Raven's Gate

The Power of Five #1

by Anthony Horowitz

FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. Matt is being punished for a crime he saw, but didn't commit. Matt was given a go to jail or go live with an old woman named Mrs. Deverill in a remote town called Lesser Malling.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Horror, Fiction, Adventure, Paranormal, Mystery

Paperback

First published June 1, 2005

About the author

Anthony Horowitz, OBE is ranked alongside Enid Blyton and Mark A. Cooper as "The most original and best spy-kids authors of the century." (New York Times). Anthony has been writing since the age of eight, and professionally since the age of twenty. In addition to the highly successful Alex Rider books, he is also the writer and creator of award winning detective series Foyle’s War, and more recently event drama Collision, among his other television works he has written episodes for Poirot, Murder in Mind, Midsomer Murders and Murder Most Horrid. Anthony became patron to East Anglia Children’s Hospices in 2009.

On 19 January 2011, the estate of Arthur Conan Doyle announced that Horowitz was to be the writer of a new Sherlock Holmes novel, the first such effort to receive an official endorsement from them and to be entitled the House of Silk.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/anthon...

Reviews

[Candi]

Anthony Horowitz quickly became a favorite author of mine after reading and loving Magpie Murders and The House of Silk. I don't typically read young adult fantasy novels, but I'm not opposed to giving something different a try now and then. Besides, I already knew that his writing was fantastic, so thought this one might be a refreshing change of pace for me. Unfortunately, I was a bit bored with it. I reached about the 40-50% mark on my kindle and decided I have too many others I would much rather be reading instead. The writing was a bit too simplistic for me and the plot seemed to stall, or go in circles - much like the roads leading in and out of Lesser Malling, the town where Matt Freeman has been sent to live with a very odd and creepy woman named Jayne Deverill. Something truly bizarre was happening in this village, but I just wasn't interested enough to find out just what. I'll read anything else Horowitz writes - but I'll stick to his books written for adults. In fact, I'm quite anxious to get my hands on The Word is Murder this fall. I'm not going to rate this one, since I abandoned it partway through and suspect I was not the intended audience.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do you get when you mix elements of Harry Potter, Stephen King, and Night at the Museum together? You get Raven’s Gate.
This was a very quick and enjoyable read and had me on the edge of my seat. I could hardly put it down. Of course it is a story or Good vs. Evil.
I fell in love with Matt the minute he was introduced and knew there was more to him than met the eye. And the unfolding of his story was done very well and in such a way that you were hooked from the beginning to the end.
It is the first book of Anthony Horowitz’s Gatekeeper series. I received the fourth book (Necropolis) as a giveaway and because it was the 4th book I went out and got the 1st three because I don’t like to start reading a story in the middle.
I can’t wait to start the next book the only problem I have is that there should be a 5th book but so far I have not found any reference to a future publication date. In fact the only reference I found was on Wikipedia which stated a title: The Darkness (The Horror Within) but little else. So I’m hoping the story will not end unfinished.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish there were more YA books that involved vats of face-melting acid.

Review at some point.

[Ashley Marie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was kind of cheesy. Ok. Not just kind of. Really cheesy.



I can picture it. Horowitz sitting down to write "Stephen King for teens!" Except that Stephen King for teens doesn't have any of the interesting scary bits that normal Stephen King does.

Matthew Freeman (or just Matt, because reasons) is 14 and an orphan and apparently super important to the sort of person I imagined a Satanist to be when I was 10.

TL;DR synopsis: Dead parents! Crappy aunt takes him in! Crappy aunt doesn't like being a parent so much! Juvenile delinquenting! Government farm work instead of jail time program! Creepy old lady foster mom! Everyone he starts to like gets murdered because saying the lord's prayer backwards gives you demon powers! Reanimated dinosaurs! Nuclear reactor explodes!
Actually, in declarative sentence form this book doesn't sound so bad. It is though; don't be fooled.



At least it was short.


I just saved you several hours of your life. You're welcome.

[Ivana - Diary of Difference · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finished - review coming soon!

[Danya Button · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has been and probably will be one of my favourites. I come back and read every couple of years. Unfortunately I haven't finished all the rest yet

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another surprisingly good read. I was always excited about what was going to happen next. Lots of imagination in this story, and it's well written. It's such an underrated book. The ending could have been better but it was still good.

I was scared this book was going to be like "The Darkest Minds" series which had a decent story but I just did not enjoy it at all. It didn't resonate with me... but Raven's Gate did.

Raven's Gate is kinda like Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children meets Percy Jackson

[Eshusdaughter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fourteen-year-old Matt Freeman is an orphan in a lot of trouble. After he's caught stealing he is funneled into the LEAF system, a new program that England has put in place to deal with youthful offenders. Through LEAF, Matt is "fostered" with the evil Mrs. Deverill, a satanic witch bent on torturing Matt. Everyone Matt gets close to has a bad habit of ending up dead and no one can seem to tell him about something called Raven's Gate - a mysterious place that is somehow tied to Matt's own psychic abilities.

I listened to the audiobook version of this novel. It's possible that some of my disappointment with the book stems from the poor reading it was given. The narrator, Simon Prebble, has a very deadpan voice with little vocal range or variation. It could certainly have been done much better.

However there are a myriad of other reasons I didn't like Raven's Gate. Think of every cliche you have ever imagined about black magic - tada you've just met the cast of bad guys from this book! Lacking in originality or interest the bad guys are cookie cutter cardboard baddies with about as much oomph as an old B horror movie. Horowitz's writing is stacato and terse, and he doesn't embroider his tale with a lot of description - just short and to the point. There are many that enjoy that sort of writing, I am not one of them.

The plot feels thin and forced and the story is rather lackluster. I won't be picking up the rest of the series.

[Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

5th Reread 2022: It's been awhile since I've read this and I still love it just the same as my first read! It's such a unique story and even as an adult I was still riveted. It's always disappointed me though with this series that it went downhill for me from book 3. Hoping I feel differently about this series as a whole now that I'm reading it 15 years later.

○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●○●

When I was younger I loved the Alex Rider series, so I thought I'd give The Gatekeepers series a go too. I'm eternally grateful for whatever part of my subconscious told me too because this has been one of the best reads and I can still remember the feelings it gave me reading it several years later. The only thing I'm disappointed with is that as you get further into the series the POV changes to different characters and I never like that because 1. I don't like change and 2. I get too attached to the main character to read about another one. Anyone that likes Anthony's other books, will definitely enjoy this one!

[Tina➹ lives in Fandoms · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 Stars

(P: Poor)

I didn't hate it like I mostly do with my 2 stars. It was just slow & boring, been dragged you could say, till it reached the last 60 pages in which things turned interesting & thrilling, I found a favourite character (because Matt was annoying, I didn't like him) & I got curious. (I could give it 3 stars because of this, but I don't)
but I will continue this series for now.

[AziaMinor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall Rating : B+

[Tessa Nadir · Rating 4 out of 5]

