Pandora: The instant no.1 Sunday Times bestseller

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I loved this book, historical fiction woven with mystery and Greek mythology? What's not to love?! Dora was a gorgeous character, with heart and a passion for her art and jewellery, but who was living with her awful uncle after the death of her parents. And Edward, lovely Edward. A man who wanted recognition for his work on antiques, but was struggling to get it. This was a superb debut, easy to read and not overtly historical-heavy. Dora the explorer (look someone had to say it) made for great reading and I’d jump on another release from this author.

This is not a Greek retelling but an intriguing historical fiction novel set in late 1790s London. However, the myth of Pandora's box (which should hereby be renamed Pandora's Jar) is central to the plot. The story is pretty interesting and engaging, i love the Georgian atmospheric vibe and the mystery element in the book but in my opinion the characters are pretty bland and the plot is slow… there are also a lot of unnecessary conversation and I think the book can be shorter, however I’m pretty much enjoyed this book and think this is such a great debut from the authorSteeped in mystery and rich in imagination, an exhilarating historical novel set in Georgian London where the discovery of a mysterious ancient Greek vase sets in motion conspiracies, revelations, and romance. Meanwhile, Edward Lawrence is a bookbinder with a passion for material culture, determined to overcome his less than privileged upbringing to gain acceptance into the prestigious Society for Antiquaries. In a coffee house one afternoon, he is approached by a mysterious old man who directs him to Blake's Emporium to speak to Dora, explaining that she might be able to help him in his endeavours. She also captured the class system and the different varied characters of London in a realistic way- you could easily imagine the setting and the people.

All of it is written in the third person, focusing on the three separate perspectives of Dora, Edward, and Hezekiah. This worked well and brought a good degree of contrast, with the tone of Hezekiah's chapters noticeably darker than the others and providing more of an insight into his motives. Also, the storylines of Dora and Edward compliment each other nicely as they are both enduring difficult lives until they meet.I received an audio copy of this novel from the publisher, Harper Audio, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. When a highly anticipated Greek pithos is delivered to the shop, Dora wonders why her Uncles behaviour is so suspicious and wants to find out the mystery for herself. Dora enlists the help of Edward Lawrence, a bookbinder looking for acceptance into the Society of Antiquities, for help on information of the pithos. Dora sees the pithos as a chance to escape her life and restore her parents shop to its former glory.

To try and find answers and stop her uncle, Dora befriends Edward, a book binder who wants to become a full-time antiquarian scholar. There’s a sense that Pandora holds the moral high ground in this novel, not because she does good things but because she is suffering under her uncle’s tyranny. Virtue via suffering is apt for this time period, but it’s also a device that sometimes makes her bland. Meanwhile, her uncle is purely despicable – he too tends to be flat.This was pretty intriguing for me and nicely finished up the threads of the storyline till the end. I am recommending it. All books are matched perfectly to the Little Wandle progression and support all the Letters and Sounds phases. We read all our books, have a strong understanding of how children develop as readers and have an unparalleled knowledge of children’s publishing to draw upon to meet their needs. For all our levelling we are constantly reading, comparing and contrasting our 'real' books with scheme books and with each other to ensure that they represent a true progression in reading and in our range. It is a team effort and we regularly discuss which features we feel push a book up or down a band, perhaps the vocabulary is representative of Dark Blue but the narrative complex enough to make a book really only accessible to the most confident readers in Year 5 reading at Dark Red. We take into account many factors depending upon the text; perhaps the reader would be required to have unexpected knowledge or insight to fully access the language or the narrative; and themes, like time travel, or devices, like parallel narratives, can render a book inaccessible to all but the most fluent reader; perhaps the text level is just right but the story unlikely to engage readers reading at this level. With each book we are asking would a child reading at that level be able to access this text and what would their challenges be, the answers to these questions are unique to each book. Choosing Book Bands for confident and gifted readers New for Autumn 2022, blending practice and stretch and challenge books plus 50 for pupils aged 7+ and a brand new SEND programme. Haven Books is an educational book supplier and publisher, providing perfectly collated book selections and teaching resources directly to schools. Through our well-established brands, Badger Learning, Pandora Books and School Bargain Bookshop, we have been supplying schools for over 30 years with resources that are trusted by teachers and loved by children.