3 out of 4 stars
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Darrel Sak has been having nightmares for as long as he could remember. Every night, he would wake up screaming because of the strange shadows that haunted his dreams. His only comfort was the support of his parents, especially his father. When his father goes on a business trip and doesn’t return home for months, Darrel decides it is time to get some answers. The answers that he finds, however, end up being much more than he expected.
With the help of his new friend, Maisy, a girl who can shift into an owl, he finds out his dad may be trapped in the mysterious and magical world of Shaemaaie. Along the way, he encounters witches, wizards, shape-shifters and yes, dragons. He learns that Shaemaaie is in danger and the only one who has the power to save the world is him.
A Whole New World
L.S Goulet’s Sword of Dragonblood is a fantasy book for children and teens. The plot is well paced and the story is exciting. At the beginning, the author sets the tone for a mysterious and magical adventure as we learn about the nature of Darrel’s nightmares. When readers learn the significance of the dreams and the father’s role, we are introduced to the well-crafted world of Shaemaaie. The author takes her time to flesh out every detail about the world. She employs the right amount of mystery to keep readers wanting to read more. The language of the book is so descriptive that any reader can envision the world that the author created.
Characters That Will Win You Over
I was impressed with the characters in the story and their development. While I am aware that the concept of a normal boy turning into a hero is nothing new or original, readers will like him anyway. Maisy is another character that will win readers over. She’s intelligent, intuitive and has a great sense of humor. The fact that she can turn into an owl doesn’t hurt her likeability either. Other characters like The Time Wizard, a powerful wizard who helps them along the way, can also be thought of as interesting.
The author creates characters who seem believable in the situations that they are in. She even keeps a sense of realism in her story. Daryl is at the age where he is noticing girls and trying to figure out who he is and what he believes in. Even though this is a fantasy novel, there were still many parts in the story that will remind readers that these characters are ones that can relate to.
Final Thoughts
The story resembled the Harry Potter series a little too much. I noticed the similarities with the characters. Maisy is smart, studious and has a sense of humor, she reminded me of Hermione. The Time Wizard resembled Dumbledore too much with his speech, power and appearance. The antagonist, The Rift Master, resembled Voldemort in both appearance and character. There was another character who worked for the Time Wizard and reminded me of Hagrid. There were also multiple scenes that were too similar to certain scenes in the Harry Potter universe. At times, I felt like I was reading a fan-fiction. It’s fine to be inspired by other writers, but I felt this story was inspired a little too much.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I like the plot, the characters and the world. The reason I took off a star is because there could have been a little more originality to some of the characters and scenes. Besides that, I would recommend this book to young readers who enjoy fantasy. I would even recommend it to Harry Potter fans. They might enjoy the similarities and I’m sure they would enjoy reading the book as well.
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Sword of Dragonblood
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