In sfarsit un roman horror care a fost pe gustul meu. Am regasit multe din elementele de groaza care imi plac atat la o carte cat si la un film. Citind-o de Halloween am realizat faptul ca e prima data cand o carte intra in atmosfera acestei sarbatori americane, cel putin in ceea ce ma priveste.
Desi multora li se poate parea putin ''cheesy'', pe mine nu m-a deranjat faptul ca are unele elemente horror des intalnite sau chiar comerciale. Am citit in recenzii ca este considerata ca fiind inspirata din "O noapte la muzeu", scrierile lui Stephen King sau chiar Harry Potter, insa eu nu am avut aceasta impresie si am regasit aici stilul sarcastic si fresh al lui Horowitz. Probabil sunt singura persoana de pe planeta care nu a citit sau vizionat Harry Potter, astfel ca nu pot sa-mi dau cu parerea despre asta, insa pe mine magia ma duce cu gandul la vrajitoare rele, la ritualuri negre, lumanari, pisici demonice, incantantii, panze de paianjen etc.
Personajul principal este un pusti pe nume Matt Freeman care mi s-a parut destul de simpatic si credibil in drama sa, iar vrajitoarea, doamna Deverill, care pune ghearele pe el, a fost preferata mea, avand doza corecta de rautate si inteligenta. Mi-au placut puterile si magiile ei precum si faptul ca ucenicul sau este o pisica neagra pe nume Asmodeus, care intelege ce spune ea si ii indeplineste ordinele cu abnegatie.
Cel mai mult am apreciat ca regulile "jocului magiei" erau bine stabilite si nu se mai schimbau pe parcurs, putand uzita de ele atat cei buni cat si cei rai, Matt fiind si el inzestrat cu puteri magice.
Finalul lasa loc de continuare, acesta fiind primul roman din seria "Puterea celor 5" si in mod cert le voi citi si pe urmatoarele. Desi poate parea la prima vedere o carte pentru copii, sunt de parere ca textul se preteaza mai mult adolescentilor si adultilor.

[ezrasmischief · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty good book. I wouldn't say there were any memorable moments that I really adored, but the overall story was quite interesting. It had quite a pace and barely slowed down. I was hooked from the start and I am definitely going to read the rest of the series. Eventually. But there was something missing. Don't get me wrong, it was suspenseful. It should be a mini-series.
Let me see how I can phrase this.



It was...boring? No. Slow? Definitely not. It just didn't resonate with me. Yeah, I know it sounds pretentious like who am I to say that? I'm not a highly intellectual book critic getting paid millions to rifle through pages and publish my opinions (I wish) ...but it just didn't feel like it was...a feeling like...the thing is...feeling...resonate...words...yeah, nope I got nothing.
Maybe it's just the fact that the characters are all 14 year olds and there's very little I can find to relate to them. I understood Richard's predicament better. Also, there were some parts that we just boring but I think that's more my impatience to get on with the story than anything to do with the book.

But Anthony Horowitz is a legend. The core idea of this story is incredibly intricate and mystical, and I absolutely adore how he bothered explaining the precise operation of a nuclear reactor.
It appeals to the in me.

Anyway, this was the bizniz and I liked it a much lot and I am gonsta reads the next many.
Look at me being all "current" and "modern" and keeping up with the lingo. I am totes fitting in great.

[Shaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars
I really enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced, thrilling and creepy in all the right ways! I'll be continuing on with the series and I'm most hoping to see some character growth from our protagonist because this was the first book and there was a lot of build up, I feel like I didn't really get to know Matt as a character; most of his thoughts and dialogue were related to things happening around him which is why we didn't get to see him as himself. I actually laughed out loud quite a few times in this book which is always a good thing.

[Anastasia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Αρκετά καλό μπορώ να πω. Στην μέση έχασα λίγο το ενδιαφέρον μου για την πλοκή αλλά στο τέλος ήτανε καλύτερα.

[shameeka alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'M IN LOVE!!!

This book finally broke my one-star-reads spell!



Matthew "Matt" Freeman is not a normal kid. And he knows it.
He knew his parents were going to die even before it happened. He just doesn't know how...

Before proceeding with the review, I would like to thank Laura Pent for sending the book to me and luring me into reading it! Seriously. This was the best thing that ever happened to me! Okay, that was too dramatic. But you get the point.

The book starts with Kelvin, Matt's friend suggesting they rob a warehouse. Matt is initially reluctant, but then agrees as he fears he might lose his only friend.
In the warehouse, Matt gets caught by the guard but Kelvin tries to buy more time for their escape by hurting the guard. Matt is very unhappy about this and starts arguing with Kelvin. When Kelvin tries to escape, the police arrive and both of them are arrested.

