The sections of the book from her point of view are outstanding, written to intrigue but cleverly structured so as not to give too much away. We see our main characters suffer a devastating loss, but from this they develop a new strength and fierce determination to stop the evil plans of Lucretia. While I preferred part one, this was also a great, exciting read with lots of twists, turns and of course many many amazing beetles.

Just like standard Earth insects, the Worker Beetles and Beetle Guards all serve a Queen, which we recently discovered during an archeological dig. Leonard's ability to combine such fierce wit, adventure and addictive characters makes every Dahl comparison I've read completely well founded. The first book in MG Leonard's acclaimed trilogy, followed by Beetle Queen and Battle of the Beetles!They also boast eye-catching cover art by Elisabet Portabella and humourous inside illustrations by Karl James Mountford. This experience has been fantastic primarily for the children, the school and also for me (professionally). This book especially gives Bertolt some time to shine as he tries to defend Beetle Mountain by himself.

And what does a beetle have to do with the disappearance of his dad and the arrival of Lucretia Cutter, with her taste for creepy jewellery? It seems there are further secrets to uncover, including a particularly grisly matter that will shock Darkus to the core. The tension builds up brilliantly to a spectacular showdown at the Film Awards ceremony which is being televised globally where Lucretia finally reveals her true identity and her goal for world domination.When Darkus, Virginia and Bertolt discover further evidence of her evil, they’re determined to stop her. The Queen will spend at least 2 seconds in this behavior, even if it has sufficient attack speed to execute it faster. Lucretia Cutter and her evil yellow ladybirds are making trouble again; splicing some unethical creations together in her secret lab. The illustrations are super stylish and there are some skin-crawling scenes involving the evil Lucretia. I have even talked the head into a little revamp of the library so that we can display them properly!