has appeared -- one that is also inside the little book.Soon Arthur is being pursued by more dog-faced Fetchers, and a strange plague is sweeping his town -- and somehow the Key is keeping him alive, even though he was supposed to die of an asthma attack. His answers lie inside the House. But what lies beyond it is like nothing in our world, where ghastly nithlings roam and the Piper's children run wild in the streets. And the sinister Mr. Monday wants the Key back.Garth Nix takes his focus from high fantasy (such as the Abhorsen trilogy or the Seventh Tower series) to a more modern fantasy that takes place in our world. Though Arthur skips to another world, he's clearly from our own world. But Nix doesn't downplay his brand of horrific fantasy either; stuff that would seem silly for most other authors is magic in his hands. As in his other books, he melds an exceptional, original fantasy world with elements of horror. The handling of the parallel world, the Will, Sneezer, and the Key and Atlas are all wonderfully woven together (not to mention the characters of Dawn, Dusk, Noon for each day, and so on). At the same time, we have the bloodwinged, silver-tongued Noon and the ugly Fetchers, not to mention the hideous nithlings. This is dark fantasy at its best.Arthur is a likable kid, with an unusual problem (asthma). Like most of Nix's heroes, he's desperately running and searching, and learning from those ahead of him. Quirky Suzy is reminiscent of a Lloyd Alexander heroine. The writing is detailed, evocative, and never lags for a minute. "Mister Monday" is another great book from Garth Nix, combining darkness and fantasy and leaving me eagerly awaiting the next book in the series. Brilliant.