Since Matt is too young (he's fourteen) to be put behind bars, he volunteers to get into a foster home under the LEAF (Liberty and Education Achieved through Fostering) project, as he is not happy living with Gwenda, his mother's half-sister.

He is sent to live with Jayne Deverill in Lesser Malling (a village). Clearly, Jayne Deverill is not pleasant and Investigator Mallory sympathizes with him.

A lot of weird things are going on in the village. Jayne's cat, the portrait at Hive Hall (Jayne's house) which seems to follow his movements with its eyes and keep changing poses, the villagers, the roads, the woods. Everything.

It was so creepy. Matt was being watched all the time.
Ugh. And I was so creeped out by Noah.

I didn't understand what was going on, initially. Just guessed that it had something to do with Raven's Gate. Of course.
But when the whole thing just unraveled itself, I knew I was in love.

The writing was so beautiful. I was literally jumping every time Matt tried to escape and groaned every time he failed. You could feel whatever the author was trying to convey. It was beautiful.

I'm not going to drop any spoilers. Or reveal any of the juicy parts. Just the fact that it was thrilling. And really amazing.

The book had so many elements. Throw in a little Stephen King, Night at the Museum, some magic and beautiful writing.. POOF! You get the perfect book.

I would recommend this book to those who don't mind (a lot of) twists, and those who aren't sick of fantasy or action yet.

*Excuses herself and gets ready to dive into the next book of the series*

Review also posted at: www.shameekalovesreading.wordpress.com

[Serena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Raven's Gate is the re-written form of The Devil's Door Bell (published 1985), I can't comment on what has and hasn't changed in the text of this version and Anthony Horowitz's book published over twenty years ago. I do know that the Pentagram Chronicles was a series that was never finished. I think that The Gatekeepers is finished.

In Raven's Gate, orphan Matt Freeman and his 'friend' Kalvin break into a warehouse and are caught in the act, Matt is given the option of possible jail time (because the guard who catches them is stabbed) or the LEAF project which will place him in a home for fostering. It's a choice -jail or freedom with a new guardian - that seems obvious, and LEAF is supposed to be voluntary.

Only Jayne Deverill of a farm in Lesser Malling is strange and potentially more dangerous than any jail. Raven's Gate combines the magic and savagery out of primeval times with the science and 'controls' of the modern day.

With the strange global group the Nexus watching and waiting in the background, only stepping forward when Matt and the reluctant but curious journalist who saves his life (and is saved in turn by Matt) - Richard Cole - approachs such members of their organization as Miss Ashwood and professor Sanjay Dravid. They say they are Matt's friends, but they in the end may only put him in more danger.

Yet something is stirring at Lesser Malling's Ravens Gate, something only Matt may stop, or free. There are meant to be five, four boys, one girl to save the world - and Matt may be one of them, where the others are and if Ravens Gate is the only Gate are hopefully answers to be found by the end of the series.

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the start of a new series by Anthony Horowitz, bordering on mild horror. I did not find this nearly as good as Stormbreaker. I felt like the first half of the book was spent setting the scene, with the protagonist, Matt, feeling bewildered by the unusual turns his life has taken. As part of an alternative discipline program, he has been sent to live and work in the country with creepy Miss Deverill and her even creepier handyman, Noah. When he tries to escape, all of the roads lead back to Miss Deverill's home. He finds a couple of allies, but both of them are killed while trying to help him. With the help of a newspaper reporter, Richard, he discovers that he may be being set up to be a sacrifice to open the Raven's Gate, which many years ago had been blocked to keep out the evil Old Ones. In the process, dinosaur fossils come to life, a nuclear reactor explodes (or did it?), and orphan Matt may have found a new home. Middle school boys and a few girls seem to like this one, but it didn't do anything for me.

[Susana · Rating 1 out of 5]

What possessed me to read this book?
Well, a couple years back i saw a couple of episodes of a series called Foyle's War.
The screenwriter was (is) Horowitz.
I was so impressed with it, that i took advantage of a Huge promotion to buy this book!

*Facepalm*

I now understand why it, and the following books are for sale at such low prices....

Imagine a mesh of all the fantasy and horror clichés you've ever read or heard about...yes?
That's what Raven's Gate is.

Characters with no depth. A story less than original and written without the slight finesse. The words and (basic) descriptions are just dumped on the paper.
Basically this reads as a draft, or a screenplay ( i imagine..).
Ideas perpetuated with this book: Witches are evil. Witchcraft is the same as Satanism...
He probably never heard of Wicca....

Oh, and reaching the end there's this pearl:

The medieval witch splits throats.
The twenty-first century witch splits atoms.
Tonight we shall do both.”

Really?
Idiot me. My idea was that women who were considered witches in the medieval times were slaughtered by a number of methods: Fire, drowning...
Oh, and is the author calling witches to women scientists? O_O

Here's an excerpt of an interview that the author gave to Teenreads:

TRC: You've stated that The Gatekeepers series is your answer to Narnia, Lord of the Rings and other fantasy heavyweights. How much have these other works inspired you?

AH: I loved these books when I was growing up and always wanted to write an epic fantasy series...but one set in the real world. There are elements of Tolkien and C. S. Lewis in The Gatekeepers, perhaps because I'm using some of the same sources (mythology, religion, ancient history). Writing battle scenes, it's very hard to do better than Tolkien --- particularly with Peter Jackson's wonderful films in mind.

"better than Tolkien"...right...NO!!

Read more here: Teenreads


Recommended to: No one

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Author Official Site

[colleen the convivial curmudgeon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Debating between 1 and 2 stars...

***

I decided to go 1, because I didn't like it. The best thing I can say about it, really, is that it was short. I will say 1.5, though, because I usually reserve 1s for books I just completely hate, and this didn't even annoy me enough to make me hate it - it was just stupid.

Basically, it takes a ton of horror story cliches - the ubiquitous Old Ones from another dimension wanting back in, the crazy villagers wanting to let them, performances of the Black Mass, which seemed to consist of saying the Our Father backwards - and couples this with cardboard characters, insipid writing, and corny dialogue.

It's like a bad B-horror movie, but without the charm to make it "so bad it's good", so it's left just being "so bad it's mediocre" which is just completely bad.

There were a few questions I was left with - like why does it have to be 4 boys and 1 girl who saves the universe? I'm sure - well, I would hope - that that would be explained in some future installment, since there are 5 books and we only meet Matt in this one. I, however, will never get that answer being as I will not continue the series.

My biggest question, though, was why the ritual for summoning the Old Ones at Raven's Gate - allegedly the first stone circle, thousands and thousands of years old, containing the purest ancient evil, of which the Christian devil and demons are but pale shadows - is a Black Mass, i.e. a perversion of a Christian ritual.

In other words, why make it an anti-Christian ritual that summons up creatures older than time at circles older than Christianity?

I'm betting there's not really an answer to this, and it just goes back to the "grab bag of horror cliches" thing, with no real rhyme or reason.

Blech.

Long story short -

If you're planning on reading this book:

[rachel, x · Rating 3 out of 5]

#2) Evil Star ★★☆☆☆

➸ Trigger warnings for abandonment, child abuse & neglect (on-page)*, suicide mentioned, drugging (on-page), blood & gore depiction, nonconsensual blood-drinking, hospitalisation mentioned, death of a mother & father in a car accident recounted, murder & attempted murder (on-page), gun violence, knife violence & stabbing (on-page), explosions (on-page), car accident (on-page), kidnapping (on-page), animal attack, and animal death (snake & cat).

*Context: This includes the protagonist's foster carer refusing to allow him to attend school; forcing him to work hard labour around her farm instead.

▷ Representation: blind sc; Peruvian sc.

