Children’s book – BOOK CHAT

The Legend of the Taken Ones: Gateskin Chronicles Book 1 – by Janice Spina

Published on September 25, 2021September 25, 2021 by macjam476 Comments

Book Blurb

This is Book 1 of a fantasy series that will have six books in all. In this book learn about the three children of King Gateskin and his wife, Queen Solinara. The children have had powers since they were quite young..

Serena was three years old when she learned of her power to move objects with her mind. Her brother, Simon, can fly and their sister, Catalina, can become invisible or blend into her surroundings. They live with their parents in Sovorotskina, the Land of Light.

With these powers comes responsibility. The children must try to use their powers for the common good and responsibly to help others. The three children befriend a Sprite named Spindle who accompanies them on their adventure. Along the way they meet up with their aunt and uncle, their mother’s brother and his wife, Wizard Hotenfaran and Fairy Procelina. The group must travel into the evil land of Parotovina, Land of Darkness, to save King Gateskin, who was kidnapped, and also rescue some of the descendants of their friends and fellow Sovorotskinans who were captured and taken by the Evil Ones. These descendants have been waiting a long time to be free to return to the villages of their ancestors.

The children have many trials and adventures along the way. Will they be able to rescue their father and fellow Sovorotskinans without endangering their own lives? Will the evil King Kaposkaran and his Queen Beregina stop Serena and her siblings from being successful or will they turn Serena and her siblings to their dark ways?

Book Blurb from Amazon

My Review

The Taken are the children of the Provence of Noella who have been missing from their homes for many, many years. They were captured by the Parotovinans to be raised under the evil king wizard. Now, King Gateskin of Sovorotskina, Land of Goodness and Light, through his wizardry learns that the Evil Ones are planning to capture the children of the Provence of Noella once again. With the help of his children, a tree sprite named Spindle, wizards, and fairies, King Gateskin goes to Parotovina to gain release of the Taken Ones. Along the way they will encounter dangerous situations.

Those who enjoy stories of wizards, fairies, sprites, and adventure will find this un-put-downable! This is not my normal genre, but I was mesmerized. The characters are beautifully detailed, and the plot is captivating. The Legend of the Taken Ones: Gateskin Chronicles, Book 1 is a five-star book!

The author gifted me an ARC and I have given my honest review.

Meet the Author

Janice Spina is an award-winning author with 15 children’s books, Louey the Lazy Elephant, Ricky the Rambunctious Raccoon, (Louey and Rick both won Silver Medal from Mom’s Choice Awards), Jerry the Crabby Crayfish (won Pinnacle Book Achievement Award), Lamby the Lonely Lamb (won the Silver Medal from MOM’S Choice Awards), and Jesse the Precocious Polar Bear, Broose the Moose on the Loose (won a Pinnacle Book Achievement Award), and Sebastian Meets Marvin the Monkey, and Colby the Courageous Cat (Pinnacle Book Achievement Award), Jeffrey the Jittery Giraffe (Pinnacle Book Achievement Award), Clarence Henry the Hermit Crab, Lucy the Talented Toy Terrier, The First Star, Drystan the Dragon and Friends Series, Book 1 – 3, Davey & Derek Junior Detectives Series (Book 1-6) is a middle-grade/preteen series and Abby & Holly Series Books 1-6 (Books 1, 2, 3, 4, won Pinnacle Book Achievement Awards, Book 1 won a Bronze Medal from Readers’ Favorite Book Awards). Book 1, The Case of the Missing Cell Phone (won the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award and an Honorable Mention from Readers’ Favorite Awards). Book 2, The Case of the Mysterious Black Cat, won the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award and Book 3, The Case of the Magical Ivory Elephant, also won the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award and a Silver Medal from Readers’ Favorite Book Awards, and Book 5 won a Pinnacle Book Achievement Award and a Silver Medal from Authorsdb Cover Contest, Book 6 won a Pinnacle Book Achievement Award and a Finalist Award with Book Excellence Awards and A Finalist in Reader’s Favorite Book Awards. Janice’s other books have also been Finalists in Red City Review Book Awards and Authorsdb First Lines Contest and received 5-star reviews from Readers’ Favorite Book Awards.

