Book Four The Creeping Shadow, Lockwood & Co.

After an ominous glimpse at the future, Lucy decided it was best to part ways with Lockwood & Co. She transformed herself practically overnight into a successful freelance agent (with the help of the talking skull in a jar that she carries around with her) that have many vying for her services. When a knock on her door early one morning brings Lockwood back into her life, requesting her services in a most important job, she struggles to decide which is the right path for her. Lucy begins to realize though that the premonition she foresaw for Lockwood just might happen with or without her presence. The jobs the group takes on though continue to increase in the risk involved and Lucy realizes she’d be hard-pressed to say no to the opportunity to work alongside him and the group once again.

‘It was a bit annoying not being able to sleep, but it was a change being kept up by moral conundrums rather than Wraiths and Specters. Doubts, like ghosts, gain strength in darkness; even with the dawn I wasn’t sure I’d done the right thing.’

While Lucy’s apprehension about re-joining the group, albeit temporarily, was understandable, I sure did love to see the gang all back together. Lucy, Lockwood, and George always had a fantastic team dynamic and the addition of Holly in The Hollow Boy did cause things to go somewhat askew but fortunately that wasn’t for good. Holly has become a full-fledged, active member of the team, her and Lucy have repaired their personal rift, and she even briefly shows a bit of her badass side much to my satisfaction. Skull still manages to keep his spot secured as my favorite character of the bunch though, despite his partial absence in this tale. His snarky commentary is so very comical.

“You’ve got a good thing going here,” the skull said. “It’s called independence. Don’t throw it away. And, speaking of throwing things away – your dress. Too tight.“
“You think so? It looks all right to me.”
“You’re only looking at the front, love.“
An altercation ensued here.

What with Skull’s partial absence, George stepped in as a suitable replacement for the time being.

“George.”
“What?”
“We’ve got to destroy the circle. That monster flare of yours. Now might be just the time for it.”
“What? Big Brenda?”
“You’ve given it a name?”
“I’ve grown kind of attached to her.”

When the group begins investigating why someone could be stealing powerful sources, this leads them to convoluted conspiracies, ghostly experiments, and all sorts of danger. Stroud still manages to deliver on the creepy too. Extremely unnerving lines that’ll make your eyes widen from unseen horrors. I loved seeing Lucy operating successfully solo but it was such a joy to see her back with the team again. Stroud leaves us with yet another stunner of a cliffhanger that will leave fans of this series both anxious and nervous for future dangers in store for the team.

‘There are many new questions to answer, and our investigations have only just begun.’

Sometimes, you find a series so great, you wonder why it isn't the next Harry Potter. Because truly, The Lockwood series has all the things that made Harry Potter great: intricate plot and worldbuilding, intriguing characters, a fascinating story, and excellent pacing/writing. For me, these books do to mild horror what Potter does for high fantasy - they create an immersive experience that you never want to end and an appeal for all ages.

Story: Lucy has left Lockwood to protect her former employer from himself. But living with the Skull has its own problems, even if she seems to be doing decently in her free-lance work. But she has stumbled upon corruption in the agencies and then the skull is stolen. Lucy will have to team up with Lockwood again - but he appears to be even more reckless than before.

Quite a bit of the large backstory was revealed in this book four - all clearly leading to the finale in the next and final book. The interactions of Lucy and the skull were so well written as to be laugh out loud funny and bone chilling at the same time. Even more interesting, we get a picture of what the skull originally looked like - and it is quite shocking. I am even more intrigued to find out the mystery behind the skull in the jar.

Of course, there are great interactions with Lucy and Lockwood and the Mulder and Ssully type of uncomfortable attraction. Lucy is great at denial and Lockwood is too preoccupied - but darn if it isn't so well written that you want to lock them into a room together. George and Holly are as distinct and well drawn as ever and the addition of Kipps makes the story all that more engaging. I'm glad that Stroud doesn't drop characters between books and instead seamlessly incorporates them back into the plot.

This is definitely one of my favorite reads/listens of the year. Extremely well written, exciting, genuinely scary at moments, and laugh out loud funny at others. Note: I listened to the Audible version and the narrator did an excellent job (though I wish the series kept the same narrator throughout).

