Exquisitely written and packed with a wonderfully diverse, often terrifying cast of characters and dark twists and turns of plot, the second installment of the Sally Lockhart trilogy--an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, a Booklist Editors' Choice, and a nominee for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Mystery--is entirely impossible to put down. Make sure book 3, The Tiger in the Well, is close at hand as you near the end of this one. (Ages 12 and older) --Emilie Coulter

Product Description
The year is 1878, and Sally Lockhart has started her own financial consulting business. When a client loses a fortune in the unexpected collapse of a British shipping firm, Sally is determined to find out why. But as she comes closer to learning the identity of the firm's elusive owner, she discovers that her questions are far from simple --and that the answers could cost her her life.

"Fraud, fire, and bloody murder pursue Sally Lockhart in a fine sequel to The Ruby in the Smoke. Sally, now 22, is in business as a financial consultant. When she and her friends challenge corrupt financial interests, they find themselves in a web of intrigue that stretches from fetid slums of the poor to the corporate offices of the richest man in Europe. Sally's detective work reveals the connections between corrupt power and broken lives. The action is fast, scenes are tight and dramatic, the language is vivid, and the wealth of minor characters are sharply individualized. An immensely entertaining thriller."--(starred) Booklist. Reading level: 6.7.

As before, Pullman draws on his knowledge of Victorian London (and, almost certainly, his interest in photography). The Shadow in the North is one of Pullman's masterpieces of characterization. He has the phenominal ability to make his readers fall totally in love with his main characters - even to the point of infatuation and, at the end of SITN, you know Sally Lockhart as well as you would know your own daughter. You're proud of her. You even wish you could be like her.

Exquisitely written, The Shadow in the North is packed tight with diverse, often terrifying characters. The plot takes dark, unexpected twists. The story-telling is amazing. Pullman is one of the few authors who succeeds on both sides of the Atlantic. When you read his books, you know why. The Shadow in the North is entirely impossible to put down until you've turned the final page... then you want more.


Adventure awaits Ms. Lockhart and Crew   September 24, 2002
 12 out of 13 found this review helpful

"The Shadow in the North" takes a darker tone than the previous Sally Lockhart book, "The Ruby in the Smoke." Sallies enemies take on a more realistic tone than the operatic Ah Lee, and there is some serious doubt about who, if anyone will prevail in this strange adventure.

Like all books in this series, Philip Pullman pulls together historical accuracy, winding plot lines, likeable characters and outright adventure. Sally Lockhart is not a perfect hero. She has faults like any person and often is blinded by her ambition to prove herself. She goes through many changes in this book and matures into a young woman. No longer a teenager, Sally is in her twenties in "The Shadow in the North." Fred Garland and Jim are there to help her as usual.

I don't want to give away too much about the book. It is a mystery after all! But I will say that, like many Philip Pullman books, "The Shadow in the North" is bitter-sweet and captivating. Sometimes reality intrudes too much into the fantasy, leaving a strange sensation for the reader. A very good novel.


The heart wrenching sequel to The Ruby In The Smoke.   March 7, 2001
 8 out of 8 found this review helpful

In the second thrilling novel of Philip Pullman's Sally Lockhart mystery trilogy, both suspense and terrifying intrigue are thrust into a spectacular but heartbreaking adventure that makes The Shadow In The North so intense. Sally Lockhart, now twenty two and still bold and daring, has a settled life of her own, and as an honest business she becomes widely known for her trust in other people's investments. Now there's word about a company called North Star Castings , who is said to be stealing people's investments and developing secrets that are bound to be destroying people's lives. Sally needs to get to the bottom of this mystery, along with the help of her old friends, Fred and Jim. But the danger she puts herself into is terrifying. Sally begins to unravel a mystery so twisted and evil, she alone may not be able to save her future, and everyone else's. For the lurking danger is so great and conspired, it will cost more then Sally Lockhart could have ever dreamed. Written with the absolute clarity and beauty Philip Pullman has elaborated, The Shadow In The North is darker and more powerful then what I enjoyed thoroughly, The Ruby In The Smoke. The mystery is absorbing and deep, and the heroine Sally Lockhart is unforgettable. I can't wait to read the conclusion of this thrilling trilogy, The Tiger In The Well.


The Best of the Trilogy   February 23, 2001
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

The Shadow in the North, the third book in the Sally Lockhart Trilogy, is the best in the series. The book is wonderfully written with and excellent, but complicated, plot.Six years later Sally Lockhart is a 21 year old financial consultant and Fredrick Garland and 20-something photographer and private detective become involved in a mystery or murder and fraud. Sally refuses to accept that her relationship with Fred is becoming something more then friendship.... You'll be smiling through your tears!!! Its a must read that you can't put down. You'll probably end up reading it a dozen times.The ending is sad , a happier ending may have been better, but its one more obsticle Sally must overcome in her life. The Shadow in the North is absouloutly the best in the series, not saying the others were bad they too were excellent. I recomend reading the books in order , their more enjoyable that way!! But no matter how you read them make sure you read The Shadow in the North!!


Not as authentic as the 1st Sally book, but a better mystery   October 29, 2003
 7 out of 12 found this review helpful

By the second book in the Sally Lockhart series Phillip Pullman's characters seem a bit unbelievably contemporary in their attitudes and behavior, but this entry in the series is darker and deeper than "the Ruby in the Smoke." Drawing on Anthony Trollope's THE WAY WE LIVE NOW (which Pullman even mentions during the story), this novel shows Sally in the unlikely position for a young Victorian woman of being an independent financial advisor, and she becomes quickly involved in a plot by an extremely wealthy and mysterious foreign financier. The tycoon's "weapon top end all weapons" is pretty fascinating: almost unbelievably crude by contemporary standards, the rhetoric surroundings its use and justification brings to mind more recent discussions of nuclear and biological weapons in a fascinating way. The characters remain rich and compelling, and Pullman is as wonderfully deft as ever at creating suspenseful situations and cliffhangers.