The Train to Impossible Places: A Cursed Delivery (Train to Impossible Places Series #1)

by P. G. Bell

Overview

A middle-grade fantasy and nonstop adventure, The Train to Impossible Places by debut author P. G. Bell is as fun as it is full of heart, and the first book of a trilogy.

A train that travels through impossible places. A boy trapped in a snow globe. And a girl who’s about to go on the adventure of a lifetime.

The Impossible Postal Express is no ordinary train. It’s a troll-operated delivery service that runs everywhere from ocean-bottom shipwrecks, to Trollville, to space.

But when this impossible train comes roaring through Suzy’s living room, her world turns upside down. After sneaking on board, Suzy suddenly finds herself Deputy Post Master aboard the train, and faced with her first delivery—to the evil Lady Crepuscula.

Then, the package itself begs Suzy not to deliver him. A talking snow globe, Frederick has information Crepuscula could use to take over the entire Union of Impossible Places. But when protecting Frederick means putting her friends in danger, Suzy has to make a difficult choice—with the fate of the entire Union at stake.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250189509
Publisher:	Feiwel & Friends
Publication date:	10/02/2018
Series:	Train to Impossible Places Series , #1
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.40(d)
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

P. G. Bell is a native of south Wales, where he was raised on a diet of Greek mythology, ghost stories, and Doctor Who. He’s had all sorts of jobs over the years, from lifeguard to roller coaster operator, but has always wanted to write stories for a living. His dream comes true with the publication of the Train to Impossible Places series. He currently works as a library assistant for Cardiff University and lives in Wales with his wife, Anna, and their two children.

Editorial Reviews

11/05/2018
Hearing strange noises, Suzy, a physics-loving 11-year-old, wakes to find a train track being constructed through the middle of her house while her parents sleep. When a magical train passes through, Suzy steals aboard it and learns that it makes deliveries throughout the Union of Impossible Places, including “cities, realms, worlds, and dimensions, plus a few spaces no one can quite agree on a name for” using “interdimensional engineerin’, a dash of magic, and a few bits of double-sided sticky tape” as well as fuzzics, which is “like physics, only fuzzier.” After an enchanted snow globe on board begs for her help, Suzy finds herself in the middle of a power struggle involving secret political machinations that are hidden from the ordinary people of the Union. Though the story feels rushed in places and some characters are left undeveloped, this debut fantasy is full of imaginative locales and fun twists, and readers will enjoy the creativity of Bell’s world and its look at how power left unchecked can corrupt. Ages 10–14. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

All aboard for an adventure like no other—readers will be delighted to learn it's just the first.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Bell sets a smart pace, guiding Suzy smoothly through one impossibility after another in a way that keeps readers off-balance without bogging them down . . . the kind of efficiency and solid storytelling that a troll would admire—while promising potential future adventures for Suzy.” —Horn Book

“A rollicking adventure . . reminiscent of Terry Pratchett and Diana Wynne Jones. There is plenty of humor to season Bell's debut novel, and the characters and plot are refreshingly well developed and raise serious questions about honor and freedom. Fortunately, there will be more adventures in this first in a projected series. All aboard!” —Booklist

"This debut fantasy is full of imaginative locales and fun twists, and readers will enjoy the creativity of Bell’s world and its look at how power left unchecked can corrupt." —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

★ 2018-08-01

One green flash is all it takes to turn Suzy Smith's sensible life on its head.

Suzy figures it's only her imagination; after all, her parents didn't see it. But later that night, the 11-year-old physics enthusiast awakens to discover a railway line going straight through the downstairs hall. And then the Impossible Postal Express arrives. This train, which runs on "fusion bananas," makes deliveries "from Trollville to the five corners of reality," also known as the Union of Impossible Places: "all the weird and magical places that don't quite fit anywhere else." The Postmaster, a pale-green-skinned troll called Wilmot, deputizes Suzy as a Postal Operative. Suzy is to make her first delivery to the Lady Crepuscula, a wicked sorceress. When the package's contents call out to Suzy, she discovers Prince Frederick, who has been turned into a frog in a plot to overthrow the kingdom. Suzy must help Frederick and save the Union, but there's something he's not telling her. The third-person narration is marked by whimsical humor with a healthy dose of irony. A cast of unforgettable characters includes a brown bear that is yellow (she's a blonde), underwater ghosts, and a group of overexcited retired postal trolls. Suzy has light brown skin, and there's diversity in the trolls' skin colors, but other human characters are assumed white.

All aboard for an adventure like no other—readers will be delighted to learn it's just the first. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews