Victor and the Sun Orb
Amy Nielsen
978-0595512126
iUniverse (2008)

Sun fairies both good and evil, monstrous creatures, adventure, magic, a talking strawberry bush, ant royalty, and an epic battle for the freedom of an entire world are in store in the wonderful young adult fantasy Victor and the Sun Orb by Amy Nielsen.

The book captivates from the Prologue. On Solandia, another dimension of Earth, a mythical sphere called the Sun Orb gives the fairies their magical powers. Without the Orb the entire world will become dark and magic-less. The book opens at the trial of Thorkel, the brother of King Godfred, a short time after Thorkel’s capture for stealing the Sun Orb. Under Solandian law, Thorkel is sentenced by Queen Magenta to life imprisonment for his crime.

Some 500 years later, Queen Magenta has given birth to a son, Prince Victor. Not long after his birth it is learned that he has been cursed to become human on his 13th birthday. Humans cannot survive in the fairy world of Solandia and so upon turning the fateful age, Victor must leave his family to live with humans. The King and Queen search the entire Kingdom for the person responsible for Victor’s mortality curse.

Victor’s parents take the curse very seriously and decide to prepare Victor for life with the humans. Victor begins training with a fairy Master Tyrus. For three hours a day, Victor is trained in magic, history, geography, self-defense, and human lifestyles. Victor doesn’t take to his studies right away, but in time he becomes a proficient student.

Despite an intense, decade-long search, the curse is not broken. Victor leaves home to live on Earth as a human after his thirteenth birthday. Meanwhile, the Sun Orb is stolen and the fairies’ magic instantly begins to weaken. It is believed that Narcissa, a once banished terrorist fairy, or even Thorkel, may be responsible for the theft. Magenta and Godfred assemble an army and travel to a place called Fallen Island to find the Sun Orb. On Earth, Victor’s human friend, Annika, has been kidnapped and evidence is found of evil fairy magic. Victor must use all he has learned from Master Tyrus to travel to Fallen Island to save her.

Amy Nielsen has created a universe with loveable creatures, horrible monsters, and mythical magic, effectively keeping readers of all ages entertained from cover to cover. Nielsen steadily builds the momentum over the first 100 pages. Then she throws us onto a thrill ride of twists and turns in the closing chapters, as the armies of Magenta/Godfred and Narcissa/Thorkel’s evil Croogs meet in a heroic battle to save or enslave all Solandia.

Highly recommended for readers 8-13, with a caution of some mild course language.

Reviewed by William Potter for Reader’s Choice Book Reviews.

Amy Nielsen was raised in the Philippines and earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Saint Louis University, Baguio City. She worked in a youth center in different capacities giving her national and international experiences with young people, before working as Executive Staff in an importer/distributor company in Manila. She lives in Denmark with her Danish husband and is writing sequel to Victor and the Sun Orb while working full-time at Novo Nordisk

by Jeffrey B. Allen

The dust jacket text for Gone Away Into the Land promises an epic fantasy adventure. I can tell you that this is one novel that exceeds expectations. Author Jeffrey B. Allen takes the reader on an adventure that will leave you thinking about the story long after you close the final page.

We meet our protagonist, twelve-year-old John Gerber. John’s life is not that of an average pre-teen-not even close. John, his mother Ellie, and his sister Marny live in constant, paralyzing fear of John’s father, Daniel. Daniel, or the beast as John calls him, is an extremely volatile man whose rage could explode on his family at any moment-and explode it does. John dreams of ending the beast’s reign of terror, of taking his family away before it is too late. The first fifty pages of Part 1 are no fantasy as the author describes in vivid, shocking detail Daniel’s unpredictable fury and a horrible example of violent abuse, as the beast leaves John and Ellie beaten and bloodied and kidnaps six-year-old Marny.

With the help of a mysterious taxi driver, John and Ellie begin their search for Marny. This is where the fantasy starts as it is believed that Marny is somewhere in the candy factory where Daniel was employed. Soon John and his mother are aboard a train in an amazing land called ZingZongLand. ZZL is a place that is all about creating the best tasting candy. The leader of the land is called KyaSiftar. The Siftar’s main rival is the minister of Southland province named Mengus. Desperate for power, Mengus has his sights set on dominating the land and controlling the new flavor creations. Mengus recruits the beast to aid in his conquest of the Land. He believes that gaining control in the Land is the key to overthrowing the World as well.

