Synopsis
Linus Bailey's tenth birthday, if measured on some kind of “So how did it go then?” scale, would score a one. Maybe a bit less. It started well, but then things went very badly indeed.
Linus' problem is that he makes things up. He claims, for instance, that his mother was found living as a head hunter in the jungles of Borneo. His dad, a man called Nigel who Linus hasn't seen since he was two, is a Ninja Warrior currently living in Japan. His dad fights crime and saves people. Linus' headmaster is evil and his jumper was knitted by slaves.
Linus has reached a turning point in his young life. On the eve of his birthday he is asked to tell the class which family member he admires the most. Having been told not to tell the class that his father is a ninja, and worried that his mother (a woman who's cooking won a Nobel Peace Prize) and his wheelchair-bound sister (despite having the biggest wheels of anyone he knew) would be too dull as objects of his admiration, he invents an uncle who owns the left hand side of the mighty Amazon river. This gets him into trouble.
As his birthday looms large on the horizon, Linus' invented reality begins to encroach upon his humdrum life. Coal miners in the garden, a camel, a Norwegian Viking hat salesman, these things are a prelude to the evil he unleashes in the form of The Evil Lord of Mortar and his band of giant mutant squirrel henchmen. The lives of Linus and those he loves hang in the balance, and only one person can save them. A ninja warrior from Yorkshire called Nigel Bailey, Linus' long-lost dad.
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Story Elements
Setting
Geography: | Earth |
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Realism: | World is similar to ours, but plot elements involve fantasy or magic |
Setting Type: | Pastoral (rural & small towns) |
Time Period: | 2010 - 2019 |
Main Character
Age: | Child |
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Gender: | Male |
Race: | Caucasian European |
Religion: | Irrelevant |
Sexual Preference: | Irrelevant or N/A |
Styles & Themes
Humor: | Humor throughout |
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Inspires Reader to Feel: | N/A or None of the above |
Mysteries & Puzzles: | None or only very minor mysteries |
Pacing: | Moves quickly |
Physical Action: | Frequent action, driven by threat to safety or life by antagonist(s) |
Political/Social Commentary: | Politics irrelevant to story |
Romance: | No romantic elements |
Genre | Fantasy |
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