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The Companions Quartet #2
The Gorgon's Gaze
Magical Mallins Wood is under threat from developers. Unknown to everyone but the members of the top secret Society for the Protection of Mythical Creatures, the wood is the home of the last gorgon, a creature so deadly she can kill with a look. Col's difficult mother is the gorgon's Companion - a human with a special bond with the gorgon - and she's determined to save it. So determined, that she'll allow the evil shapeshifter Kullervo to help her, even if it means having to sacrifice her son to him. But Kullervo wants more than to help the gorgon. He wants universal power, and he needs Col's best friend Connie to get it. Col's mum tells Col that she wants to meet this powerful girl. But is it a trap? And, if so, who is the hunter, and who the hunted?
320 pages, Paperback
First published September 7, 2006
About the author
Julia Golding
82 books830 followersMy journey to becoming an author has been a roundabout one, taking in many other careers. I grew up on the edge of Epping Forest and was that dreamy kind of child who was always writing stories. After reading English at Cambridge, I decided to find out as much as I could about the wider world so joined the Foreign Office and served in Poland. My work as a diplomat took me from the high point of town twinning in the Tatra Mountains to the low of inspecting the bottom of a Silesian coal mine.
On leaving Poland, I exchanged diplomacy for academia and took a doctorate in the literature of the English Romantic Period at Oxford. I then joined Oxfam as a lobbyist on conflict issues, campaigning at the UN and with governments to lessen the impact of conflict on civilians living in war zones - a cause about which I still feel very passionate.
Married with three children, I now live in Oxford between two rivers, surrounded by gargoyles, beautiful sandstone buildings and ancient trees.
My first novel, 'The Diamond of Drury Lane', won the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize 2006 and the Nestle Children's Book Prize 2006 (formerly known as the Smarties Prize). I was also chosen by Waterstone's in 2007 as one of their 'Twenty-five authors for the future'. In the US, 'Secret of the Sirens' won the honor book medal of the Green Earth Book Award.
My latest series, which starts with Mel Foster and the Demon Butler, about an intrepid Victorian orphan who lives in a household of monsters, won Bronze in the Primary Teacher awards in 2015. The next part, Mel Foster and the Time Machine, has set the time-dial to arrive in 2016.
On leaving Poland, I exchanged diplomacy for academia and took a doctorate in the literature of the English Romantic Period at Oxford. I then joined Oxfam as a lobbyist on conflict issues, campaigning at the UN and with governments to lessen the impact of conflict on civilians living in war zones - a cause about which I still feel very passionate.
Married with three children, I now live in Oxford between two rivers, surrounded by gargoyles, beautiful sandstone buildings and ancient trees.
My first novel, 'The Diamond of Drury Lane', won the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize 2006 and the Nestle Children's Book Prize 2006 (formerly known as the Smarties Prize). I was also chosen by Waterstone's in 2007 as one of their 'Twenty-five authors for the future'. In the US, 'Secret of the Sirens' won the honor book medal of the Green Earth Book Award.
My latest series, which starts with Mel Foster and the Demon Butler, about an intrepid Victorian orphan who lives in a household of monsters, won Bronze in the Primary Teacher awards in 2015. The next part, Mel Foster and the Time Machine, has set the time-dial to arrive in 2016.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
March 24, 2018
Gorgon's gaze (The Companions Quartet #1), 2007, Julia Golding
Abstract: Book Two is an eco-fantasy series about a secret society sworn to protect mythical creatures and the girl who becomes its most important member. It is the second book of the Companions Quartet, and it continues the story from the previous book, Secret of the Sirens. The rest of the quartet includes Mines of the Minotaur, and The Chimera's Curse.
