Stoneheart trilogy facts for kids
First UK edition of Stoneheart
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| Author | Charlie Fletcher |
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| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Children's |
| Publisher | Hodder |
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Publication date
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19 October 2006 (UK) 1 May 2007 (US) |
| Pages | 496 (UK) 464 (US) |
| ISBN | 978-0-340-91162-4 |
| OCLC | 70401626 |
| Followed by | Ironhand |
The Stoneheart trilogy is a series of three exciting fantasy novels written by Charlie Fletcher. Published between 2006 and 2008, the books are Stoneheart, Ironhand, and Silvertongue. They tell the story of two kids, George and Edie, who find themselves caught in a secret war. This war is fought by living statues hidden in the heart of London.
Imagine London, but with a secret layer on top! That's where this war happens. The statues and the children can see and interact with the normal world. But regular people have no idea this amazing, hidden reality exists all around them.
Contents
What Happens in the Books?
Stoneheart: The First Adventure
The story begins when George is on a school trip to the Natural History Museum. He gets upset and, in a fit of anger, breaks off the head of a stone dragon on a wall. This small act changes everything! A stone pterodactyl suddenly peels itself off the building and starts chasing him. Three stone salamanders join the chase too!
As George runs, he bumps into the Gunner. The Gunner is a statue of a World War I soldier. He helps George escape the chasing statues. The Gunner explains that by breaking the dragon, George has entered a different world. It's like an "un-London" where statues can move and talk!
In this hidden world, all the statues are either "Spits" or "Taints." They are locked in a quiet war. No one else can see what's happening to George, except for a girl named Edie Laemmel. Edie is a "glint." This means she has a special power to experience past events just by touching stones.
But breaking the dragon also alerted a dangerous enemy called the Walker. The Walker is a servant of the Stone. He hunts George and Edie with the help of his own servant, the Raven.
George soon discovers he has special powers too. A wise statue called the Black Friar tells George he is a "maker." A maker has a special gift for shaping things from stone or metal. The Friar also tells them they must find the "Stone Heart." They need to put the broken dragon carving back to fix what George did.
During their journey, the Gunner sacrifices himself to save Edie. He falls into the Walker's hands. Now, it's up to George to use his new maker gifts to rescue Edie. By doing so, he risks his own safety. He is now fated to take "The Hard Way," meaning he must stay in this dangerous un-London with Edie.
Ironhand: The Fight Continues
In Ironhand, the Gunner is trapped deep under the city in an old water tank. George and Edie set out to rescue him. But they get separated when George is snatched into the air by a cat-faced gargoyle named Spout. Edie has to continue her journey alone.
George is seemingly saved from Spout by Ariel. Ariel is a "Spit" who works for Fate. She is there to make sure George follows "The Hard Way." She takes him to face a challenge from a statue called The Last Knight. George must fight three duels: on land, on water, and in the air.
Just as George is about to be defeated by the Knight, Spout returns! Spout snatches George into the sky, saving him. George then uses his maker skills to fix Spout's broken wing. They form a strong bond. Spout starts calling George "Ironhand."
Even though George cheated death, "The Hard Way" leaves a mark on him. Three veins of marble, bronze, and stone appear on his arm. Each vein represents a duel he must fight. They will only stop moving towards his heart if he wins the duel they represent.
Meanwhile, Edie goes back to the Black Friar for help. But she is betrayed by a small statue named Little Tragedy. Tragedy leads her right into the Walker's trap! Edie finds herself in a past London, at a "Frost Fair." This is where she once "glinted" herself being killed.
The Gunner, trapped below, discovers that the Walker has killed many "glints." He has stolen their special sea-glass heart stones to gain power. The Gunner escapes through London's underground rivers, taking the stolen stones with him. He expects to die at midnight. But he survives because George stands guard on his statue's base in his place.
While guarding, George experiences what the Gunner and his friend, the Officer, go through every night. He relives an hour in the trenches during a World War One battle. This is George's first duel. During this time, he meets a soldier who looks like his own dead father. Even though the soldier dies, George finds peace about his father's death.
The Gunner, George, the Officer, and the Queen (Boudica) and her daughters reunite. They are all interested in saving Edie. They travel through mirrors into the past to rescue her. Edie briefly escapes the Walker but is recaptured. Before she's caught, she buries her sea-glass heart stone to keep it safe.
