Review – Krakens and Lies (The Menagerie, Book 3) by Tui Sutherland and Kari Sutherland (4.5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Middle Grade
Genre: Fantasy
Size: 368 pages
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release Date: March 10, 2015
ISBN-13: 978-0060780678
Stand Alone or Series: 3rd book in the Menagerie series
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

This is the third and final book in the Menagerie series. This book was an excellent conclusion to this middle grade contemporary fantasy. I actually enjoy this series a lot more than Tui Sutherland’s Wings of Fire series. You definitely need to read the previous books in this series to understand what’s going on in this one.

For the whole series someone has been sabotaging the Menagerie. It is up to Logan and Zoe to unravel the mystery of who this someone is. Things get worse when someone lets out the Basilisk and the mermaids (fearing for their safety and being generally difficult) decide go on strike. Logan fears the worst when they see his dad sneaking around the Menagerie at night.

I really love the unique magical creatures featured throughout. In this book we get to meet the Kraken, a Chinese Dragon, and a few other very intriguing creatures.

I also really enjoyed the solid friendships the characters develop; in this book we meet Matthew’s potential girlfriend and Zoe and Jasmine start to mend their broken friendship. Additionally I love the wonderful relationships the kids have with their families. The kids and the parents work together to solve problems, the parents are supportive and understanding the majority of the time. I love seeing a great story with functional families in it.

This story is mostly a mystery where are characters have to solve the puzzle of who is sabotaging the Menagerie. I have really enjoyed this series a lot and would love to see a spin-off series about Logan and Zoe on future adventures with these crazy magical creatures.

Overall this was an incredibly fun read. I highly recommend this whole series to fans of middle grade fantasy. I think it’s a book both middle grade readers and adults can enjoy. I would also recommend Brandon Mull’s Fablehaven series.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– Series Enders Reading Challenge
– You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge
– Mythology Reading Challenge
– Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge