by John Stephens
Kate, Michael and Emma have been hidden away by Stanislaus Pym, their guardian. They are not safe and he hopes that he’ll be able to discover more about the danger and the reasons with time. Time, though, is not on their side and Michael and Emma find themselves on a breathless quest to find the second Book of Beginning, The Fire Chronicle. At the same time Kate is transported by the power of the Emerald Atlas to the past.
Michael and Kate race from the Screechers and others who work for the Dire Magnus. They travel around and through the world in search of the magical book and clues to discover where and why their parents have been taken from them. With the help of steadfast Gabriel, Michael and Kate join a dragon and an army of elves (not Michael’s beloved dwarves) to gain control of the Chronicle and learn even more about their destiny as the prophesied three. While their quest unfolds Kate is whisked through time to the exact moment when the magical world divided itself off and went into hiding. There she learns of another part of the children’s destiny and comes to understand more about the divide between the wizards and the Dire Magnus.
Only by being together will the children be able to do any thing – Kate is in past in New York City and Michael and Emma at at the bottom of the world in the lava chamber of vast volcano. Magic can bring them together – but how and when. There is a cost for using magic but that won’t be fully understood until the story of the Books of Beginning is told from start to finish. What is the cost of bringing the three books together? Who will pay and how will the worlds be left? Are their more than two choices? Are there only two sides – good and evil? The Fire Chronicle is a thrilling adventure that will leave you breathlessly turning pages, eagerly searching for information, connections and answers to your many questions. I didn’t think a book could be better than The Emerald Atlas, but The Fire Chronicle just might be. All I know for sure is that I cannot wait to read the final book in the trilogy – so many twists and turns, so many possibilities. I can’t wait to find out discover what is in store for Emma, Michael and Kate – their parents and friends and the world. Life is in the balance.