Britfield & the Lost Crown ~ A New Adventure Series for the Middle Grades {Book Review}

My oldest son is a picky reader. He has discovered over the years that he has DEFINITE likes and dislikes for a book. More often than not, his dislikes tend to be in the fiction range. He's an avid reader of non-fiction and while he will read an occasional fiction, it HAS to be set in history. And it has to be exciting. So yeah--he's a picky reader. We were recently given a copy of the new adventure series Britfield & the Lost Crown by C.R Stewart. It is a middle school/young adult genre book, which meant it is ideal for my oldest son, who is presently thirteen. However, with his high demands for his books, would it pass the test? Join me today as I share HIS review of this book, and I'll let him tell you himself!

About the Book

Britfield & the Lost Crown is a new series from C.R. Stewart. Set in England, the book follows Tom and his best friend Sarah from behind the cruel walls of Weatherly Orphanage, to their daring
escape via a hot air balloon, to Windsor Castle and on to Canterbury. Along the way, they have run-ins with a famous Scotland Yard detective and discover that Tom may be the true heir to the British throne! Join them on their journey to discover the truth of Tom's past and his potential future in this fast-paced adventure!

The world of Britfield was designed for a classroom setting and the creator has set up an entire website Britfield.com, which offers over 400 pictures, interactive maps and further information about the book.

There is also an 83-page study guide which allows you to take the book even further and open it up for discussion and critical thinking over eight weeks. The study guide is broken down chapter by chapter with vocabulary practice, comprehension questions, and critical thinking "Going Deeper" questions. These are questions like: When Sarah gives Tom her locket for good luck, she tells him, “There’s more to life than just objects.”What do you think she means by that? Do you agree with her? Explain. (study guide, chapter 1, Going Deeper)

The study guide put together with the extra materials on the Britfield website allows you to turn the book into a complete novel study!

The book is available as a softcover, a Kindle eBook, or an audiobook!

Our Thoughts on the Book

In this review, I allowed my oldest son to be the one who exclusively reads the book. It is interesting that when I first approached him about it, he did a deep sign and admonished me that he didn't really like fiction, and if he wasn't interested by the end of the first chapter, "You'll have to read it yourself." I said, "It's a deal."

The Story Begins...

Well, I haven't even had the chance to lay my hands on the book! He has been reading it every chance he gets since he started it. One day I kept calling him to come and work on something, and he kept saying "But I'm trying to escape the orphanage!" I laughingly allowed him more time. Except he still didn't come. Turns out escaping the orphanage was quite the ordeal and he just COULDN'T leave them until he knew they were out. Bwahahahhahhahaha.

When his adventure was over, he presented it to me. "You have GOT to read this, Mommy!"

And so, I will turn it over to him and now allow him to tell YOU why YOU have got to read this book...

I like this book because it's not boring like other fiction books I've read. And though I was skeptical a first, once you got through the first few parts it starts to get pretty good. I was a bookworm to that book from thereon. Tom was my favorite character because he was adventurous. I really didn't like the owners of Weatherly. They were mean. My favorite part was the chase throughout England. It ended on a cliffhanger, so I really want to read what comes next. I HATE books that are cliffhangers because I want to know what happens so bad. And this one is worse because it says the next book won't come out until later. I think it would make a good movie too. I'd watch it. 

And since my son mentioned it...according to the author there WILL be movies to go with the book. The author himself has many years of experience in movie screenplays, so I am looking forward to seeing what he comes up with to go with this novel!

Long story short, my picky book man gives this book 5 STARS and suggests it to anyone who loves adventures! I found him reading this book every single night until he was done. Whenever he was quiet instead of playing, I found him reading this book. Few books have caught his attention like Britfield & the Lost Crown! He has told his little brother HE has to read it too when Mommy is done with it.

We can't wait for the promised movie and the next installment coming in the fall of 2020!

Want to Know More?

For the last several weeks my son has been enjoying living the adventure with Tom and Sarah in the first installment of the Britfield work in the Britfield & the Lost Crown. I hope you will read what some of the other crew members thought of this exciting new series!

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