The Tower at the End of Time – Amy Sparkes

Welcome to day 3 of the awesome Tower at the End of Time blog tour. Below you’ll find my review of this fantastically fun book but first, here’s an interesting piece of writing on the subject of a ‘found family.’ Whether you’re familiar or unfamiliar with the characters in this story, I’m sure this piece will resonate with you, as it did me:

Finding Family By Amy Sparkes

One of my favourite concepts in writing is the idea of ‘found family’. I find it such a fascinating and beautiful thing that people without any known blood ties can form relationships so tight through their shared experience that they are as close as – if not closer than – family.

When I was sixteen, I started performing in a jazz band. We did a lot of gigs – even travelled to Europe at one point (and trust me, nothing tests the ties of found family – or any family! – like being trapped in a car or a van together for ENDLESS HOURS). But we had this wonderful sense of ‘found family’.

Unlike an orchestra with organised musical arrangements, when you’re playing jazz together, you rarely have a musical scoretelling you what to do when. Sometimes you don’t know what song you’re doing next, or which instrument you’ll be playing (sometimes we’d swap, for fun). You certainly have no idea when your solo spot is going to be. Someone just points at you, and off you go. Everything is gloriously unpredictable. Because of this, you must work together, and you must be able to trust each other so when you stand on the stage and jam it out, there is unspoken confidence that everyone has each other’s backs. You work as a team.

Nine the orphan, Flabberghast the wizard, Eric the troll and Spoon the alchemist are very much a found family. They are also very much improvising on a (rather perilous) story stageand need that sense of mutual trust. Nine only has a vague memory of her early life, of being left in a doorway when she was very small. Her only previous experience of ‘family’ has been as a pickpocket in Pockets’ Nest, and it has not been a happy time. She is desperate for a true family of her own but, alongside that, she also has a deep need to understand where she came from and who she really is. She has questions and she needs answers. 

As is referenced frequently throughout the series, Flabberghast seriously struggles with his own biological family – which is unfortunate for him, as he appears to have quite an extended one. From his troublemaking sister to the restless Sometimes Dead in the crypt to a formidable aunt, there always seems to be a difficult relative lurking somewhere. Perhaps it’s no wonder that a ‘found family’ is his perfect solution. 

We know very little about the family background of the slightly shady Dr Spoon (he keeps very quiet about a lot of things), but we do know that Eric the troll has been a housekeeper in Flabberghast’s family home for years. And despite not seeming to have a natural gift for housekeeping, he is very much part of the ‘family’. Flabberghast’s habit of ‘picking up guests’ like Spoon during the House’s travels says a lot about Flabberghast’sgenerosity to other people or creatures who feel alone or excluded, and shows how much ‘found family’ means to himpersonally.

But what about when the stresses and cracks really begin to show? What about when the doubts come? When you are flying through the World Between Worlds and wondering if you made the right decision to come aboard, and whether you truly belong in this family?

Any family under stress can be torn apart, whether that’s biological or found. When Nine and the gang take to the story stage once more in The Tower At The End Of Time, they aretested to the limit. Everything is wildly unpredictable and perilous, but they must pick up their instruments and as they perform, they may discover just how strong their family bond is.

Thank you so much Amy for such an interesting piece of writing. Now, here’s my review of the book we’re celebrating today:

Carrying from the spellbinding House at the Edge of Magic, Nine and her pals have broken the curse and are off to explore the worlds. Their first stop is The Wizarding Hopscotch Championships but the House is suddenly hiccuping and this could spell disaster for everyone. On top of all this excitement, Nine wants to discover who left her the beloved magic box…

The Tower at the End of Time is an excellent follow-up to The House at the Edge of Magic: pacy, descriptive, adorable characters and as sharp as ever. Often with magical adventures, they can become very dramatic and (at times) stressful for a reader but The Tower at the End of Time has been such a joy to read in the evenings. It has left me feeling hopeful, positive and giggling. Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty of suspense (e.g. finding out where everyone is in the tower) but the tension is suitably cut with plenty of humour. Nine, Flabberghast, Eric and Spoon are such an unusual, eccentric group of friends and I love that. All quirky, I love how this story shows that you can get on each other’s nerves but friends can be your family.

What else makes this story memorable for me is the way that the House and the Tower are characters in their own rights, particularly the House who readers have come to care for during the events of these two books. I love how it feels like an eccentric Tardis!

What are you waiting for, Madam? Pop into the House for a visit, learn some more secrets as further mysteries are set up for book 3 and prepare to be laughing a lot. The Tower at the End of Time provides the perfect escapism into eccentric worlds while our own world remains so chaotic.

Suggested reading age: 8+

The Tower at the End of Time is written by Amy Sparkes, with the cover designed by Ben Mantle. It’s published by Walker Books and is available now from all good book sellers.