Tag: fantasy

Hero of Draconis – your new must-read fantasy

One of my favorite things about books that take place in a different world is a map. I have a weakness for a good map for a few reasons. First, I like to visually see the world I am diving into. Seeing the magnitude on a map at the start of the book shows me we are in for a big adventure across this new land. I refer back to book maps often. Second, it shows the author has “mapped” everything out, so we won’t travel west to a location previously described as being due east.

My mom heard about a talented new author and gave me a copy of her book, “Hero of Draconis” by Evelyn Klotz. If you haven’t heard of Evelyn Klotz yet, check her book out…. this is an amazingly talented young writer (and by young, she was 12 when this book was published!). Klotz had my attention from the start as the book opened with a map. I couldn’t wait to see the story that unfolded across this new world.

In “Hero of Draconis” we follow the adventures of three children and two animals on a true fantasy adventure complete with dragons, magic, and a missing royal baby. This book has it all. I want to tell you more, but I want you to read it and uncover the story as you dive into the pages.

Klotz’s writing is incredible for a writer of any age. To realize this young writer was so young working on this book is even more impressive. While reading, I was sending photos of text to my closest bookish friends with messages like “can you believe how well written this is????”

If your child loves a good adventure through a fantasy world, this book is just the book you are looking for. Pick up a copy and let your child know this book was written by a young author. What better way to show your child the stories they imagine inside their heads could be a book than to give them a book written by someone their age. Evelyn Klotz will be an inspiration to many aspiring writers, and her book is a non-stop, can’t put it down tale for fantasy readers of all ages.

Keeper of the Lost Cities, book 9.5

I love a good series. Once I’m invested in the character, knowing there will be another book with more story makes the book ending so much easier. I love introducing young readers to a good series because they too get so excited for the next book.

Last week I waited impatiently for the latest book in Shannon Messenger’s “Keeper of the Lost Cities” series. Book 9.5, “Unraveled,”(yes, this book follows book 9 and comes before book 10 because it parallels book 9) detours from the usual narrator, Sophie, to her friend Keefe telling his story of the time he is away from the Lost Cities.

A little background on the “Keeper of the Lost Cities” series…in book 1, we meet 12-year-old Sophie, who always felt different than other children and even her own family. She has a photographic memory, but what really makes her different…she can read minds. She keeps this secret hidden until she meets Fitz, who shares something so big, mind reading seems small in comparison. Sophie is an elf, as is Fitz and there is a whole secret elf world that humans don’t know about. Sophie leaves her family (whose memories of her are removed by another elf) and moves to the elf world in the lost cities.

The series follows Sophie as she learns there are secrets buried in her memories and that she has a much larger purpose in the elf world. She was hidden in the human world for a reason and now that she has been found, Sophie and her friends will need to battle evil, while manifesting other special skills and being normal teenagers who attend elf school.

This series has all sorts of twists and turns, adventures, betrayals, battles, family challenges, friendship challenges, and unicorns. While being an elf and meeting unicorns might make the story seem especially childish, it isn’t. It is written in a way that it feels very real and believable. Shannon Messenger weaves a complicated tale while keeping a myriad of big personalities on their interwoven journeys. It’s a good read for tween, teen, and adult readers.

What Messenger does best…she gets her readers excited for the next book. If your young reader enjoys the “Keeper” series, be sure to follow Shannon Messenger on social media. She talks about the characters, does count downs and give aways for preorders of the next book. Young “Keeper” fans count down the days to the next book. Anyone who can get young readers that excited about the next book in a series gets a big recommendation from me. I highly recommend this series. If your tween or teen likes fantasy, be sure to introduce them to Sophie (definitely start with book 1, this isn’t a jump in the middle of the series kind of book).