The Other Side Of The Whale Road

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher as part of my participation in the tour hosted by The Write Reads.

Book Overview

The Other Side Of The Whale Road: by K.A. Hayton
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 240 pages
Rating: ★★★★ (4 Stars)

Published August 2021 by Lightning Books

Book Tour Info

I read this book as part of a book tour with The Write Reads.

Book Synopsis

How dark were the Dark Ages? Joss is about to find out…

‘The Vikings are better armed than we are. They have long, heavy axes that can take a man’s head from his shoulder. I know this because I see it happen.’‍

When his mum burns down their house on the Whitehorse estate, sixteen-year-old Joss is sent to live in a sleepy Suffolk village.

The place is steeped in history, as Joss learns when a bike accident pitches him back more than 1,000 years to an Anglo-Saxon village. That history also tells him his new friends are in mortal peril from bloodthirsty invaders. Can he warn their ruler, King Edmund, in time?

And will he ever get home?

First Impressions

Lately, I’ve been playing a lot of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, which, if you aren’t familiar with the game features a Viking by the name of Eivor making their way across what will eventually become England. While Eivor is a made-up character, the situations, and people they encounter are generally based in history.

Yes, I know, you’re here on my book blog. You’re not expecting to read about my interest in video games, but bear with me, I swear it relates. Of course, if you read the synopsis I included just before this part, then I’m certain you can see where this is going.

Basically, I picked this book up because I’m very much in love with playing Valhalla, and wanted to consume more media that would be similar. The Other Side Of The Whale Road was the perfect place to start.

Review

Reading this book, I found myself feeling nostalgic for The Magic Tree House, a series of young reader books in which two young children have a tree house that whisks them off to different historical events. However, Joss’ story was absolutely different than any of Jack and Annie’s that I’ve read. Joss is a troubled young man who has been sent off to a foster home after his hot mess of a mother pretty much destroys their home.

I found to be Joss one of the most believable characters. He reminded me a lot of some of the students that I’ve worked with in the past. Yes, a lot of people might see him and think he’s a bad kid, but he really does have a good heart; something that becomes increasingly obvious once he travels back in time.

My only complaint about this book is that it was far too short! I don’t want to give too many spoilers, but I felt as though there were so many paths the narrative could have gone done, and yet it seemed to just skirt around them. In spite of this, I still really enjoyed the book.

Rating & Final Thoughts

Rating: 4 out of 5.

The main thing that kept this book from being a 5 star read for me was it’s length. I felt at times that the story was almost incomplete, but it certainly wasn’t enough for me to not love it.

Now, if you’ll pardon me, there’s a PS4 controller calling my name.