Midnighters: The Secret Hour is one of the most interesting books I have read. It has helped me understand that you just can’t find yourself in one day; it takes a while.

The ‘midnighters’ are three teenagers who have a great power that cannot be seen by normal average people. They fight groups of deathly creatures called darklings and slithers that are trying to kill the midnighters. One of the midnighter’s names is Rex. He is like the leader of the group. We know a lot about him from his family’s history. Dess is the second. She can work out a math sum in less then a minute and can tell when a piece of metal has not been touched by the secret hour, and finally Melissa, who can taste your emotions near and far. She plays a big part in the group.

The new midnighter is a 15 year old girl called Jess. She has no idea what her power is but with the help of her friends she will find out who she is and what her power is, but there is one more midnighter. His name is Johnathon. He has a sad background and will soon come to love Jess.

One thing Melissa notices about Jessica is that she is different from the rest of them in that she is on a whole new level of power that is present in only about one in the whole world. Jessica doesn’t feel like she can fit in with the other midnighters because she is different but then the midnighters helped her realise that she is welcomed anywhere with them around “I will come again for Jessica day” is said by a very mysterious creature who is out to kill Jessica but will her friends help protect her from this beast this quote is found at the end of the book the Question on my mind is what and who this mysterious creature is.

Abbey J., Year 8

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“Meet the Midnighters. By day, they’re outsiders. Teenagers with black coats and bad attitudes. By night, they might just be our last hope…”

If you love a good mystery then this story is the best for you! The story starts with a girl called Jessica Day who is starting out in a new town and a new high school. The high school is Bixby High. To most people in the school she is an ordinary new girl. But to some she is not ordinary; she is special. The “some” is a group of teenagers who call themselves the “Midnighters”.

The “Midnighters” consist of Rex, Jonathan, Dess and Melissa; teens who have some special powers that are unknown to the naked eye. These four teenagers have been a part of the secret hour, where at the strike of midnight the world goes still except for them. In the secret hour there are creatures that kill. They are known either as the “Darklings” or “Slithers.” But it doesn’t end there. Each “Midnighter” has a special power that is unique.

One night, Jessica happens to wake up at the strike of midnight. She has no idea that this might be a start to something new.

I really enjoyed this book! I do recommend it to everyone who loves a good mystery! This book consists of unexpected twists and turns that makes your mind spin! It has so much descriptive language that you could just imagine the scene in your head. It is very addictive! At the end it has you wanting more and more! I loved it because I could imagine the scene in my head and the mystery had me hanging on the edge the whole time. I recommend this to teenagers, as it is more of an advanced read. You have to really read it to understand it. Once you get into it, it will have you reading past midnight! This book is amazing. I would definitely recommend it if you want something good to read! I rate it 4 out of 5 stars because I would like to read the rest of the stories in the series before I rate it 5 out of 5 stars.

Caitlin F., Year 8

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Imagine being frozen in time for only one hour each day. Imagine a feeling of exhilaration, knowing you have a whole hour to do whatever you want or relax and unwind with no one else around. As the clock strikes twelve, five introverted, temperamental teens (a.k.a midnighters), gain an extra hour. Imagine a time where every other thing is motionless; well, nearly everything. Darklings and Slithers occupy the depths of the secret hour, threatening and fighting the midnighters, determined to possess the extra 60 minutes for themselves. Rex, Dess, Melissa, Jonathan, and new-found midnighter Jess, are the only known people to experience the secret hour.

Since moving to Bixby, Oklahoma with her family, Jessica Day has discovered that things are not the same here in this mysterious whereabouts. Strange flying, genius, mind-reading people are only just the beginning for poor, innocent Jess.

Each midnighter has a superior ‘gift’ that is only used during midnight. Together they all venture to discover what Jess’ unknown special gift is. But, the Darklings are not happy with this.

I was instantly hooked on how Scott Westerfeld set the scene in a teen-high school atmosphere as it was very relatable. I loved how he explained each scene and character with admirable detail, so I could really get a clear picture in my head. This book has kept me reading past midnight and has made me eager to read the rest of the ‘Midnight’ series.

I unexpectedly liked the ‘Secret Hour’. Normally if I saw this book I wouldn’t have chosen it for myself, as I usually pick teen, girly, non-fiction novels. But after reading it, I will definitely be looking at more books of this genre.

I would recommend this novel to teens and young adults. I think people aged from around 12-20 would especially enjoy this book, with all the twists, surprises and intensity.

Mystery lurks in the shadows, a midnight conspiracy; this is, the Secret Hour.

Molly G, Year 8

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What if there were 25 hours in a day instead of 24 that only some people had access to? When the new girl Jessica Day moves to town she find her self to be one of them, but what and who are they? Jessica may have been normal back in her old town, worrying about what to wear each day but not here in Bixby. She had much worse things to be worrying about.

Bixby might seem like an insignificant, boring little town in the middle of nowhere to a normal person, however, this weird town holds a huge mystery, what really happens when the clock strikes 12 in Bixby. The time freezes and nobody moves for one whole secret hour except for the ones who were born on midnight of course. They call themselves midnighters but that’s not all. Who else has access to the secret hour? Each midnighter has a hidden talent during this mystical time and Jessica must find out what hers is as fast as possible with the help of the other midnighters. It may not be that easy, because the creatures that the midnighters share the secret hour with are doing everything in their power to prevent this, but why? Does this book seem to intrigue you yet?

The Secret Hour written by Scott Westerfeld is a book that will keep you reading way past midnight it has so many twists and surprises that make you want to never stop reading. In this book there is the mystery of what power Jessica has. It truly keeps you in suspense which is a great quality for a book to have.

The Secret Hour is a book written in a unique way, by Scott Westerfeld. It is written in narration but each chapter is from another main character’s point of view. It is a really fascinating read. The main characters are Dess, Jessica, Rex, Jonathan and Melissa, normal teenagers by day and midnighters at night exploring the blue time. I would suggest this book to any who likes a fantasy science fiction sort of book that is fast paced and spooky in a really amusing way although I would suggest it for a younger audience. This is definitely the best novel I have read this year so far. I would rate this book 8 1/2 out of 10. Truly a marvellous read.

Sienna B year 8

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When Jessica Day arrives in Bixby, Oklahoma it isn’t any ordinary town. Everything was run differently. The water tasted funny and the fact that the entire community had a curfew of 11pm made it weird enough. Could Bixby get anymore awkward?

Well apparently so, especially when Jessica attends her first day at Bixby State High School. Of course every first day of anyone’s life will, without a doubt, have its ups and downs, though Jessica couldn’t help but feel that there was something fishy about a couple of her new friends. But, little did she know that they were thinking the same thing about her. When Jessica first arrived on her first day at school, one of her friends, Rex, noticed something about her that was extremely unusual. He immediately notified his friend named Dess and before introducing themselves to Jess they discussed the supernatural feature that Jess may have. And after a lot of thinking, there was only one explanation to the situation, one which only Rex and Dess knew about. Jessica Day was one of them, a midnighter.

By Rachel, Year 8