Characters: Connie Lionheart (11 year old girl), Colin (Col) Clamworthy (11 year old boy), Skylark (A young Pegasus), Evelyn Lionheart (Connie's Aunt), Lavinia Clamworthy (Col's Grandmother), Aneena Nuruddin (Connie's best friend), Jane Benedict (Connie's best friend), Mack Clamworthy (Col's father), Dr. Brock (Society member), Jessica Moss (Society member), Ivor Coddrington (Society member), Shirley Masterson (Society member), Kinga Potowska (Companion to the Dragon species), Morjik (Companion of Kinga Potowska. An older dragon), Eagle-Child (Companion to the Storm Bird species), Storm-Bird (Companion of Eagle-Child), Kira Okona (Companion to the Unicorn species), Windfoal (Companion of Kira Okona), Frederick Cony (Companion to the Rock Dwarf species), Gard (Companion of Frederick Cony)
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: بیست و ششم ماه دسامبر سال 2013 میلادی
عنوان: همدمها جلد 2 : نگاه گورگن؛ نویسنده: جولیا گلدینگ، ترجمه: پیمان اسماعیلیان خامنه؛ نشر: تهران، قدیانی، کتابهای بنفشه، چاپ نخست 1390،
در 432 ص.، شابک: 9786002511546، فروست: همدمها جلد 2، رمان نوجوانان، موضوع: داستانهای کودکان انگلیسی -- قرن 21 م
جنگل مالینز و همراه آن، لانه ی آخرین باز مانده ی گورکنها، همان موجود اسطوره ای که میتواند با نگاه کردن به هر کس او را به سنگ تبدیل کند، مورد تهدید قرار گرفته است. تنها عده ای اندک از وجود گورکن باخبرند. کال و مادرش از جمله این افراد هستند و هر دو تصمیم دارند که گورکن و جنگل را نجات دهند. همان طور که کال میکوشد در بین افراد محلی حمایت لازم برای نجات جنگل را به دست آورد، مادرش در شرف توطئه مرگبار است. او که فریب «کالرووی دگر پیکر» را خورده، آماده است تا بهترین دوست کال، یعنی کانی را هم بخاطر حمایتش از گورکن قربانی کند. اما پیش از هر چیز، به کال نیاز دارد تا کانی را به کنام گورکن بکشاند... ا. شربیانی
Abstract: Book Two is an eco-fantasy series about a secret society sworn to protect mythical creatures and the girl who becomes its most important member. It is the second book of the Companions Quartet, and it continues the story from the previous book, Secret of the Sirens. The rest of the quartet includes Mines of the Minotaur, and The Chimera's Curse.
Characters: Connie Lionheart (11 year old girl), Colin (Col) Clamworthy (11 year old boy), Skylark (A young Pegasus), Evelyn Lionheart (Connie's Aunt), Lavinia Clamworthy (Col's Grandmother), Aneena Nuruddin (Connie's best friend), Jane Benedict (Connie's best friend), Mack Clamworthy (Col's father), Dr. Brock (Society member), Jessica Moss (Society member), Ivor Coddrington (Society member), Shirley Masterson (Society member), Kinga Potowska (Companion to the Dragon species), Morjik (Companion of Kinga Potowska. An older dragon), Eagle-Child (Companion to the Storm Bird species), Storm-Bird (Companion of Eagle-Child), Kira Okona (Companion to the Unicorn species), Windfoal (Companion of Kira Okona), Frederick Cony (Companion to the Rock Dwarf species), Gard (Companion of Frederick Cony)
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: بیست و ششم ماه دسامبر سال 2013 میلادی
عنوان: همدمها جلد 2 : نگاه گورگن؛ نویسنده: جولیا گلدینگ، ترجمه: پیمان اسماعیلیان خامنه؛ نشر: تهران، قدیانی، کتابهای بنفشه، چاپ نخست 1390،
در 432 ص.، شابک: 9786002511546، فروست: همدمها جلد 2، رمان نوجوانان، موضوع: داستانهای کودکان انگلیسی -- قرن 21 م
جنگل مالینز و همراه آن، لانه ی آخرین باز مانده ی گورکنها، همان موجود اسطوره ای که میتواند با نگاه کردن به هر کس او را به سنگ تبدیل کند، مورد تهدید قرار گرفته است. تنها عده ای اندک از وجود گورکن باخبرند. کال و مادرش از جمله این افراد هستند و هر دو تصمیم دارند که گورکن و جنگل را نجات دهند. همان طور که کال میکوشد در بین افراد محلی حمایت لازم برای نجات جنگل را به دست آورد، مادرش در شرف توطئه مرگبار است. او که فریب «کالرووی دگر پیکر» را خورده، آماده است تا بهترین دوست کال، یعنی کانی را هم بخاطر حمایتش از گورکن قربانی کند. اما پیش از هر چیز، به کال نیاز دارد تا کانی را به کنام گورکن بکشاند... ا. شربیانی
June 29, 2018
La mirada de la gorgona
, ha sido una muy buena continuación, pues ha superado todas mis expectativas. He disfrutado mucho con su lectura, pues me ha mantenido pegada a sus páginas en todo momento. Está repleta de acción, aventuras y misterio, y me ha encantado volver a reencontrarme con unos personajes tan divertidos, honestos y fuera de lo común, así como con sus criaturas míticas tan alucinantes.
August 20, 2007
Connie Lionheart is no ordinary member of the Society for the Protection of Mythical Creatures. She is the only universal companion -- she is able to bond with all of the mythical creatures (dragons, pegasi, wood sprites, sirens, etc.) that live secretly in our world. To protect the mythical creatures, Society members protect the last wild spots on earth in which the creatures can survive. In the Gorgon's Gaze, that wild spot is an ancient wood (including a huge oak rumored to be the tree where Merlin was imprisoned by Nimue) threatened by a road to the new oil refinery from Book One, Secret of the Sirens.
The story is a rollercoaster of YAYs and UH-OHs that keeps the pages turning:
YAY! Connie's new companion will be a rare golden baby dragon.
UH-OH! Connie's great aunt is going to isolate Connie from nature and from the society members to "cure" her of her "sickness."
YAY! Two unknown-to-her-aunt members of the Society manage to get Connie out of the house and to Society Headquarters.
UH-OH! Mr. Codderington at the Society Headquarters is surely a bad guy. Watch out, Connie!
YAY! Argand, the baby dragon, comes to visit Connie.
UH-OH! Col's (Connie's friend and fellow society member, companion to pegusi) mother is companion to a gorgon.
YAY! Uncle Hugh unknowingly gives Connie information on how a Universal can protect herself from hostile mythical creatures. (One of Connie's ancestors was a Universal, and Uncle Hugh gives Connie some of her papers from a trunk of family heirlooms.)
UH-OH! Aunt Godiva is really mad when she finds out what Uncle Hugh gave Connie and she cracks down on Connie like never before. At the same time, Col is taken by Kullervo, the ultimate evil. (Kullervo is Connie's Voldemort -- her true companion. Her good and his evil are intimately intertwined. "He was part of her -- and she was part of him.")
YAY! With the help of Skylark, Col's pegasus, Connie goes to the rescue of Col.
UH-OH! It's a trap! Connie is taken by Kullervo!
You'll have to read the book to find out how it all turns out. I predict that the new character, a boy nicknamed "Rat," will feature prominently in the next book.
The story is a rollercoaster of YAYs and UH-OHs that keeps the pages turning:
YAY! Connie's new companion will be a rare golden baby dragon.
UH-OH! Connie's great aunt is going to isolate Connie from nature and from the society members to "cure" her of her "sickness."
YAY! Two unknown-to-her-aunt members of the Society manage to get Connie out of the house and to Society Headquarters.
UH-OH! Mr. Codderington at the Society Headquarters is surely a bad guy. Watch out, Connie!
YAY! Argand, the baby dragon, comes to visit Connie.
UH-OH! Col's (Connie's friend and fellow society member, companion to pegusi) mother is companion to a gorgon.
YAY! Uncle Hugh unknowingly gives Connie information on how a Universal can protect herself from hostile mythical creatures. (One of Connie's ancestors was a Universal, and Uncle Hugh gives Connie some of her papers from a trunk of family heirlooms.)
UH-OH! Aunt Godiva is really mad when she finds out what Uncle Hugh gave Connie and she cracks down on Connie like never before. At the same time, Col is taken by Kullervo, the ultimate evil. (Kullervo is Connie's Voldemort -- her true companion. Her good and his evil are intimately intertwined. "He was part of her -- and she was part of him.")
YAY! With the help of Skylark, Col's pegasus, Connie goes to the rescue of Col.
UH-OH! It's a trap! Connie is taken by Kullervo!
You'll have to read the book to find out how it all turns out. I predict that the new character, a boy nicknamed "Rat," will feature prominently in the next book.
March 20, 2024
SO GOOD
March 21, 2023
I loved this book! I can't wait to read the next one in the series. The author did a magnificent job telling this next part of Connie's story.
October 3, 2017
Book 2 in a unique fantasy series
This second installment in Golding's Companions Quartet takes Connie and Col deeper into the fight to save a wooded area from developers and a whole host of fantastic creatures as well. Members of a secret Society, both friends possess a gift that allows them to see so-called mythical creatures and to communicate with them. But all is not fairy tales and unicorns for the pair of tweens as evil threatens the delicate balance of nature and the sprites, dragons and others who struggle to survive while remaining hidden from the view of most humans. This evil, known as Kullervo, has amassed a host of beasts who are angered by humanity's disregard for natural beauty and has a plan to ensnare Connie and use her power as a Universal. Add to Connie's skills one of the last remaining Gorgon's, and nothing will ever be the same. Readers of Fablehaven and fans of Avatar will enjoy this book 2 as much as book 1-a great choice for 5th-8th graders who love reading fantasy.
