Product Description

Held captive in the palace of the Emperor Frederick, Boy and Willow are plunged into a world of gilded finery and splendour. But beneath its golden veneer lies cruelty, madness and desperation. They are in terrible danger as they confront the whirlwind furies of the Emperor, the calculating ambitions of his confidante, Maxim, and follow a deadly trail wihch will lead them to the Phantom. Packed with mystery and intrigue, the truth about Boy's identitiy and many other shattering secrets, are all revealed as THE BOOK OF DEAD DAYS is opened for the final time in Marcus Sedgwick's conclusion to a mesmerising story.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #146198 in Books
• Published on: 2005-04-28
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

From the Back Cover
In the morning you should think you might not last unto the night In the evening you should think you might not last unto the morn Boy has survived the terrors of life with the magician Valerian, dark magic and deadly chases through gloomy catacombs and death-fields, but he is still on the run. In a mesmerising conclusion to their enthralling story, Boy and Willow are incarcerated in the Emperor Frederick's palace. It's a world of untold splendour, of closely guarded secrets and terrifying revelations now laid bare by the whirlwind furies of the Emperor, the cold ambition of his confidante, Maxim, the tricks of necromancers, a trail of blood that will lead to the grisly Phantom. Holding all their lives between its pages, the book waits to deceive its next reader. So dance, my dears, dance, Before you take the Dark Flight Down. . . 'This is an elegantly plotted, exquisitely gothic tale which confirms Sedgwick's status as one of our finest contemporary children's authors.' Joanne Owen, The Bookseller

About the Author
Marcus Sedgwick works in children's publishing and before that he was a bookseller. His books have been shortlisted for many awards, including The Guardian Children's Fiction Award, the Blue Peter Book Award, the Carnegie Medal and the Edgar Allan Poe Award. Marcus lives in Sussex and has a young daughter, Alice.

Customer Reviews

An unexpected Conclusion
Dark Flight down is a fantastic conclusion to The Book Of Dead Days. If you have read this you will know that Boy is a boy with no known name, age or parents. In fact he is even lucky to be alive after his encounter with Valerian, a cursed magician, in the previous book. And, needless to say he again gets himself into trouble...

The Emperor is searching for one of Valerian's books, this book gives the reader information that they need, although it is often misleading. The emperor however believes it will help him in his quest for immortality. The emperor's assistant is certain that Boy must know where the book is, and takes him as a prisoner.

In addition, Boy faces even more danger when he realises that his 'prision' is very close to the home of the phantom, a creature that has killed many innocent people, including somebody Boy was fairly close to. In the typical fantasy manner, Boy encounters the phantom, but will he be lucky to survive another dangerous experience?

However the emperor is not the only person who wishes to veiw the secrets this books contains. Boy himself also wishes to, in order to obtain information about his past.

Boy with a little help from Willow, finally gets the answers, although they might not be the ones he was seeking to hear.

Chilling, but far more Compelling.
Marcus Sedgwick follows up his chilling "Book of Dead Days" with a less chilling, but far more compelling sequel, "Dark Flight Down." He left a lot of plot threads untouched at the end of the first book -- especially Boy's past -- but wraps them up as he tells a compelling, sometimes chilling story.

Boy now works for the scientist Kepler, but while running an errand to the Yellow House, he's captured by Imperial soldiers and taken to the palace, where the decaying, mad emperor is waited on by power-hungry courtiers. The emperor wants to be immortal, and his right hand Maxim hopes to use Boy to somehow find the Book of Dead Days.

To make things worse, the bloodthirsty Phantom is still at large -- and Boy soon realizes that it dwells in the palace. Surrounded by treachery and Machievellian lies, Boy's only hope is that his friend Willow will rescue him. But then he learns the horrific truth behind the Phantom and the emperor -- and the connection they have to his past.

There's less magic and more mystery in "Dark Flight Down," compared to its predecessor. The Book of Dead Days only shows up occasionally, and the focus is mostly on Boy's struggles to escape Maxim, and find out his identity. And since the horror is all human, it's even more frightening than demons.

With his sparse prose and icy descriptions, Sedgwick does a remarkable job of wrapping up the story, revealing Boy's mysterious past and the identity of his family. The Phantom's identity is a complete shock, and one that is really horrific. Although Sedgwick does fumble a bit with Bedrich the amnesiac, and Kepler's plotting; these things should have been fleshed out.

Boy himself grows by leaps and bounds here, as he realizes that it's who you are, not your true name or parentage, that defines you. Willow is still like a refugee Lloyd Alexander heroine, although she appears somewhat less here. And romantics will be pleased by the dark, if pleasing end for this novel -- the bleakness that has gone before it sort of fades out.

Wrapping up the story he started in "Book of Dead Days," Marcus Sedgwick crafts a chillingly beautiful, intricate little story, about the boy named Boy. A fitting end for the Boy's story

Dance my dears
Marcus Sedgwick follows up his chilling "Book of Dead Days" with a less chilling, but far more compelling sequel, "Dark Flight Down." He left a lot of plot threads untouched at the end of the first book -- especially Boy's past -- but wraps them up as he tells a compelling, sometimes chilling story.

Boy now works for the scientist Kepler, but while running an errand to the Yellow House, he's captured by Imperial soldiers and taken to the palace, where the decaying, mad emperor is waited on by power-hungry courtiers. The emperor wants to be immortal, and his right hand Maxim hopes to use Boy to somehow find the Book of Dead Days.

To make things worse, the bloodthirsty Phantom is still at large -- and Boy soon realizes that it dwells in the palace. Surrounded by treachery and Machievellian lies, Boy's only hope is that his friend Willow will rescue him. But then he learns the horrific truth behind the Phantom and the emperor -- and the connection they have to his past.

There's less magic and more mystery in "Dark Flight Down," compared to its predecessor. The Book of Dead Days only shows up occasionally, and the focus is mostly on Boy's struggles to escape Maxim, and find out his identity. And since the horror is all human, it's even more frightening than demons.

With his sparse prose and icy descriptions, Sedgwick does a remarkable job of wrapping up the story, revealing Boy's mysterious past and the identity of his family. The Phantom's identity is a complete shock, and one that is really horrific. Although Sedgwick does fumble a bit with Bedrich the amnesiac, and Kepler's plotting; these things should have been fleshed out.

Boy himself grows by leaps and bounds here, as he realizes that it's who you are, not your true name or parentage, that defines you. Willow is still like a refugee Lloyd Alexander heroine, although she appears somewhat less here. And romantics will be pleased by the dark, if pleasing end for this novel -- the bleakness that has gone before it sort of fades out.

Wrapping up the story he started in "Book of Dead Days," Marcus Sedgwick crafts a chillingly beautiful, intricate little story, about the boy named Boy. A fitting end for the Boy's story