The Last Chance for Logan County

A Legendary Alston Boys Adventure #3

by Lamar Giles, Derick Brooks (Illustrator)

In this third Legendary Alston Boys adventure from Edgar Award-nominated author Lamar Giles, Otto and Sheed have to team up with the Ellison twins to take down a corporation obsessed with the weirdness of Logan County and that's turning its residents into Money-Zombies. Otto and Sheed are back in yet another legendary adventure that just might take all their deduction skills, and a good bit of help from friends and family, to solve. With the Rorrim Mirror Emporium closed and their adventures through the last mirror on the left behind them, Otto and Sheed are ready for things to get back to normal. But the FixItYall that Sheed took warned of side effects and they quickly come true--starting with a thunderstorm raining frogs. But that's only the beginning. Teachers begin quitting suddenly, vets leave their animals behind, and a strange goat starts delivering takeout orders. When a suspicious company known as GOO, obsessed with Logan County's weirdness, shows up and starts buying all the property in town and threatening to take Sheed away after some strange new energy is traced back to him, the Legendary Alston Boys of Logan County, along with Otto's mom, Sheed's dad, and the Ellison twins, have to find a way to save their town and keep their family together.

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Childrens, Humor, Fiction

288 pages, Hardcover

First published October 19, 2021

About the author

Lamar "L. R." Giles writes books for teens and adults. FAKE ID, his debut Young Adult Thriller, will be published by HarperCollins in 2014. He is represented by Jamie Weiss Chilton of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency and resides in Chesapeake, VA with his wife.

Reviews

[Jamal Ahamad · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know I’m biased, but there’s no way that I can give a book less than 5 Stars when it actively fills a void that I never knew I had. Black kids going on fun adventures, using their smarts, and relying on their connection and service to the community to establish themselves as legends and all without relying on the plight of racism in America as an underlying theme? Yeah— that’s a 5 Star!

[Chandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Alston cousins are back at it again! I love that these young men are looking out for their family and each other so tough. In book 3 they team up with the Ellison sisters to save their city, homes and family. I’m not a big sci-fi reader, but this series was nice. A good way to open young readers creative side, get hooked on the action/super hero type action scenes and know it is okay to still be a kid.

[Antoinette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Alston Boys are back!! Sheed's FixItYall side effects are creating even more weirdness in Logan County and the boys are trying to save it and keep their family together. When a company, GOO, comes along and starts buying up all the property in Logan County, Otto and Sheed have to put their keys to the city to good use. I enjoyed being able to read more about the Epic Ellison sisters, the hint of romance that came along with them and getting to meet Otto and Sheed's parents. As they deal with raining frogs, transfixed community members and glowing Urays, Otto and Sheed do what they do best, using maneuvers, logic and luck to keep GOO from changing their county.
Thanks Net Galley and Clarion/Versify

[Jocelin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the final installment of the Legendary Alston boys. This one was interesting and weird. When I started this series, I was not sure I would stick around for the subsequent books in the trilogy. The first one was ok. The second one, was a lot better. I think out of the 3 books the 2nd one is by far the best one. The characters in the book were very well written and incredibly likable. They are the stars of this series (note to author, this trilogy would make a great television series!).

The interesting part of this final book was that Sheed and Otto's parents are talented "super" heroes! The weird element of this book was that the main villain was a creature from the H.P. Lovecraft Cthulhu universe: Nyarlathotep (a villian that had three ladies attached to a sepent's body.) They were the evil owners of a corporation called GOO, Inc. (Great Old Ones, another Lovecraftian reference) To me they were more reminiscent of the Gorgons in Greek mythology. Also, a goat named Michael Jordan (yes, I get the pun). Logan county has an abundance of weird but, some of this really took the cupcake.

The author Lamar Giles has a great talent for crafting likeable characters and an abundance of creativity. He created a world where the "what if" was possible. Their adventures were straight out of an author's imagination that embraced the purity of a child's imagination.

Last Chance for Logan County was a delight to read, and I will treasure the time that I had with the Alston boys.

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the last in Sheed and Otto's Logan County adventures, and it really is a "last chance" this time.

The Fixitall cure that Sheed took in the mirror world is having…consequences. Sheed glows. So strongly, it's felt around the world. He's emitting U-rays.

And they draw weirdness to Logan County by the … storm full of toothed frogs?

Worse, Sheed and Otto's parents have taken jobs with GOO, Inc. and they work for its creepy three-headed CEO. They're rationalizing working for what simply must be an evil organization buying up real estate to gentrify the county and turn Logan's residents into unthinking Money Zombies.

The parents are home, but not for long. They plan on splitting up the cousins and moving away from Grandma's house and Logan.

It all appears hopeless until, with the Epic Ellison twins, they make their way to the Mayor's office and learn the keys to the county aren't purely ceremonial. They have purpose. A real purpose. And the strange goat, Michael Jordan, that's been harrying them from the start can possibly lead them to a solution to this mess -- at Monty FISHto's.

I can't say any more! You'll have to read to find out how it ends. Just know, it's a great adventure to end an incredibly imaginative trilogy. Enjoy!

Looking for more book suggestions for your 7th/8th grade classroom and students?

Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/

[Mieke McBride · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am so sad to see this trilogy come to a close (I assume?) Just such a lovely, clever, and very very strange set of books that was so fun to read with my 5 and 7 year old over the last year. Sheed and Otto are cousins who live with their grandma in Fry, Virginia, where they (in friendly rivalry with Wiki and Leen Ellison, who need their own spin off series) frequently have to save the town from all kinds of weirdness. And the town gets so weird (for reasons explained in the previous book) that a giant evil corporation steps in to sell the houses and businesses to out of towners as very expensive “weirderfront” property. I almost gave this 3 stars because a weakness of this book is that there are just so many strange characters and plot elements, with a lot that feel like they get lost. (Ahem, talking monkey.) But that issue is probably what made it such a fun compelling read aloud book with kids. At this point, I just want to read anything Giles writes because such a unique ride!

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an electronic ARC from Clarion Books through NetGalley.
Giles continues the fun in this third book. The cousins face their largest challenge yet when they have to take on GOO corporation and their evil intentions. This is compounded as Otto's parents work for them. Also adding to the weirdness happening around them - Sheed now glows when he is relaxed or angry (a side effect of saving both their lives in the second book).
Giles keeps the surprises coming as the parents return home and the Alston Boys learn to work with the Ellison twins, and all the generations work together to save Logan County from GOO and the Money Zombies they create. Lots of humor and adventure to appeal to middle grade readers of various levels. This story wraps up their adventures in a happy ending style but I hope Giles brings them back as they grow up.

[L.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series so much! This book was a commentary on gentrification and it was so spot on! Greedy people with $ for eyes, greedy corporations looking to snatch up as much land as they can to ruin what makes the community so appealing in the first place. Again with the pithy comments like "You don't want to be here when the art galleries arrive!" and "Don't eat the gelato!"

Roald Dahl was one of my favorite authors as a kid and this brings back the joy that his books brought to me over multiple readings throughout my life. Giles is a great author and the Ruffin Prentiss did a wonderful job on the audiobooks. I would give this 10 stars if I could!

[Yapha · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this third book about the Legendary Alstons (and the Epic Ellisons), the fate of their local community is once again in their hands! Otto's mom and Sheed's dad show up, putting an interesting twist on things. I was glad to see Wiki & Leen playing a larger role as well. My only criticism is that anyone with money is portrayed as evil or crazy. This would be fine as a conclusion to the series, however the end of the book also leaves it open to continuation. For fans of the series, grades 4 & up. I highly recommend reading them in order.

eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 3 in series
Cousins Otto and Sheed are hanging out at home with Grandma when there is a storm of frogs. And not your ordinary frogs. These frogs have sharp teeth and are gnawing their way into the house. Turns out that Logan county is the center for weird happenings and Sheed is the one who is ultimately responsible for it. This does bring Otto's mom and Sheed's dad back home to help try to take care of all the crazy things happening in the town.
A little bit of everything in this series: action, humor, sci-fi, family relationships, mystery... but it all comes together quite well.

[Christie]

Logan County is a place unlike any other! Things that happen there are always interesting and exhilarating, though that sometimes comes from excitement and other times from fear and worry! The adventures and dangers the Legendary Alston boys and the people around them experience are certainly a wild ride. The books in this series are pure fun to read, and the third one falls right in line with that. Page after page delivers so many unique characters and situations to navigate through.

[Ellee Nichols · Rating 4 out of 5]

Copyright date: 2021
Star rating: 4
Award: Time Magazine best children's book
Genre: chapter book
Summary w/ themes: This is the last book in the series where two cousins have to fight a giant monster to save their town.
Use for future classroom: Good classroom library book
Thoughts of book: I enjoyed this book and I really liked the storyline, I think this might be my favorite on in the series.

[Blake · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hope there are more books with these characters, but this was definitely the end of an arc. This is exactly the kind of zany science fiction I would have absolutely loved when I was a kid. Even as an adult, I enjoyed it quite a bit.

[Raechel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The boys are back, but this time so are their parents. The strange things in Logan County have ramped up and they must work together with the town to save their home. Finally meeting the parents was interesting and learned quite a bit about the family. Such a good ending.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is rare to find a book like this that is full of adventure, imagination, fun, etc. with black boys as the protagonist. My son has loved every book in this trilogy. He's 14, which is a little old for the series, but anything that makes him excited to read is 5 star to me!

[Sydney Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being with Otto and Sheed again was quite a fun ride. This story follows them facing capitalism with bravery and ingenuity. This series is hilarious. Giles has an excellent senes of humor. I appreciate how he leans into the tropes and ridiculousness of middle fantasy!

[Trigger Warning Database]

Trigger & Content Warnings

Explosion

[Grace T · Rating 4 out of 5]

this whole series is so fun!

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Wrong illustrator listing though

[Anthea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually care whether a book gets adapted for TV/movie, but this would make such an awesome show. The kids and I love this series.

[Marcia Van Camp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eldest loved it

[Jill]

J FIC GILES, L.

[Kendra McIntyre · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an adventure and close to the trilogy of the Legendary Alston Boys! I loved the wrap up and meeting Otto and Sheed's parents. Lamar Giles is clever and tells a great story. I loved the inclusion of Michael Jordan, the goat. That was slick. I am interested in knowing what the Epic Ellison's adventures were and maybe a prequel telling how Fry got to be so weird. More from Lamar Giles will never be bad.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our family loves this series. We have hard copies and also listen to the audio. Both are great. This is a series I often find myself recommending to other parents with middle grade readers.