Review of "Guardian of the Sky Realms" by Gerry Huntman

Buy it HERE! 

You may remember my interview with Gerry Huntman HERE. Now, I got the privilege of reading his debut novel. Check it out!

Maree Webster is your average 16-year-old girl from the suburbs of Sydney. Until she sneaks into a gallery to steal a famous painting and finds herself mesmerized and emotionally drawn to the compelling image of two angels in flight--one carrying another, who appears to be injured.

When a strange man appears and seems relieved to find her, Maree is hurled into fantastical world where she takes on another completely forgotten identity. Maree must now resume her role as Mirriam, a Guardian of the Sky Realms.

She and her partner Alanar have to protect both the Sky Realm and the passageways into the plane of Earth from the daemons that seek to destroy them. One of their targets is a young man named Jason, whom Marree had fallen in love with while she was still her teenage self.

The world Mr. Huntman created here in this middle grade novel is vivid and lively. Characters are emotive and realistic. I empathized with them all, especially Alanar, who wanted so desperately to have Mirriam back, but was so incredibly patient with her amnesia and her inability to forget her life as Maree. I greatly enjoyed all the obstacles and battles they had to overcome in order to reach their goals, and I think young readers will love those as well.

My only nitpicks were minor. Through the lens of an adult reader, Jason's role in this story didn't seem strong enough to warrant his final outcome. And Alanar, again in my adult mind, got the short end of the stick. However, this may not pose a problem to the younger crowd, who might be in young Jason's camp from the start. One other thing was that a lot of the "world rules" were told through dialogue instead of really shown, but again, this may not be an issue with young readers.

I definitely recommend this story to any lovers of fantasy, young and old alike. It won't disappoint!