Review by Stuart Mayne

Reviewing the middle book of a series is difficult. The reader is part way through a longer work, picking up where the first book left off, remembering what went before as well as beginning what should be both a new story and a continuation of what has come before.

This book for a YA audience works on all fronts. I was pleased there was a short foreward reminding me what had happened in the previous book; while memories of a previous book do come back as you get into the work, it is nice to be reminded of some things that don’t immediately come to mind.

The Dust Devils is a self contained story that fits amid the wider story of Ros and Adi. The characters perfectly fit the YA age range. Full of doubts and fears at the breadth of his travails, Ros is still finding his way on his own in a hostile environment. But his sense of responsibility is the over-riding importance in this novel. Adi really only features as a ghost in this story (though Ros finds out more about his friend through disturbing dreams from her memory). I hope there is more of her character in the next novel; I enjoyed her feisty girl-power character in The Changeling.