Questers Academy: The Box of Locks

LoveReading4Kids Says

The London Eye Mystery meets Night at the Museum, but with a high-stakes treasure hunt and quest to save its protagonist’s dad, Sam Hay’s The Box of Locks, first book in the Questers Academy series, is a puzzle-packed trove of magical adventure.  

While waiting for his family outside the Natural History Museum, Tom, a boy with an uncanny ability to remember faces, encounters energetic, sharp-witted Leesha, whose aunt Chloe works at the museum. “There’s been a break-in,” she tells him. Soon after, Tom’s facial recognition ability enables him to identify the intruder who stole a mythical firebird, which leads to Leesha telling him about the Questers Academy, which is part of the Questers Agency that “finds and protects all the rare things in the museum. The dangerous things!”.  

Among these dangerous things is the Box of Locks. Containing the ominously-named doom stone, the firebird thief has the box AND twenty-nine of its thirty keys. Adding to the peril, agency boss Edward reveals, “If we fail to find the box… the world as we know it will be changed”.  At the same time, the situation has put Tom’s father in grave danger, which means the stakes couldn’t be higher as the duo embark on a London-wide quest to find the last key, deciphering codes as they go.  

The first-person, present-tense narrative makes the story immediately arresting, with an urgency that’s sure to keep mystery-loving 8+-year-olds turning the pages. In addition, The Box of Locks explores themes of confidence, courage and friendship, and is a great way to ignite a love of fiction in kids who tend to prefer puzzles and non-fiction.

Reviewed by Joanne Owen
Joanne Owen is a writer, reviewer and workshop presenter whose lifelong love of books began when she was growing up in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
More reviews by Joanne Owen

About Questers Academy: The Box of Locks

Tom Friday was never meant to be a magic-guarding, artefact-finding, ultra-brave secret agent. But on a visit to the Natural History Museum he gets embroiled in the world of the Questers Academy - protectors of mythical treasures from around the world.

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