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Neil Peel's Rival
“Damian turned his glance towards me, raising his left eyebrow twice before sneering. Had he spotted that I had a crush on Fleur within thirty seconds of being in the classroom? I was going to have to be on my guard right from day one.”
Neil Peel’s back for his second year at Titfield School, but a new boy called Damian Devlin has taken an instant dislike to him. As if he didn’t have enough to manage with his new role as a sport prefect, his odious sister, Lemony, mocking him at every turn, and his growing feelings for Fleur, the girl he likes.
Damian seems to be gathering allies among the cool gang at school while Neil relies on his Dungeons and Dragons playing underdog friends, Stephen, Cameron and Grub for support. The two go head to head over a Valentine’s Day card fiasco, the Year 8 disco and the dreaded sex education lesson, all while tangling over who will get the part of Fleur’s love interest in the school play.
A bout of food poisoning, vivid, cheese-induced dreams, being very silly in town, the further vile acts of devilish cousin Nicolae, genuine miracles with religious Auntie Sue, and the aftermath of Lemony’s Durty Dreamz concert keep Neil’s life anything but boring!
This lively year in Neil’s life will come to an unforgettable final showdown on a very public stage, but who will come out on top?
Prepare for the hilarious and heartfelt antics of Neil Peel, the boy who always tells the truth.
Neil Peel’s back for his second year at Titfield School, but a new boy called Damian Devlin has taken an instant dislike to him. As if he didn’t have enough to manage with his new role as a sport prefect, his odious sister, Lemony, mocking him at every turn, and his growing feelings for Fleur, the girl he likes.
Damian seems to be gathering allies among the cool gang at school while Neil relies on his Dungeons and Dragons playing underdog friends, Stephen, Cameron and Grub for support. The two go head to head over a Valentine’s Day card fiasco, the Year 8 disco and the dreaded sex education lesson, all while tangling over who will get the part of Fleur’s love interest in the school play.
A bout of food poisoning, vivid, cheese-induced dreams, being very silly in town, the further vile acts of devilish cousin Nicolae, genuine miracles with religious Auntie Sue, and the aftermath of Lemony’s Durty Dreamz concert keep Neil’s life anything but boring!
This lively year in Neil’s life will come to an unforgettable final showdown on a very public stage, but who will come out on top?
Prepare for the hilarious and heartfelt antics of Neil Peel, the boy who always tells the truth.
228 pages, Paperback
Published October 23, 2022
About the author
Ben Dixon
5 books10 followersBen Dixon is a father of four children and the author behind the world of Neil Peel and more recently the Heroic Quests sword and sorcery novels, Vengeance and Honour and Honour and Blood. He grew up in Yorkshire, grew up a bit more in Leicestershire before moving to settle in Surrey. The Heroic Truths of Neil Peel was his first novel in 2020, followed by Neil Peel's Holiday (2021) and Neil Peel's Rival (2022). Vengeance and Honour was published in late 2024with Honour and blood following in 2026. He lives in Guildford.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 2, 2023
I'm sad to have now finished all of the Neil Peel books; they've been a really fun reminiscence of my pre-teens.
In this book, Neil's new classmate, Damian Devlin has a grudge against Neil right from the start. Dixon deals really well with bullying and clearly has experience in how bullies operate.
What he also does well is writing pre-teens; Neil's group of friends are loveable and believable, sometimes reminding me of the Losers in IT. My favourite character though is actually Neil's dad; I love the dad jokes!
As well as Neil's school rival, he also gets experience of dating, and of living with other members of his family. My favourite part of the book was where he lived with his religious Aunt, Sue for a few days. She took him to her church where he met her vicar and hilarity ensued.
What's really wonderful about these books is that adults can enjoy them too. It's been a lovely, lighthearted bedtime read, although my boyfriend probably wouldn't agree, with my giggling!
I highly recommend these books to adults and kids alike; they're good fun and their overall message is that kindness always pays.
In this book, Neil's new classmate, Damian Devlin has a grudge against Neil right from the start. Dixon deals really well with bullying and clearly has experience in how bullies operate.
What he also does well is writing pre-teens; Neil's group of friends are loveable and believable, sometimes reminding me of the Losers in IT. My favourite character though is actually Neil's dad; I love the dad jokes!
As well as Neil's school rival, he also gets experience of dating, and of living with other members of his family. My favourite part of the book was where he lived with his religious Aunt, Sue for a few days. She took him to her church where he met her vicar and hilarity ensued.
What's really wonderful about these books is that adults can enjoy them too. It's been a lovely, lighthearted bedtime read, although my boyfriend probably wouldn't agree, with my giggling!
I highly recommend these books to adults and kids alike; they're good fun and their overall message is that kindness always pays.
October 26, 2022
Another eye-wateringly funny tale from Ben Dixon in this third instalment of the Neil Peel Trilogy. Neil Peel's Rival tells the story of our titular hero in Year 8 at Titfield school and the return of many well-loved characters from the previous two books. Ben is a master of the pun, the double entendre, the casually hidden references to popular culture, the hilarious set pieces and the perfectly executed fart joke. All the threads come together cleverly at the end to show that Neil Peel and his gang really are a very likeable lot indeed. Highly recommended.
January 17, 2023
Neil Peel is back for the third and final instalment of this hugely entertaining trilogy about ‘the boy who always tells the truth.’ Having returned from his Summer holiday which was featured in the last book and now entering his second year at Titfield School Neil has to cope with the arrival of the very dastardly Damian Devlin who seems to show up at every turn to put poor Neil down and to destroy his budding relationship with the lovely Fleur.
Ben Dixon is on top form and writes with great beauty as well as naughtiness in evoking scenes from Neil’s life. Hilarious episode follows hilarious episode with football matches, sex education lessons, food poisoning, the school disco and the teenage love all making an appearance.
The action builds towards the climactic face-off between Neil and Damian. The only question I was left with is that Neil still has a good few years to go before he leaves school and I wonder whether the author will be tempted to write more. If he feels that Neil has now lost his innocence perhaps there is some mileage in exploring the options of 3 prequels.
I loved this book. It had me laughing out loud on many occasions and I shall miss Neil if we do not see him again.
Ben Dixon is on top form and writes with great beauty as well as naughtiness in evoking scenes from Neil’s life. Hilarious episode follows hilarious episode with football matches, sex education lessons, food poisoning, the school disco and the teenage love all making an appearance.
The action builds towards the climactic face-off between Neil and Damian. The only question I was left with is that Neil still has a good few years to go before he leaves school and I wonder whether the author will be tempted to write more. If he feels that Neil has now lost his innocence perhaps there is some mileage in exploring the options of 3 prequels.
I loved this book. It had me laughing out loud on many occasions and I shall miss Neil if we do not see him again.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews