The Secret of Sabrina Fludde

Plynlimon

by Pauline Fisk

Abren is washed ashore along the Welsh river Sabrina Fludde, inexplicably alone. Who is she? Where did she come from and where is her family? As Abren seeks answers to the unknowns in her life, she encounters several other characters, mysterious in their own right. The thread that weaves their stories together is the mystical river and it is the same river that, in the end, will link Abren to her past. Expertly grounded in place and character, legend comes to life in this first of a three-book arc.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Mystery, Childrens

250 pages, Hardcover

First published May 3, 2002

About the author

Died January 25, 2015.

Pauline Fisk is the author of eleven novels for young people of all ages. More can be found about her by going to her website.

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

It started out OK, but the story never developed enough for me. It seemed like the author kept dragging out the main story line and never arrived at any solid plot. It was entertaining until the part near the end when the main character finds out who her parents are and what she really is. Kinda anti-climatic for me.

[Gary Pryke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Starts in quite an interesting way, rushes along picking up speed but then meanders before tailing off to a dribble. Good enough for me to finish but dull enough for me to feel that it was perhaps a waste of time.

[Stephen Hayes · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book where the protagonist has no memory and no motive seems pretty weird and pointless. A girl washes up on a river bank in a town she doesn't remember having been in before. She doesn't remember her family, her name or her past, yet seems to remember how things work and what people use them for. People befriend her, and she runs away, without ant discernible motive.

About halfway through the story began to perk up. There is a rising sense of danger, and things begin to look more and more ominous, and there was actually some tension/ I even began to care for the main character, and what might happen to her. But after about 50 pages that all disappears into a bog.

A characterless and motiveless main character and all the other characters being like shopwindow mannequis doesn't make for a very interesting book. At one point the main character is a puddle of water, and she might as well have been that for the rest of the book. After reading this one I have more appreciation for those writing manuals that stress the importance of motivation in the characters in a story.

[Nhaoyjj · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting..

[Tiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

In all honesty, I started reading this book thinking that I was going to dislike it for some reason.

Although he grammar is horrible, (there are more sentences starting with the words 'and' and 'but' then I have EVER seen in my life) I still really liked the book. I couldn't bring myself to give it a 5-star rating due to this fact though, seeing that it's one of my biggest pet peeves.

[Z · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was not a big fan of this book. Something about it seemed too simplistic to me, though it's hard for me to figure out exactly what that was. Still, the girl-goes-on-a-quest story line wasn't too bad.

[Belle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Who am I? Where am I? Why am I here? Where did I come from?
The girl nicknamed Abren asks herself these questions because she truly doesn't know. Can she find out before it's too late to get home?

[Selah Bell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Who am I? Where am I? Why am I here? Where did I come from?
The girl nicknamed Abren asks herself these questions because she truly doesn't know. Can she find out before it's too late to get home?

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intriguing story of a lost girl swept down-river and the adventures she has when she struggles out on to dry land. A bit stilted at one point, but a really good tale nonetheless. Enjoyable.