Book Review: The Trip by Gina Mayer (School of Evil Animals #3)

 Note: The title of this book has been translated into English by me for the reading comprehension of this blog's viewers as the book itself isn't available in English (yet). The original title reads Internat der Bösen Tiere #3: Die Reise.

Book three got translated into Dutch, so I got myself a copy to check out! Spoilers ahead!

Noël is upset when a special box, containing contents with hints about his long-lost mother, is stolen from him. He and his friends go on a quest to find the thief. But when they finally obtain the box's contents, it seems that they're useless. The only one who might have more information is Miss Moa, the school's headmistress. But when Noël needs her the most, she vanishes from the school grounds. Noël now must go on a risky trip to find Moa and learn more about his mother.

 

This was a book I overall enjoyed. It wasn't great, but I had a good time with it and I was genuinely interested in where things were going. The characters like Noël, Taiyo and Katókwe are pretty well-written and three-dimensional. Noël especially is just a likable but flawed protagonist to follow.

 

I do think that the main thing that's keeping me hooked so far though, aside from the great characters, is the mystery the series is setting up. Noël's mother, Noël's father, why Miss Moa left, what happened to her after she vanished, what exactly is going on with Uko... These are all pretty decent mysteries that keep the reader engaged and want to keep going. Mayer definitely knows how to build a mystery.

 

However, I do once again have to mention that this book, like books one and two as well, doesn't do that much to progress the overall plot of the series. Book one makes it clear that the main goal of the series will be dealing with Uko (the villainous bear who wants to kill Noël) in some way or form, but so far in books one through three we've barely gotten anything regarding this conflict. 

 

The characters keep bringing up how Uko is a threat, but in practice we see very little of it, and very little of Uko as a villain as well. I keep hoping that the bear will be a more active presence in the story, but so far it hasn't happened yet. We're by now halfway through the series, yet so little in the grand scheme of things has happened so far. I keep wishing that these books get deeper into the main conflict, but it's all pretty light so far with books one through three being largely standalone stories with Uko being more of a vague background threat than an active participant.

 

But I did enjoy this book, like I said. It really knows how to build a mystery and Noël is a great lead to follow. Can't wait for book four!

 

Rating: 3.5/5