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    The Eyeball Collector
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    The Eyeball Collector
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    The Eyeball Collector
    Ebook206 pages4 hours

    The Eyeball Collector

    By F. E. Higgins

    4.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Although Hector Fitzbaudly has always lived a plush life on the posh side of the River Foedus, he's yearned to slip away from his comfortable home and see the seedy side of Urbs Umida. Unfortunately, he gets his chance when a blackmail artist confronts his father with a terrible secret from his past, and Hector finds himself penniless and on the streets. He is determined to get his revenge against the man responsible, who has been a pauper, a gentleman, and an Eyeball Collector—stealing jewels from the wealthy to make false eyes to replace his missing one. He is a master of disguise, and a swindler who moves from place to place.

    Hector trails the Eyeball Collector to the small village of Pagus Parvus and the foreboding Withypitts Hall, run by the eccentric Lady Mandible who has a strange taste for the macabre. He takes a job incubating butterflies for Lady Mandible, and places himself in the perfect position to take revenge. Hector is so close to the Eyeball Collector, but will he be able to go through with his plan?

    Once again, F. E. Higgins takes readers into her world filled with grand balls and hairy-backed beasts, plotting nobility and clever orphans, and creates a spine-tingling story that is her most eerie yet.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateSep 1, 2009
    ISBN9781429927192
    Author

    F. E. Higgins

    F. E. Higgins was born in England but raised in Ireland. She lives and writes in a house that dates back to the fifteenth century, in a small village in rural Kent. THE BLACK BOOK OF SECRETS was her debut novel.

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    Reviews for The Eyeball Collector

    4.5/5

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    • 5/5
      THE EYEBALL COLLECTOR - Great read with lots of twists and turns. I like the way that Higgins writes about the dark, dank streets of Urbs Umida and the filthy putrid Foedus River. Higgins cleverly adds excerpts from letters that Hector has penned to Polly; these are great to better understand the various tenses of the story, past life tales of young Hector. This is a story of a young Hector whose life goes from Ritches to Rags in one foul swoop by the hands of Gulliver Truepin (alias Baron Bovrik de Vandolin). When his butterfly-collector father is swindled to within an inch of his life , a vengeful Hector leaves the city of Urbs Umida in pursuit of a fiendish villain with a glass eye known as Baron Bovrik de Vandolin. The trail leads to Withypitts Hall, a forbidding Gothic mansion as warped as its inhabitants and their secret schemes. Soon Hector finds himself embroiled in mysterious deeds more poisonous than his worst imaginings, but every twist and turn brings him closer to his revenge ...but does it, will Hector have revenge or will he heed the words of his father ...
    • 4/5
      This is the third book in Higgins Tales from the Sinister City series. All of these tales are separate stories, but the characters do have some cross over from book to book. I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as the first two books, but it was still a wonderful story. Unlike previous stories this story didn't really have any element of magic to it; it was a creepy and fun historical mystery with a heavy Victorian overtone to it.Hector is the son on a wealthy wine merchant. He has led a life of privledge, only occasionally touring the destitute south side of the city which he finds kind of exciting. When his father's business is ruined because of his father's shady past in gin selling and his father perishes; Hector suddenly finds himself destitute and living in the horrible South side of the city. He is taken in by a nice woman and her husband but has sworn revenge on the man who ruined his father. When the very man who ruins his father hires Hector for his knowledge of butterflies Hector is given the perfect opporunity for his revenge.This book wasn't as dark as the previous books, but it was still a pretty dark story. The majority of the characters are very realistic and flawed, at times they are not all that likable but they are always interesting. I loved all the knowledge Hector had about butterflies and poisons; it was fun to read about. I loved how characters from previous books are woven into small roles in this story. Higgins does an excellent job painting a dark and creepy atmosphere. It is easy to visualize the surroundings. While the characters don't have a ton of depth to them, they are all very quirky and interesting. The plot moved quickly and had some interesting twists and turns. I love the plan Hector comes up with for revenge; it is so creative, so elegant, yet kind of twisted. The concept of how revenge can twist a person is discussed and it was well done; yeah this is a theme that's been used many time in many stories before but it really works for this story and has a lot of creative elements to it.Overall I really enjoyed this book, although not as much as previous ones. I didn't click as well with Hector as I have with the lead characters in the previous two books. I still loved the twisted and dark Sinister City, the quirky characters, and the creative turns the plot took. This is an excellent book for middle grade and older. It should appeal to those who like their mystery/adventure with a tad of the fantastic, a lot of dark and twisted strangeness, and a little bit of gruesomeness. I will definitely be reading the next book in the series, The Lunatic's Curse.
    • 4/5
      Hector Fitzbaudly gets his wish to experience the seedier side of Urbs Umida when his father is blackmailed with a secret form his past. Finding himself penniless and homeless, Hector realizes this is not the life he wants and he decides to seek revenge. Unfortunately, the Eyeball Collector is a master of disguise! This book is called a “polyquel” by the author, as it contains elements from both The Black Book of Secrets and The Bone Magician as well as its own mysteries. This book may not interest readers who haven't read the two previous books but it can stand alone. More than likely readers will be intrigued by this book to go an pick up the other works which I feel are stronger and more fun to read.
    • 4/5
      Having read the other two books written by F.E. Higgins I didn’t find this instalment as good but it was still a great read. Although it isn’t a sequel it definitely helps if you’ve read the other two books written before it – ‘The Black Book of Secrets’ and ‘The Bone Magician’ - as previous characters make an appearance and locations and incidents are referred to.In this story, we have Hector who has been cruelly orphaned. His life takes a change when he discovers Withypitts Hall and he is faced with some difficult decisions. Hector is very different from Ludlow and Pin (characters featuring in the previous two novels) in that he is from across the river and has experienced a different and more prosperous life that Ludlow and Pin. F.E. Higgins makes use of letters found from Hector to Polly (a character from TBBOS). She explains in her introduction that these were discovered on her travels and along with other items she has found she is able to tell the story of Hector. Even this concept, of the author being part of the story seems somewhat unusual in comparison to some fiction for younger readers. It is a clever idea that makes the reader feel more involved.Although I didn’t enjoy this story as much it does require slightly more investment from the reader in that you need to link everything together as you’re going. There are even riddles along the way to solve should you desire as Hector enjoyed riddling with his father and continues the tradition once orphaned. A recommended read for adults and children, however this is the first one out of the three where it will help to read the others.