Scott L. Collins (1)Rezensionen

A group of plausibly skilled children who've been gifted by an illness called witch's breath that sometimes grants its survivors special powers, decide to fight back against the usurper to the throne who rules their kingdom. Dragons, unicorns and fairies are seamlessly integrated into the landscape. The characters are well-developed and interesting. There's plenty of action, and this was a very fun, easy read. Can't wait for more! :)

A group of children/young teens whose parents have been abducted into slavery, on a quest to restore their kingdom and eliminate its despotic ruler. Quite a lot for a group of children to tackle, but they've been on their own for a while, and they have some special gifts. I'm really enjoying this series, with its focus on the characters, depth of emotion, and complex motivations. I love the creatures, too - plenty of new fantasy beings to encounter. Looking forward to the next installment!

Each of these books, so far, have started right where the previous one left off. With the Emerald of Phaunos fitted back into the Scepter of Harmony, the young crusaders manage to elude the clutches of the ruthless diegylis by escaping on a raft. Enjoying their leisurely cruise down the river, they suddenly find themselves in trouble once they hit the Great Lake. Now, they find themselves in a life-and-death situation, along with two females Aidan had rescued before. Who will save them and their two new friends?

In this third installment, we finally get to read more about the two brothers that were left behind at Alustria. Haleim has changed his mind and wants to help defeat Argyle and restore the kingdom. With no fighting skills, Shon convinces Haleim and Atreyu to undergo the intensive training the young Centaurians must pass to become warriors. Some of the Centaurians resent Humans living among them, and show their displeasure during the brother’s training. I really enjoyed this part of the story, and how Haleim and Atreyu overcame the obstacle course. I’m looking forward to when, or if, they meet back up with Daniel, Aidan, Olivia, Lily, and Zack.

With the book being split between the two groups, I felt like some of the battles that Daniel’s group encountered during their trip to Plhegthon were somewhat glossed over. There was so much anticipation, dread, and fear over the denizens that lived under the sand, that when they finally confronted one, it was more of a fizzle and not an explosion. I was hoping it would be an epic battle like with the man-eating toad, or the creature that lived in the lake under the mountain. Unfortunately, it wasn’t, so I was left disappointed.

In the meantime, Aryle is preparing a massive fleet to defeat Queen Kyrei and her mer-folk once and for all. What secret weapon does he have stashed in the vats he’s assigned to each of his vessels? Hmmm. We still haven’t found out what is motivating him though. What happened in his past to make him so hateful and vile? I really want to know what makes him tick.

There are other unanswered questions. Like what happened to Zack? Aidan being impulsive and judgmental, saw Zack’s abandonment of Lilly as a showing of his true colors. But I’m sure there was more to that scene that we’ve been made privy to. Book 4 hasn’t been written yet, but I think Collins is working on it. I can’t wait to continue this journey with these brave youngsters.

This is an entertaining, well-written, fast-paced, young adult adventure, and I recommend it for children and adults alike. I give it 4 feathers.

I enjoyed the first book in the series, but I was totally entertained with this one. I felt Scott Collins found his stride. His writing was better, he didn’t bog the reader down with all the daily mundane tasks, and there’s plenty of action to appease action junkies. So much so, I found myself holding my breath in a few places. Especially with the huge man-eating toad. YUCKO!! When attacked, toads emit a chemical that will induce frothing of the mouth. My cat eat a toad once and we thought he had rabies. LOL. So, what happened to Aidan was very believable.

In the first book, we were told about King Argyle, now we get to meet him. We get to see him in all his evilness. What I feel is missing is the WHY behind him. Why does he hate everyone and everything? What motivates him to be so vile? So, right now, he’s pretty much a one-dimensional character. Maybe these questions will be answered in the next book.

We’re also introduced to Fracik, leader of a pack of diegylis, who are half man, half werewolf, and totally ruthless. They were created by Argyle to do his dirty work. Fracik hates Argyle for taking his wife and child from him, and I can see somewhere down the road that he might be changing sides. I am curious to see how this part of the story develops.

This is a very fast-paced book, and when I hit the end, I was like, what, that’s the end? Of course, it leaves you on a cliff-hanger, like the first book. I can’t wait to start the 3rd one. I give it 5 dragons and highly recommend it for young adult readers and adults alike. BTW, I love the book covers, and they depict scenes from the story.

How far would you go to save your older brother? That’s a question Aidan has to answer when his brother, Daniel, turns 14 and is now the target of Argyle and his evil henchmen. Scott Collins takes us on a fanciful journey as two brothers use their special abilities to escape the dark ruler, but also end up fighting for the other children being stolen and taken as slaves into the mines. Along the way, they team up with sisters Olivia and Lily, who have talents of their own. This is a delightful tale, and I really enjoyed the characters and the adventures that the four children encountered. So much, that I’ve bought the second book in the series.

Out of the two brothers, I liked Aidan’s character the best. He’s quick tempered and impulsive, but he has a heart of gold. I also love his special ability, and I’m sure most children would love to be him. Aidan knows it’s up to them to save their world and repair the Scepter. I can’t wait to see what troubles they get into next.

My onlyu complaint about the tale, also expressed by other reviewers, is all the depicting of everyday life, IE eating, cooking, fetching water. It does get quite tedious and cuts back on the pace of the story. But I know Scott is rewriting the story, so hopefully, he’ll get this issue resolved.

If you love YA books with adventure and magical creatures, you’ll enjoy this tale. I highly recommend it and give it 4 feathers.

This is the second book in the series and the story continues to race along, packing in excitement and a refreshingly original fantasy world. Some of the old familiars are in there, such as werewolves, but without falling into the familiar stereotypes. The characters are interesting, well developed and easy to care about. Highly recommended and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

A great read. The special abilities of the characters are interesting and well thought out, and the world generally has some novel ideas. The main characters all feel real and I quickly found myself caring about them. The story is well written and I can't wait to find out what happens next. Highly recommended.

An adventure sprinkled with fantasy and fun every child, teen and young adult will love. What am I saying, I am an older adult and I really liked it.

Getting near the end I wondered how Scott was going to end it so quickly, unless of course it had a sequel. Yup, that is what's going to happen because the next adventure must commence especially since this one wasn't really a finale. It certainly reached a summit, but there is a realization when reading the story that a whole lot of things can happen in the end, and of course while getting there.

Creating a story of characters that are already friends is one thing, but bringing in strangers to become friends and weaving their lives together can be a task. Scott does that with a charm and detail that brings them to life. You enjoy meeting them, and really enjoy joining them on their journey. You wonder, revel and sympathize with their situations, thoughts and emotions. Turning the pages to find out what happens next is the only thing you can do. Unless of course it becomes a movie, then you can watch that too, which is really what you see in your mind as you read this book. Honestly traveling with these characters was fun and exciting.

This book is one of the reasons I really love to read fantasy. You can create anything you want and the readers will gobble it up asking for more. The story can weave, dodge or jump with something new, and well written stories keep you seated easily adapting to the change. The story marches forward and you are steadily beating the drum stomping forth for more.

One of the things I hate with some books is beginnings that drone on trying to set the stage for the storyline or characters. This book's beginning set the stage if you will, but you really didn't realize it until further into the story. Then you had your ah ha moment that tied it up with a bow. And then realizing what was going to have to happen still didn't dampen the enthusiasm of the story. That's due to not only the story, but how it was written. The moving forward never stopped or slowed down; it just flowed like a river over an obstacle course as you thought about what pool it would settle in.

Scott created a story of two brothers and then two sisters and then two more brothers who become not just friends but comrades, allies and fighters for not only themselves and their families, but strangers and creatures alike. Their special gifts allow them the abilities needed to help and succeed whether others felt no hope. Their greatest gift to others was not the fighting they did, but the hope and love they offered.

Get this book for your children, nieces, nephews, grandchildren and strangers. They will love the characters and truly enjoy the tale.

I have just finished this book and thought it was great. It was recommended on the Kindle board forums and I read the ebook version, though it's also available in paperback.

It's a good story and I couldn't guess where it was going, though other readers might. I'm going to find it hard to say too much without spoiling the story but there are apocalyptic, thriller, sci-fi and love story elements in there, and all are neatly tied up as the book finishes. And I loved the ending! I have seen the review on here (and others on Amazon) that didn't like the ending, and I can see why it might not appeal to every reader. But for me, it was perfect.

Looking forward to the next one by this author.

I randomly acquired this book when I accidentally walked in on a book signing and bought the book 1) because it was set in Colorado and 2) the author was sitting there looking at me. I'm glad I made the purchase. I think this story is very original and has satisfying twists and turns. Sometimes the language gets a big cheesy, but mostly the book moves quickly and has good characters. I docked half a star because of the language and a whole star because I HATED the ending. The rest of the book, however, is great.½