Not a favourite. Everything feels a bit forced. The tricks are hardly funny and the girls less endearing than ever. Not her most inspired book but I devoured it anyway like the school story fanatic that I am. Sad. ( )

I remember one wonderful summer when I sat down and read back to back the Malory Towers and St Clares series in a couple of days, in the sunshine. I saw this series and though about a revisit, and it just didn't work for me. It feels like the author is trying too hard to imitate Enid Blyton but her pacing is off. The period slang seems to be thrown in mostly to make you feel like it's set in the same period but it comes across almost as parody.

I didn't hate the book, which is Malory Towers the next generation, the girls are in fourth form and have to deal with new pupils, a christmas concert, a new snipy teacher and almost as an afterthought have midnight feast.

For me the girls didn't seem to have a lot of solidity, personalities didn't seem to sing through the page and I just wasn't dragged in like Enid Blyton did. Then again I'm a lot older than I was when I first read them so a re-reading may not make me fond of Enid either. ( )