Product Description

Hogwarts meets Men in Black in a thrilling comic adventure about a very gifted boy who joins a monster fighting academy. Charlie Benjamin is not like other children -- when he sleeps he has terrible nightmares, and when he wakes it is to find his room has been wrecked. Then one day he wakes up to find a monster by his bed. Luckily, a band of monster-hunting strangers arrives and saves him, only to whisk him away for interrogation by the mysterious "Nightmare Division". It turns out that Charlie has the "Gift" -- a rare ability to open portals into the dimension where monsters lurk, and the explanation for the devastating force of his nightmares. But his gift makes him a danger to himself and others: when he is made to open a portal his power is so great that he inadvertently wakes Barakkas, one of the most powerful and evil of all monsters. Threatened with "Reduction" (a lobotomy that would remove his imagination) Charlie is saved by the wise Headmaster of the Nightmare Academy, where he is taken to explore his talents -- and prepare for the coming showdown with Barakkas!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #96597 in Books
• Published on: 2008-03-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

Customer Reviews

A terrific new book for 10 - 13 year olds - and beyond!
I found this to be an intriguing book, drawing elements both from Harry Potter and also from Artemis Fowl.

The plot surrounds a 13 year old boy who has always been prone to severe nightmares - more like 'night terrors' which have become more and more destructive. He is invited to a sleepover, where he experiences another of these nightmares - and the truth comes out. He is actually opening portals into another world - a world of monsters of various levels of danger! On the first level, inside the first ring, there are the simple gremlins that, when rel;eased into our world, feed on electricity, computers and the like. The monsters gradually grow in strength through the next 4 rings until you finally reach the inner circle - and no-one wants to open a portal into there! The monsters there are FAR too dangerous.

Read the book to find out what happens when a portal to the inner circle is opened!

How is it like Harry Potter? Well - the three key characters, I guess - 2 boys (one of whom is from an old family of Monster fighters - Banishers) and a very intelligent girl! Hmm! Who do they remind me of? However, the characters are fairly well drawn - right down to fears and feelings, and are appealing.

My summary - an enjoyable book - I hope the start to a whole new series which may well encourage more boys to read!

Buy it and try it ... if you dare ... but don't let it give you nightmares!

Champagne Charlie
With a glut of wannabe J.K.Rowlings appearing in the teenage fiction market over the past eight years it is easy to dismiss this as just another fantasy novel. However, Dean Lorey has produced something here that stands out from the crowd and may well propel him into the top flight of childrens' writers. Our hero, Charlie Benjamin, is perhaps a little old at 13 but is instantly likeable and his isolation throws up intriguing possibilities for future instalments. His special gift - the power to summon and use monsters in his sleep - means that boys in particular will aspire to his predicament; whilst his overprotective parents and mundane background throw his startling adventures into sharp relief almost from page one. I would hesitate to label the book `a classic' but the potential is definitely there and I await the next chapter in Charlie's life with interest.

Amazing novel!
Very good detail and it's good for ages 8 to adult. My son is addicted ...can't put it down ...even better than tv/playstation ! Can't wait for the next one. In his top ten books. ten out of ten... more please !