Blog • Trigger Warning Database • StoryGraph

[Caitlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.6

I found it quite refreshing that a lot of people died

[Steff Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

| Reader Fox Blog |


I think the funniest thing about my absolute, unquestioned adoration for Raven's Gate by Anthony Horowitz is the fact that I don't typically read or enjoy anything that falls into the genre of horror. And I think it's fair to say that this novel definitely falls into that category. This was perhaps the first dark novel of this nature that I ever fell in love with. To this day I am overly fond of Raven's Gate and the series that it belongs to, which I do occasionally find rather baffling considering the fact that horror is not something I usually care to waste my time reading.

But with Raven's Gate I never once felt as though I was wasting my time. In fact, I've always been incredibly invested in the life and journey of the main character Matt, a young boy living with his mother's half-sister after the untimely death of his parents, who has always somehow managed to find trouble ever since. When an egregious mistake that involves the attack of a security guard, Matt is shipped off to a small village in the country as part of a government program to keep him out of prison. Unfortunately, Lesser Malling and his new guardian are not quite who they seem and soon Matt is in more trouble than he could have ever imagined.

Ironically, for how much I love this novel, I imagine I'll forever do a rather paltry job of selling it. I find it's somewhat difficult to describe how amazing the series is without giving away some pretty important spoilers. But basically it all comes down to the gatekeepers, of which Matt is currently unaware that he is one. It is this single fact that leads him down dangerous and scary roads to learn things he never imagined could be true about the world he lives in. There is a great evil that must be defeated, but one he knows precious little about thus far.

In my experience with this book, I can definitely see why someone might not love it. I recall recently looking at the reviews and feeling baffled by the fact that it's not more highly rated, but the truth is that the series does get off to somewhat of a slow start. And while I may have fallen deeply and desperately in love with the story, the plot, and the main characters I cannot really blame others for feeling as though it's difficult to get into. But if you can get into it, you leave reading the series utterly blown away. Raven's Gate is just the beginning, with Matt at the center of a plot to return an evil to the world that will destroy life entirely as we all know it. He may not yet be aware of who he is, but he will certainly find out soon.

| Reader Fox Links |

[Liz · Rating 2 out of 5]

There's very little in the core story of _Raven's Gate_ that's original. Horowitz borrows heavily both from older sci-fi/fantasy/horror works (Lovecraft and Stephen King, most noticeably) and mythology to create a world-within-a-world that in no way feels either new or particularly scary. If you read enough in the previously mentioned genres, you will have seen nearly all of these concepts used at least once elsewhere, and probably used better. And if you have seen them, then this story becomes utterly predictable.

Of course the entire village of Lesser Malling is part of the conspiracy and of course Matt can't get out without a special talisman. I can't recall how many horror books and movies have utilized that concept. We know Matt has some sort of special power from the onset so nothing about him is a surprise. The big climax of the book felt like a rehash of Lovecraft, only with a nuclear meltdown. And the way it was wrapped up really seemed far too contrived, convenient.

I have to agree with a previous reviewer that the reporter, Richard, seemed like something straight out of Stephen King's _Salem's Lot_, but less believable. His sudden attachment to Matt was jarring in the face of all his "just a story" talk from before. His surviving at all defies believability and it's obvious that he's only there because he'll be serving the function in the next book of an adult who can do things/get around obstacles that Matt can't, as well as providing a place for Matt to stay so the government can't get hold of him again. It's a useful purpose, true, but one that another adult should've been found for so Richard maintained his believability as a character.

The narration of the story flows well enough but it gets jarring whenever a point of view is suddenly switched mid-paragraph for no apparent reason. There are some pretty decent moments (Matt's last two escapes) where a good amount of tension is built up, and that at least stopped me from giving it one star, but it's not enough to make up for the sheer predictability of the whole story. From the minute Mrs. Deverill shows up, it's so very easy to guess exactly what's going to happen pages before it ever does, and that just makes for a dull read.

