The year is1940. The setting is the Raffles Hotel,
Singapore. Lizard is very poor and lives in a cupboard space above a tailor’s
shop in Chinatown. It is the home that Lili found for him. He survives with
work from Boss Man Beng – running errands and the occasional stealing.
When Lizard is sent to Suite 70 in the Palm Court
Wing to steal a teak box and deliver it at a specific time and place to Beng,
he is surprised by Georgina, the daughter of the room’s occupants. Lizard manages
to get away, but finds Beng dead when he reaches their rendezvous. This cements
Georgina’s role in the story.
A chain of events makes the clever and street-wise
Lizard question the value of a box that is worth a man’s life. But it isn’t the
box, but what is in it that the story is built around. This makes Lizard trust
no one as he could be the next to die.
A book of codes, a Japanese plan to invade
Singapore, secretly trained child spies and people who are not what they seem,
are the building blocks of this well-crafted and exciting tale of intrigue and
espionage in time of war.
The story is character and plot driven. The main characters
are courageous children; fearless and daring. Georgina is a headstrong,
manipulative daughter of a diplomat. Lily is a tailor’s daughter but is far more
than she appears to be. Lizard has a history before the event, and his life
plan comes full circle in an unexpected climax. The adult and minor characters
are also outstanding despite the fact that some have minimal or walk on, walk
off appearances.
I love these types of novels that are inspired by
historical facts and real life people who are taken and used, as foundations
for a thrilling fictional story. It’s a novel that will send interested readers
straight to Google to uncover more information about the characters,
situations, time and places that have been used.
A debut novel, Lizard’s
Tale will be read in one sitting for there’s no way that it can be put down
before the last page is read. I’m positive that we will hear more from this
excellent writer, as her style is as unique as her voice.
Title:
Lizard’s Tale
Author:
Weng Wai Chan
Illustrator:
Sara Allen
Publisher:
Text Publishing, $16.99
Publication
Date: July 2019
Format:
Paperback
ISBN:
9781925603910
For
ages: 10+
Type:
Middle Grade Fiction
Read the fascinating guest post by author, Weng Wai Chan and learn more about the city of Singapore in which this exciting story is set.