‘The Gateway’ series: The Four Fingered Man and The Warriors of Brin-Hask (Cerberus Jones, Hardie Grant Egmont)

The brilliantly named Cerberus Jones is actually a pseudonym for three authors, Chris Morphew, Rowan McAuley and David Harding, who are already bestsellers in the middle-grade market. So when they combine their talents in this new adventure series, expectations are high. Does ‘The Gateway’ deliver? Yes, but only to a degree: the narrative needs improvement and a sense of urgency added, as it takes a while for the plot to unfold. The Gateway is the name of a ramshackle hotel built atop a secret space portal where guests arrive from other planets. Amelia and her new friend Charlie soon realise they are standing in the middle of an intergalactic superhighway. The first book introduces Tom, the cranky caretaker who plays a pivotal role in the transportation of alien life, in particular, a reptilian creature who assumes human form. The second book features robot rats that battle with pigeon-sized, brightly coloured warriors. There’s a bit about health inspectors investigating the family’s ability to maintain gateway control, but frankly the series would be better served if there were more aliens running amok. The first two books have human/non-human skirmishes within the hotel’s premises; it would be interesting to see if they are allowed to roam further in subsequent books.  

Thuy On is a Melbourne-based reviewer and books editor of the Big Issue