The Walker takes Edie to the Frost Fair. Even though Edie foresaw it, she can't stop her own death under the ice. George fights the Walker on the ice – this is his second duel. The Gunner retrieves Edie's body. The Queen takes them all through the mirrors in her chariot. The Walker escapes into a dark place beyond the mirrors.
An "Ice Devil" secretly enters their world as the Walker leaves. It follows them back to the present. Edie is brought back to life by the power of all the stolen heart stones the Gunner saved. Among them, she finds her mother's own stone! This is a huge shock for Edie. Her mother never knew she was a glint. The fire still in the stone suggests her mother, believed to be dead, might actually be alive.
George still has one more duel to fight before the last stone vein reaches his heart and kills him. The Ice Devil's arrival has frozen time and the city. London is disappearing under heavy snow. Ordinary people seem to have vanished, leaving George and Edie as the only normal humans in a city now full of warring statues.
Who Are the Characters?
George Chapman – He's the main character of the story. His adventures are what we follow. He's called a "maker" after a big fight with the Temple Bar Dragon.
Edie Laemmel – Edie is one of the rare "glints." People thought glints were extinct! She meets George early in the first book and, even though she's not sure at first, she becomes his friend.
The Walker – This is the main bad guy in the books. He's been cursed and now serves the Stone. He can never stop moving. The book hints strongly that he might be John Dee, a famous scholar from Elizabethan times.
Spits: The Good Guys
"Spits" are statues that look like humans. They have the spirit of that person inside them, which means they can talk! They are called "Spits" because they are the "spitting image" of the person they represent. Spits are the good guys fighting against the evil "Taints."
The Gunner – He's the first "Spit" George meets. The Gunner is part of the Royal Artillery Memorial in Hyde Park Corner.
The Officer – Another "Spit" from the Royal Artillery Memorial. George meets him when he stands on the Gunner's base.
The Sphinxes – You meet them near Cleopatra's Needle. Since they are half-lion and half-woman, it's a bit confusing whether they are Spits or Taints!
Dictionary Johnson – This is the statue of Samuel Johnson, the first person to write down all English words and their meanings. Just like the real Johnson, the statue often twitches and fidgets. His statue is in Westminster, near St Clement Danes Church.
The Black Friar – A mysterious "Spit" whose true loyalties are a bit unclear. His statue stands above Black Friar's Pub in Blackfriars, London.
Fusilier – The fifth "Spit" George meets. The Fusilier saves George from the Gridman. His monument is on High Holborn.
The Queen – She first appears in Ironhand and decides Edie needs help. Her statue shows her in a battle chariot with her two daughters.
The Old Soldier – He's first met in Silvertongue and is usually with the Young Soldier.
Taints: The Bad Guys
"Taints" are statues of animals or other creatures, like the pterodactyls and salamanders. They don't have a spirit inside them, so they can't talk.
The Grid Man – This is a metal sculpture made of a grid. He moves piece by piece, slightly out of sync. Even though he looks like a human, he's classified as a Taint. His statue is on High Holborn.
Minotaur – He captures Edie but is defeated by a special plasticine bullet George creates.
Spout – George names this gargoyle. Spout lives near St Pancras railway station. At first, he's an enemy. But in the next book, George uses his "maker" skills to heal Spout's broken wing. After that, Spout becomes George's friend and fights alongside him.
Temple Bar Dragon – This is a very detailed dragon sculpture. Like Spout, the dragon is against George at first. They have a big battle, and the dragon scars George's hand. But in the last book, the Temple Bar Dragon switches sides. Its original purpose was to defend the city, and it ends up playing a big role in the final battle.
The Pterodactyl – This was the first Taint to come to life from a carving at the Natural History Museum. It chased George and was later defeated by the Gunner.
Salamanders – These are three lizard-like statues that were also defeated by the Gunner at the War Memorial.
Other Characters
Mr Killingbeck – George's teacher at the beginning of the first book.
Kay – George's "babysitter" who lives in the flat below him.
The Clocker – Another "Weirded" or cursed man. Unlike the Walker, he doesn't choose to serve the Stone. His curse is to watch time.
