The Game

Title: The Game
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Publisher: New York : Firebird (2007)
ISBN: 0142407186 9780142407189
Pages: 179
Characters: Hayley, Harmony, Troy
Bookmarks: 2

Hayley has lived with her grandparents since she was a small child. Her grandmother is very controlling while her grandfather is more lenient. After talking to two men she refers to as Flute and Fiddle, Hayley is suddenly shipped off to Ireland and thrust into a life with her many cousins. Her cousins introduce her to "the game" where they go into they mythosphere (a magical land that contains the worlds myths). When "the game" is discovered by her Uncle Jolyon, trouble ensues and Hayley learns about her past and that of her family.

I really wanted to like this book. It had a good premise- the Gods and characters from myths are alive and among us. This book was really disappointing though. The story often moved slow and it seemed as though Jones had to work to hard to include some of they mythical characters. If a reader does not have a decent knowledge of mythology, they will be a little lost with much of the story. I did however like that at the end there is an explanation of the different characters.