Ahoy there me mateys! Day four with book four of the Lockwood & Co. series completed. One more to go! Arrr! If ye haven’t read the first book in this series, the screaming staircase, then ye might want to skip this post and go read the first book. Worth the read. No spoilers ahead but if ye keep reading this log then ye have been forewarned and continue at yer own peril . . .

This Captain is one happy reader. Ye see me hearties, yesterday I thought book three was me favourite. Now it is definitely book four! Mr. Stroud ups the ante with this one and while I want to rant and rave about how wonderful this book is, I can’t. Because spoilers. The spoilers would abound. Book three sets up book four and so I can’t talk about this one without ruining elements of book three. And I would never do that to me crew. So let’s just say that the friendships, ghosts, characters, and plot rock. The writing style is awesome. The ending was fierce. I want more!

Wow. Just wow. Stroud really upped the stakes in this story. Not just about the cases, this book takes on the Problem and its origins and implications. There are a number of twists in the story, all of which blindsided me. In the midst of everything of course, there is the question of whether Lucy will return to the agency or not after her dramatic exit at the end of the last book. Throughout it we have the dashing, charming, reckless, and maddening Lockwood, who is pushing boundaries even harder than before. George carries on with his insightful and meticulous research and his wonderful snark. Lucy is really growing though. Her relationships with Holly and Lockwood are evolving. Her connection to the ghost jar are solidifying. She's getting to know herself, her strengths and limitations, better than ever before. She makes a great POV to cast an eye on the other characters while taking us inside her own inner workings. The cases are good mysteries, especially the book's focal case. I really can't wait to find out where the story will go from here. It's always so hard to wait for the next book!

I love this series and The Creeping Shadow is another fun and exciting story with the Lockwood & Co gang.  This is the fourth book in the Lockwood & Co. series and you need to read the previous books to understand the storyline. The Creeping Shadow picks up where the shocking ending of the previous book left off. I loved seeing Lucy, Lockwood, George and Holly together again. At first their interaction was tense but gradually turned into their familiar camaraderie that makes them stand apart from other agencies. It is clear to see how important each member is to the team and to the family they have become. The story has everything I have come to expect from this series: a hair-raising mystery, edge of your seat action and hilarious moments with team. Author Jonathan Stroud is a talented writer and gives fans another shocking ending. I can’t wait for the next book!

This is a Middle Grade series but I highly recommend this series to readers of all ages. This is a fun, exciting story with a group of friends you can’t help from falling in love with.

5 Star Audiobook Review
Emily Bevin returns as narrator for this series and does another amazing performance.  She brings all the characters to life and added excitement to the story. I loved how she captured the sarcasm of George and Skull, and the awkward moments between Holly and Lucy. This is my favorite series to listen to. I feel as if I’m in front of a campfire listening to ghost stories. I hope Ms. Bevin returns for the next book.

This is the first _Lockwood_ installment I've listened to instead of reading. I thought Emily Bevan did a really nice job, and I'm not always the biggest fan of female narrators (and I'm a female, so I can say that without being sexist--in theory). While Lucy's continued lack of generosity of spirit towards others still annoys me, she did marginally less direct whinging on about Lockwood in this newest installment (thank goodness!). The story was still good and creepy. There are still some cliffhanger points and a few yet=to-be-explained plot holes that I hope will eventually be filled. I'd still like to see George shine a bit more as a character. I love the sarcastic, talking skull in the jar. It's nice that Lucy and Holly are putting the past behind them and moving on. I'll probably either read or listen to the next book in the series.

I loved this book. (Hell, I love this whole series.) Reading it was like meeting a close friend after a year apart and picking up right where we left off only to realize my friend is exponentially more awesome than she was the last time I saw her. I'm constantly amazed by Stroud's ability, with every Lockwood & Co. book, to not only deepen the relationships between the characters, but to level up the plot in new and inventive ways. Needless to say (especially after reading the last line) I am anxiously awaiting the next book.

Yeah, I know, this book is for middle schoolers. But I love it! This series is one of the best for this age group and yeah, for adults too. Cannot wait to read the next book! Mr. Stroud, I hope you are writing it as we speak. Cannot wait to see what the team is up to next!