This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite
Within the Territory of Noella Provence, there was a kingdom, Sovorotskina, known as the Land of Goodness and Light. It was ruled by the great wizard King Gateskin and his fairy queen wife, Solinara. They had three children, Serena, Simon, and Catalina, all with special magical powers. They had to keep the magic secret as there was an evil power in a nearby kingdom, in the land of Parotovina, the Land of Darkness. This evil power once stole an entire village’s children to claim the magic for their own people, to use this magic for evil. When King Gateskin is kidnapped, Serena and her siblings combine their powers and resources, enlisting the help of a new friend, a Sprite by the name of Spindle, to rescue the king as well as the descendants of those “taken” children.
Janice Spina’s young adult novel, The Legend of the Taken Ones, is the first book in a six-book fantasy series, The Gateskin Chronicles. With an exciting plot full of magic and the conflicting powers of good and evil, this story is a real page-turner. The story begins with background information on the taken ones, the children kidnapped by the evil powers of Parotovina. Knowing that evil continues to lurk nearby, the magical kingdom of King Gateskin is always on high alert. The adventure truly begins when the king is kidnapped and the children set out on a journey of their own, intent on rescuing their father and leader. This is an epic, high-fantasy adventure that follows in the time-tested style of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings: the ongoing battles between good and evil and the true magic that is found within one’s heart and in the bonds of family and friendship.