Janice has published three novels under J. E. Spina, Hunting Mariah, a thriller/mystery, (Finalist in Authorsdb First Lines Contest), Mariah’s Revenge (Sequel to Hunting Mariah), also a Finalist in Authorsdb First Lines Contest), a paranormal/mystery/romance novel, How Far Is Heaven, and a short story collection, An Angel Among Us, all available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. She is working on more dragon books, and Book 6 of Abby & Holly, a mystery series for MG/PT/YA girls to be published in 2020. She needs to edit a YA fantasy series which will be published in 2021 and beyond. Her husband is her illustrator and cover creator. He’s working on book 3 of six books of Drystan the Dragon series for children which be coming over the next few years.

She has written over a hundred poems and two other novels. The two novels need editing before publishing. Janice says, “There is always another story swimming around in my head. If I don’t write them down they are lost forever.”

Her logo is JEMSBOOKS for all ages on which is her motto:
“Reading Gives You Wings To Fly! Soar with Jemsbooks!”

Janice’s and John’s joint goal is: To encourage children of all ages to read and to instill this love of reading in them to carry them throughout their lives and thus giving them ‘wings to fly!’

She loves to hear from readers and appreciates reviews. She says, “It’s like Christmas each time I receive a review!”

Author Biography from Goodreads

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The Calico Caterpillar

Published on July 21, 2019July 21, 2019 by macjam474 Comments

By Donna Lewis

THE CALICO CATERPILLAR is a delightful story that will captivate young children as they read (or listen to) the tale of a funny-looking little caterpillar and how he turns into a beautiful calico butterfly. It is a science lesson all wrapped up in a charming and fascinating book.

The author tells this well-crafted story with close attention to language and descriptions that young readers can understand. The lovely illustrations are the artistic work of illustrator H L Gillager.

I recommend THE CALICO CATERPILLAR to parents of young children and to young readers who enjoy an excellent story while learning about the real-life experiences of a caterpillar.

The cover IMAGE is from Goodreads.

My sincere thanks to the publisher William Parks for access to this book in return for my honest review. I received no compensation for this review.

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Katie Shaeffer Pancake Maker

Published on March 16, 2018 by macjam4722 Comments

By Cynthia Mackey

Book Blurb

Katie is too young to use the stove so she dreams of making her very own pancakes. Join Katie and her friend Baxter in this fun story as they use a passion for collecting and building to find a way to realize Katie’s pancake dream! This upbeat energetic tale with great potential for reading aloud will appeal to adults and young children alike. The book includes a predictable rhyme that will have children chiming in as the story unfolds. Children will celebrate with Katie and Baxter as their pancake dream becomes reality! Recipe included. (Taken from Goodreads)

My Review

Katie Shaffer loved building things, but more than that she loved eating pancakes. In fact, she dreamed of making “Golden brown, fluffy as a cloud, perfectly round, PANCAKES!” herself, but her parents said she was too young to use the stove. So, Katie went to her collection box where she had saved all sorts of castaways – cardboard, ribbon, buttons, kitchen gadgets, and more. She and her new neighbor Baxter decided to build their own pancake maker so they could make, “Golden brown, fluffy as a cloud, perfectly round, PANCAKES!” Together they blended the ingredients and then Katie mixed in a magic ingredient. The pancakes were delicious, so they decided to go to the store to get various butters, syrups, and jams to top their “Golden brown, fluffy as a cloud, perfectly round, PANCAKES!” When they returned they found pancakes on the floor, the ceiling, the bed, everywhere! They had forgotten to turn off the pancake maker and now had enough pancakes to feed their families, friends, and neighbors. That is exactly what they did!

This wonderful story shows children that some dreams do come true and you can accomplish a lot through cooperation. If you want the young children in your life to hear or read stories of hope, the rewards of working toward a goal, and friendship and cooperation, then this book is for you. The book even includes the recipe for Katie’s “Golden brown, fluffy as a cloud, perfectly round, PANCAKES!” I thoroughly enjoyed reading KATIE SHAEFFER PANCAKE MAKER! Without a doubt, I give this book 5 gold stars!

About the Author

Cynthia Mackey has always loved children’s literature. After years of teaching preschool and kindergarten, she is proud to have written her first children’s book, KATIE SHAEFFER, PANCAKE MAKER. She lives on the west coast of British Columbia wither her family and her piano where she faithfully continues her Saturday morning pancake tradition. (Author Bio taken from the back cover of the book)

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