Lockwood & Co.: The Screaming Staircase, Book 1

By: Jonathan Stroud

Narrated by: Miranda Raison

A sinister problem has occurred in London: all nature of ghosts, haunts, spirits, and specters are appearing throughout the city, and they aren't exactly friendly. Only young people have the psychic abilities required to see - and eradicate - these supernatural foes. Many different Psychic Detection Agencies have cropped up to handle the dangerous work, and they are in fierce competition for business.

In The Screaming Staircase, the plucky and talented Lucy Carlyle teams up with Anthony Lockwood, the charismatic leader of Lockwood and Co., a small agency that runs independent of any adult supervision. After an assignment leads to both a grisly discovery and a disastrous end, Lucy, Anthony, and their sarcastic colleague, George, are forced to take part in the perilous investigation of Combe Carey Hall, one of the most haunted houses in England. Will Lockwood and Co. survive the Hall's legendary Screaming Staircase and Red Room to see another day?

Listeners who enjoyed the action, suspense, and humor in Jonathan Stroud's internationally bestselling Bartimaeus books will be delighted to find the same ingredients, combined with deliciously creepy scares, in his thrilling and chilling Lockwood and Co. series.

©2013 Jonathan Stroud (P)2013 Listening Library

Well written, captivating story & mild spook!

I want to first start off by saying I rarely leave a review but I felt the story and this author truly deserves one.

The story is brilliantly written and deeply captivating. The characters are well thought out and I'm particularly pleased by the female lead, Lucy. The world building is excellent and well thought out. The story itself has enough twists and turns that as a child I would have found this mystery challenging and as an adult I find it still captivating with a few surprises.

The performance by the narrator was excellent with distinct voices between characters while still sounding like it was being read like a bed time story. I enjoyed this mildly spooky story as my level for horror is not great and I found its mild spook to be a nice change from my typical listen.

As someone who first watched the well produced Netflix show I still found the book quite excellent. Of course there are changes that were made when adapting it to the screen but I found a comparable vibe to what I viewed to what was written. I plan to continue to listen to the rest of the series for I deeply want to see where characters go and how the story unfolds especially since Netflix made the poor decision of cancelling one of its more brilliant shows.

If you actually have taken the time to read all of this thank you. I'm normally not so long-winded but this truly is an incredible children's story that continues to captivate even adults!

So clever!

WHAT IT'S ABOUT
When the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in . . .

For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.

Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.

MY TAKE
What a fascinating premise! I'd never heard of this series, but a friend here raved about how good it was, so I had to give it a try. So much fun!

The idea that kids can hear and sense the different kinds of ghosts that are plaguing London made me think about people under 30 being able to hear higher pitched sounds than those above. My boys were quite smug about it, in fact. They're now all over 30, and I should ask them if they still feel so smug. :D

Anyway, these sensitive and clever kids (and I mean like young teens) have gained the training and skills to fight off some seriously bad ghosts. If you're able to suspend your disbelief that kids this young would also have such great deductive abilities, then you're in for a fun read. I mean, Enola Holmes was able to care for herself, so why these kids? Though she was older.

4 1/2 stars

I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator Miranda Raison did a great job.

great book! not a Bartimaeus or Potter repeat

the book is very easy for grown ups to listen to. its not as funny or sarcastic as bartimaeus nor does it take place in a different magical world like potter. its just the real world like we live in. by not being like those books where you constantly are thinking of jokes or how cool this or that would be in the real world it kinda makes it easier to follow the story. keep on writing j.s.

Excellent!

This book is a great escape from reality and a fantastic story. It has just the right amount of creepiness.

I dont write reviews...

But read all 5 of these books. Trust me. Worth your time. Its unique and clever.

Loved it!!!!

Loved this book!!! Excited to continue the series!!!! More importantly the narrator is the perfect match for the series!!! I hope she's the voice for the other 3!!!

Gripping in the right places.

The overall story and in particular the intense and gripping moments were well worth the read. Many of the characters however feel unusually flat. The voice acting also didn't fit the personalities of many of characters as I felt it should. Still very enjoyable.

Great story

Love the characters! Interesting story line. Everyone loves a good haunting and I love that the teenagers are the heroes

Couldn't put it down!

Any additional comments?

Lockwood and Co. comprises a compelling story, good characters and fantastic narration. A great little alt-history narrative that flips the whole steam punk 'new technology in Victorian times' genre on it's head and makes old technology more useful in modern times (while keeping the actual time period ambiguous enough to prevent the story from becoming dated too quickly). Stroud gives the characters dialogue that is neither too loaded down with slang nor too staid to keep you from believing these are real teenagers. Miranda Raison is pitch perfect; her male character voices are believable and her emotional tone never goes astray. I can't wait to listen to the next installment and I will look for other books narrated by Ms. Raison.

Very entertaining!

I enjoyed listening to these as an adult! Very entertaining and easy to listen to.