My thoughts
You won't find this one in a bookstore ... yet!

Chris is one of my friends from Australia who shares my fanatacism of the Richmond Tigers. In the midst of our footy friendship, I discovered that he's written a couple of books. Out of respect to a friend, not to mention dying of curiosity, I read the first book, Heroes.

I am the first to admit that I've never read a fantasy book before! If you look at the other books I've read, you'll see that I generally stick to travel, history, biographies and religion. This book, based on subject matter alone, never would have made the reading list if not for special circumstances.

Well let me tell you, I was pleasantly surprised! Heroes was good, but Heroes II is fantastic! It appeals to my sense of imagination in much the same way as the Harry Potter books did, only Heroes is more "grown-up" while keeping a lively sense of adventure and fun! My favorite character is Wing, a teenage, blue-haired elf who is full of life, energy and mischief! I don't want to give away the storyline, but when the character named Feather is introduced, ohhhh, I squealed with delight! I just loved that part!

The book is filled with adventure galore! Some of the fight scenes were a little more graphic than I'd have preferred but then again, I'm used to reading a different type of book. The language in Heroes II can get a bit salty at times but the book is not targeted at a young audience.

The drawback to the book is that it's not available at your local bookseller. In fact, it hasn't been published yet. That's a crying shame because Chris has a lot of talent for writing. If what I've written has piqued your curiosity and you think you'd like to read the book, I'll be happy to pass along your e-mail address to Chris. If you have the in to publishing books, I'm happy to pass that info along to Chris as well! I'd love to see Chris published! (Hey Chris, I want an autographed copy of your books, please!)

Favorite Passage
They continued searching, their eyes going to the ground as often as they went around themselves. The memory of Ceta’s near fatal encounter with the quicksand was still fresh in their minds.

“What’s this?” Wing asked, dropping to her knees and peering at a hedge of thorns.

“You have discovered something?” Og-Dog queried, hurrying over with his torch. “Has he left a fibre from his robe on a thorn?”

“Nothing like that, but this must go through to something.”

“Wing it is a small hole. I do not think that Spirit could fit through it.”

“Hmmmmm…” Wing mused. “I dunno about that. He does some pretty weird things. I can fit through this. I’m gonna check it out.”

“Wing,” Og said sternly, “what did Karlina tell you about wandering away by yourself?”

“I know what she said,” Wing retorted tiny fists on hips, “but this is different. You’re gonna be here. You wait here, I won’t go far and I won’t be gone long.”

Before the Tranquilitein could protest any further the tiny thief had dived into the hole and he was looking at her disappearing feet.

Wing landed in a graceless heap on the other side of the hole. She picked herself up, brushed grass from her tunic and looked around. This was different. The landscape on the other side of the hole was entirely different from the one on this side. The side she had just left was jungle. This was forest. It was not unlike the forests they had travelled through on the Cyrtan/Darthian border. Lush, vivid green, springy grass underfoot and large trees with thick trunks and spreading branches above. Leaf mould in mounds around the trunks and patches of lichen dotting them. Wing stared around herself as she wandered in wonderment through this idyllic landscape.