Jeffrey B. Allen showcases his considerable imagination and writing talent in creating an entire universe. His lead is a believable, lovable character with which readers young and old will quickly bond. The villains are wonderfully horrible and easy to loathe, without overshadowing the hero. The secondary characters are interesting, fresh and well drawn. The dialogue is crisp and clear and well suited to the vast variety of creatures and peoples. Allen slowly reveals his characters’ secrets along the way, keeping the reader captivated throughout. He wastes none of these nearly 500 pages, using suspense and vibrant description to keep the pages turning. He brings all the players together in a David versus Goliath-type showdown for the ages that will have you rooting for John to the end.

Gone Away is building momentum, was recently picked up by a major publisher and was accepted in several school libraries. I believe it will become the next time-tested classic fantasy tale, universally adored and mentioned in the same breath as The Wizard of Oz, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Lord of The Rings. I highly recommend this thought-provoking, entertaining read.

Gone Away Into The Land

Strategic Book Publishing (October 1, 2009)
978-1608608591
Gone Away Into The Land
Jeffrey B. Allen

By William R. Potter for Readers’ Choice Reviews

Sales interrogation by one of the UK’s leading experience day websites has found that IT workers are most likely to book survival and ‘spygame’ experience days, with supplemental research of 1,347 British workers showing that 1 in 3 people working in the IT profession preferred adventurous experiences because it was so different from their working day.

One of the UK’s leading experience day websites, www.intotheblue.co.uk, noticed a large number of orders to attend spy days and other adventure experiences were being made from offices during work hours, and decided to investigate the work sectors most likely to book experience days.

A subsequent study of 1,347 British employees found that IT workers are the most adventurous in the UK, with 37% having gone on an adventure-based experience day in the last year, prompting intotheblue.co.uk Marketing Manager Rob Holmes to liken the results to ‘Superman Syndrome’.

Intotheblue.co.uk noted a correlation between the least active workers on a day-to-day basis and the ones most likely to book more adventurous experience days.

The study also found that, perhaps unsurprisingly, IT workers were the most likely to play videogames, with 81% admitting to being regular players.

The most popular videogame genre with IT workers was first person shooters, with 43% saying it was their preferred type of title. This fact mirrors the popularity of the paintballing and survival experience days with IT workers, according to intotheblue.co.uk.

Here is the list of the top ten most adventurous workers in the UK, by percentage of those who had been on an adventure activity in the last year:

1. IT workers – 37%

2. Marketing – 33%

3. Receptionists – 26%

3. Administrative workers – 24%

4. Checkout operators– 22%

6. Customer services – 19%

7. Salespeople – 18%

8. Hairdressers – 16%

9. Retail workers – 14%

10. Shop attendants – 13%

Of the IT workers who had booked experience days for themselves or been bought one, 71% said they enjoyed the fact it was such a polar-opposite experience when compared to their day to day life.

Rob Holmes, Ecommerce & Marketing Manger of Intotheblue.co.uk said,

“At first glance, it would seem that IT workers are developing themselves an army of super covert, gun-capable soldiers! I put it down to Superman Syndrome – where, by day, UK workers are mild-mannered employees, but outside of work, they take on a whole new, more adventurous persona.

“We noticed a huge rise in bookings of the more adventurous, survival-based experience days from offices, and thought it’d be really interesting to look at why this must be. There’s definitely a correlation between workers who are more sedentary throughout the day and those most likely to book more active experience days outside of work!”

LINK http://www.intotheblue.co.uk

END

For any more information on www.intotheblue.co.uk contact Gabrielle Lofthouse on 01452 348211 or email on [email protected] or on Twitter @Gabriella_PRowl

Editors Notes:

The website was launched in 1996 as only an Air Activity Gift Voucher site

www.intotheblue.co.uk offers over 600 experiences, including skydiving, tank driving, beauty spa experiences, water sports experiences and many more. This is a simple to use internet based business that prides itself on its customer friendly approach.