This looks to be a five book series, so hopefully the next one will have less of a derivative, rough draft feel to it.

[Leslie Mansilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever had a choice between going to jail or a foster home? What would you choose? I would choose a foster home because it's better than jail. The genre of this book is Realistic Fantasy because it feels like it can happen but you know it can't.

14-year-old Matthew Freeman helps out a boy to rob an electronics warehouse and is caught by a police. Then is sent to Lesser Malling. A women named Mrs. Deverill is Matthews foster parent. Matt starts hearing noises at night and plans an escape. When he chooses where to go he ends up at Lesser Malling. The major events that happened was when Matt had a horrible dream of a huge circle of granite stones and someone standing in the middle of it holding a knife pointing the knife at him directly in the eye. The conflict is person vs. person because he was the one that is seeing things and hearing them like when he saw a the women with the knife staring at him. `A major theme that occurred was when he got caught stealing mix tapes.

The setting of this book is important to the theme because is completely changes the story and the mood. For example, a quote that can back up my analysis is " There was an intersection coming up ahead of him. Matt slowed down coasting the last few meters. He looked around him. There was a choice of five directions and broken sign posts without any names. It took him half a minute to realize where he was. Somehow, the lane he dad chosen had brought him around in a big circle. He was back exactly where he had begun."

I like the way the author included whether he had a choice going to jail or going to a foster home. I liked it because it was a hard decision to make.

I would rate this book 5 out of 5 stars because I liked the story and it's kinda creepy and mysterious. I would recommend this book to Monica Rodriguez and Yael Guzman. I most definitely liked this book and hope that you will too.

[Arcadiac · Rating 5 out of 5]

As long as I live, I will NEVER forget the exhilarating, beautiful, original and suspenseful entertainment of The Gatekeepers series, or all of Anthony Horowitz's writing in general. I seriously wonder why it is not more popular! Perhaps it got overshadowed by the Alex Rider series? I can't see how; their genres are entirely different.

When I first read Raven's Gate, I thought, judging by the summary, that this would be mature enough for me to read. I was in the seventh grade, but I was an avid reader. Realistic fiction had begun to bore me long ago -- it didn't quite placate my imagination. So, I sought out fantasy and science fiction. Raven's Gate was one of the many that leapt out to me. And also one of the MANY novels that I assumed was going to be another long story with a great premise but with very little impact or influence.

I was wrong. Raven's Gate was brutal. It made me nervous in that amazing, refreshing way most suspense work does. At times, I was also keenly horrified. Appalled. Horowitz does not sugarcoat a thing. If he has it in his mind that a tragedy is going to happen, happen it does. Things literally come from out of nowhere -- even if you pay close attention to the details and foreshadowing he presents to you. Your mind will be on overload attempting to guess what would happen next. You wonder how Matt will get himself out of a predicament -- any and all outrageous things will happen.

The best thing about Raven's Gate -- and all of Horowitz's work -- are the characters. His flawless characters seem so real. They do things a lot of characters would do, cowardly, brave, or otherwise. And trust me, there are many badasses in Anthony Horowitz's work. They will amaze you.

For those that love (urban?) fantasy and heartstopping action, The Gatekeepers series is a must!

[#ReadAllTheBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always on the lookout for things that would interest my nephew, partially because we share a taste in books. (Or at least, he reads many books that I liked when I was his age.) As such, I usually tend to read much of the new books before I send them to him.

Raven's Gate is the first in a series of 5 books by Anthony Horowitz. The first book follows Matt, a young boy who has been enrolled into the LEAF program after being a somewhat unwilling accomplice in what should have been a simple snatch & grab theft. He's sent to the home of Ms. Deverill, a sinister old lady with whom Matt instantly distrusts. Matt soon discovers that there's something sinister going on, & that if he's not careful he will end up as one of the latest casualties in the town of Lesser Malling.

I really did enjoy this book, although there was one thing that sort of bugged me. It's nothing major, but if you are curious then I'll elaborate more in the comments section. (The gripe is sort of spoilerish.) The book wasn't as well fleshed out as I'd like, but then this is only the first volume in the series. I can't expect all of the secrets to be revealed in the first book, now can I?

The only thing I'd warn parents about is that there's a lot of violence in the book, with one character dying graphically in the course of the book. Since each parent is different when it comes to this sort of thing, I recommend that the parents read the book first & then discuss the content with their child after they've finished reading it. The book is quite good, so the parents shouldn't have any problem reading it. (Plus it's a great way to connect with your kid!)

I can't wait to read the rest of the series- this shows a lot of promise!

[Kadi P · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's not that the book was bad, it's just that the book was, well, unsatisfying.

This book was a whole load of cliche. Let's see...
Kid with amazing powers? Check.
Creepy-sounding, God-like, extremely old and powerful creatures? Check.
Special, secret organisation? Check.
Prophecy containing protagonist? Check.
There's a ton more but this review would be far too long if I included them all.

The book was basically the prologue to the entire series which contains 5 books (including this one) and that made the book just seem a bit unfinished and at times pointless. I mean, Horowitz alludes to 4 other powerful children (who eventually will become important characters in the next few books I'm sure) but not once in the book are their names mentioned or has anyone even considered who they might be. The premise of the book was good but once you get in about 50 pages everything just goes down South and it's like Horowitz wrote the first 50 pages when he had some semblance of what he wanted the book to be and then filled the rest of the book with cliches because his editor needed it to be done and he knew just his name on the cover was enough to sell the book.

To be honest, some parts I found were just too whimsical - even for a fantasy book. And if I'm going to be even more honest, I thought the most interesting part of the book was the excerpt from the next book that was at the end. And that sure does say a lot about how interesting I found this book.

Will I bother reading the next book? Maybe, but probably not. There are better books out there to spend my time reading...

[Erika · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off, i want to say that i read first Necropolis which is the book 4 in this fabulous series. The gatekeepers is sooo awesome!!, it has supernatural events, suspense, action, it's thrilling, it's so wonderful, i love it.

Even though i first read the book 4 in the series, i could perfectly get into the story, Anthony Horowitz, explains there some things that happened in the previous books, so that if someone like me happened to commit the mistake of reading the 4th book first instead of starting since the beginning could understand the idea of the series. Also, even though he explains things from the previous books, when i decided to read the first three books i didn't feel like i was totally spoiled, i enjoyed each and every one of them because the plot is just so unexpected in every book.

The story in this particular book, Raven's gate, takes place in London, where you get to know Matt, a normal kid who gets involved in some trouble and ends up arrested. so he has to decide whether he wants to go to jail or take part in what they call the LEAF project. After he makes his decision he started to get aware of some things that were happening there, and he gets to know that he's special, that he's not just a normal kid, but he's part of something else, something bigger.

The story is fantastic, i think everyone should give it a try, this is a series i absolutely adore, and i wish more people knew about.

[Sky Rose Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't read this book, I devoured it. Never mind the fact that I have read it before in the distance past, even when the memories of the book seeped back into my brain I didn't care because it was so damn good.

This book is simply magnificent, it is strange, mysterious and at time freaking terrifying.Someone should really consider turning it in to a movie, its simply that good.

I love Matt as a character, he is not whiny or incompetent rather he comes out strong and a little rebellious. The only problem I have with his character is that he acted too old for his age. I mean what 14 year old boy can chop fire wood all day right. Maybe if he was 16 it would be perfectly believable.

I really sympathized with Matt and at times I found myself egging him on to be more rebellious more hands on with the woman who is basically holding him captive.Once again I can not stress how creepy this book really is, half the time you have no idea what the hell is really going on and who is on his side. It's a bizarre mix of fear, fury and adrenaline.


The verdict.

I loved this book. I read it in one sitting only getting up for the essential Sprite.

Overall.

I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.