This second installment in Golding's Companions Quartet takes Connie and Col deeper into the fight to save a wooded area from developers and a whole host of fantastic creatures as well. Members of a secret Society, both friends possess a gift that allows them to see so-called mythical creatures and to communicate with them. But all is not fairy tales and unicorns for the pair of tweens as evil threatens the delicate balance of nature and the sprites, dragons and others who struggle to survive while remaining hidden from the view of most humans. This evil, known as Kullervo, has amassed a host of beasts who are angered by humanity's disregard for natural beauty and has a plan to ensnare Connie and use her power as a Universal. Add to Connie's skills one of the last remaining Gorgon's, and nothing will ever be the same. Readers of Fablehaven and fans of Avatar will enjoy this book 2 as much as book 1-a great choice for 5th-8th graders who love reading fantasy.
November 2, 2009
Connie Lionheart is back in athrilling sequel to Secret of the Sirens. Connie, the spunky universal, now has other problems on her mind. Col's mother, companion to gorgon's, is visiting. Rumor has it she wants to capture Col for Kullervo. The oil company Axoil is trying to build a road through Mallins Wood, causing public outcry, and Connie's great aunt and uncle have taken her away to wash all that 'society nonsense' out of her. Once again, Kullervo tries to breach Connie's weak points, and a rare species of mythical creatures is about to die out. It is time for Connie to find out more secrets...and more lies.
This book carries a lot of environmental messages that carry across very powerfully. It drags you to Hescombe, just like the first book did. A must-read!
This book carries a lot of environmental messages that carry across very powerfully. It drags you to Hescombe, just like the first book did. A must-read!
July 3, 2021
“You can mark me, but I’ll never be yours.”
- May 2021 -
I don't have much to add to my very ~verbose~ review from 2015 (read sarcasm), other than to say that this was an incredibly fun read for my preteen/teenage self, especially during my Percy Jackson withdrawal days. There is a heavy environmentalist focus throughout the series, which I quite enjoy, and the characters are all generally likable. I remember enjoying the plot and character development more in the later installments of the series, so I definitely sped through the first two a bit so I could get to the last two.
- May 2015 -
Another fun read!
November 17, 2015
Julia Golding certainly knows how to tell a pageturner, you eagerly follow the adventures of Col and Connie wondering what will happen to them next. I was surprised though to learn that they aren't even twelve yet. They and their friends seem pretty capable for their age.
January 19, 2018
I read this series years ago, but reading the Mark of the Thief raised it back in my thoughts. It’s a great series. Maybe at a 5-7th grade level. I distinctly remember the characters being unique. I hope you all like this book:)
March 15, 2024
3/14/24
This book is still awesome :D
This book is still awesome :D
January 24, 2014
Nice follow up to the first. Not the best series I've read, but it's holding my attention.
May 3, 2014
Enjoyable middle grade "eco-fantasy". I think I like this one better than the first, but I can't say why, exactly. Maybe just that this time I knew going in that it was more middle grade than YA.
January 10, 2022
This book is a follow-up to the last book “secret of the sirens”, here however Connie is taken by her great-aunt Godiva,and is banned from all society business. However Kullervo is lurking to snatch her yet with no communication to the society she is unprepared, when she finally escapes she lands in Kullervo’s trap, he had used Col as bait! Kullervo takes advantage of the bulldozing in the wood (though many humans are protesting) too show his mythical supporters that humans should be despised. All is well in the end, with Godiva (who apparently had the gift but denied it for madness and had tried to “cure” Connie) made sure Connie was back with Evelyn.
This is a really nice book, the only reason I gave it 4 stars is because I would’ve liked more action and to see more of the mythical creatures. I love Argand, Connie’s companion, and I like the mystery imposed. I would have certainly given this book 5 stars if Godiva had more weak spots. Nevertheless, I would still (and will) recommend it to my friends.
This is a really nice book, the only reason I gave it 4 stars is because I would’ve liked more action and to see more of the mythical creatures. I love Argand, Connie’s companion, and I like the mystery imposed. I would have certainly given this book 5 stars if Godiva had more weak spots. Nevertheless, I would still (and will) recommend it to my friends.
February 18, 2021
After my review of the first book I thought this one would be a lot better and for the most part it was. There wasn’t as much character development which was good, they introduced a couple of new characters but not so many that you start to get confused and more happens with the antagonist Kullervo having a more prominent part in this book.
