Locke and Key Vol. 3 - Crown of Shadows: Shadows Come To Wreak Havoc on the Lovecraft Mansion

Locke and Key Vol. 3: Crown of Shadows

I decided to return and read a little more Locke and Key by Joe Hill. The last book was a little dull but Hill seems to have a lot of imagination, so I have faith that the third book would rebound. So here is my review of Lock and Key Vol. 3: Crown of Shadows.

What is it about? Its follows a family living a large home that has magical keys hidden throughout it. The keys can unlock doors to other places, unlock your head to put more knowledge in, or unlock a passageway that allows you to leave your body and so on. The kids Tyler, Kinsey, and Bode have caught onto these little secrets by this point in the series. And the story follows their troubles both big and small. In the major plot the villain, a well ghost of sorts, is trying to use the shadow key to control the shadows to raid the house so he can find the Omega Key. In turn the siblings must fight for their lives against all kinds of ghouls to survive. Then there are subplots. There are two mainly. The first story involves Kinsey, who used a key to pull fear out of her head and now is getting herself in all sorts of trouble because she doesn’t fear anything. Then there is the story about the mother who is falling deeper and deeper into alcoholism and beginning to tear the family apart because of it.

The good? This was great. The pacing was great. The art is fantastic. There are many story lines, but it balances out so perfectly. And the imagination is just out of this world.

The bad? By this point in this series, I realized that this series is not as creepy as the first book indicated. Not that I’m complaining. This is tons of fun, but it is a shame that inherent creepiness of the first did not stay around. It’s a great read. I love it and recommend it to everyone.

Overall, this is fantastic entry into the series. Its fun, so imaginative and a must read. Now go out and read it.

4 smoothies out of four.

Overall Rating: Shadows Come To Wreak Havoc on the Lovecraft Mansion