I knocked it down a star purely because there were a couple of new characters that really annoyed me and I’d rather they weren’t in it. But that’s just my opinion.
Overall though, better than the first and I will be reading the third soon.
I knocked it down a star purely because there were a couple of new characters that really annoyed me and I’d rather they weren’t in it. But that’s just my opinion.
Overall though, better than the first and I will be reading the third soon.
September 9, 2018
It had been over 10 years I think since I read the first book in this series, yet I still enjoyed part two. Connie's story has the typical makings of a YA urban fantasy, including absent parents and an enemy only matched by the hero. I wish the world building was explored a bit more, and maybe some new creatures introduced, because it felt like this barely scratched the fantasy surface. I'd like to continue this story!
March 12, 2019
While Connie's great-aunt Godiva tries to "cure" her of the Society's ways, Colin finds his distant mother, gorgon companion, suddenly trying to spend more time with him, leading the duo into dangerous territory as Kullervo seeks another opportunity to bond with the Universal! Golding delivers another fun and heartwarming entry to this fantastic series that will keep fans glued to the pages. Can Connie convince her family to trust her before she falls into a deadly trap?
February 4, 2021
Extraordinarily magical!
I highly recommend this fantastic book, and the series in which it is to all readers who love: magic, believing in the right of life for all living things, and reading about mythical creatures. Golding uses imaginative plots to bring the battle for environmental protection of the precious few "wild" places we are blessed to still have, and does so with entertaining wit and sensitivity.
Enjoy!
I highly recommend this fantastic book, and the series in which it is to all readers who love: magic, believing in the right of life for all living things, and reading about mythical creatures. Golding uses imaginative plots to bring the battle for environmental protection of the precious few "wild" places we are blessed to still have, and does so with entertaining wit and sensitivity.
Enjoy!
December 29, 2021
I really enjoyed the drama of this book of Connie being taken away from the Society, and I found the character of Godiva super interesting, as well as Cassandra. I like how these books have both Axoil and Kullervo as two big antagonists and I’m excited to see how they’ll be defeated at the end of the series!
July 1, 2023
I'm enjoying this series - very interesting to have her just get used to living with one aunt My only issue with this book is that her aunt Very enjoyable instalment and I'm glad .
February 28, 2021
Family issues
Poor Connie, having to deal with family members who aren't in the Society, and therefore not privy to their secrets. It makes it so much more difficult to let them know what's going on when she has to do Society business without letting them in on it. Well crafted.
Poor Connie, having to deal with family members who aren't in the Society, and therefore not privy to their secrets. It makes it so much more difficult to let them know what's going on when she has to do Society business without letting them in on it. Well crafted.
January 27, 2022
He buscado estos libros por mucho tiempo, espero poder conseguir los 2 siguientes
Una historia sencilla, rápida de leer, pero llena de fantasía, aventura, la lucha eterna del bien contra el mal
Me encantaría saber que pasa con Connie, Col, Kullervo y todos los demás compañeros de este libro
Una historia sencilla, rápida de leer, pero llena de fantasía, aventura, la lucha eterna del bien contra el mal
Me encantaría saber que pasa con Connie, Col, Kullervo y todos los demás compañeros de este libro
March 14, 2024
Fun addition to the series
In The Gorgon's Gaze, Connie has to struggle with her family trying to force her away from the society, along with trying to find a way to protect herself and everyone else from the villain. Interesting story, and I look forward to the next one.
In The Gorgon's Gaze, Connie has to struggle with her family trying to force her away from the society, along with trying to find a way to protect herself and everyone else from the villain. Interesting story, and I look forward to the next one.
September 15, 2018
I’m going to read all 4 books. There are fun and light-hearted. The series is a good choice for animal lovers.
October 24, 2019
Definitely getting into this series, might have to buy the next on, rather than waiting for it to turn up ina charity shop.
July 6, 2021
These books are neat
September 15, 2021
این کتابم بد نبود. ولی خب خوبم نبود. بیشتر موجودات باحالی توش بود. از شخصیت کال هم بیشتر خوشم اومد. یکی از تصمیمات کانی رو هم تو آخرا، درک نکردم
November 25, 2021
Siguiendo los pasos de su predecesor, aunque me pareció más lento. En general, tiene poca acción.
January 26, 2022
Una increíble continuación de la historia, con más trama, más peligro y un pasado de la familia que la protagonista descubrirá.
May 7, 2023
It was great to meet Argand and Rat. Godiva was also a great "villain."
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews