So long to one series, hello to a new one

From January 16 to February 14 I was immersed in The County of The Wardstone Chronicles by Joseph Delaney. The series is incomplete and the next installment (The Spook's Nightmare) is scheduled for UK release on May 27, 2010. It was weird to read The Sugar Queen this week because for nearly a month I had read nothing but this series, and I had come to love and care about all the characters. I also loved Delaney's knack for scenery and detail, and The County seemed like such a real and attainable location :)

For fans of Harry Potter, Septimus Heap, and other magic-and-fantasy YA series, The Wardstone Chronicles (known as the Last Apprentice series in the US) is a must-read.

I’ll miss Tom, Alice, the Spook and their pet boggart, who I’ve come to know and love in this last month, but I’ll see them again in May. Until then, it’s a sad but fond farewell to the world of The County...

...and a 'hello' to the Seven Realms of Avalon! The Great Tree of Avalon by T.A. Barron is a completed trilogy so there will be no axiety awaiting the next installment (I could barely focus last year, I was so excited about The Last Olympian!).

Here's some info...

Child of the Dark Prophecy - T.A. Barron

- 12 October 2004 by Philomel

- (Hardcover) 432 pages

- GR reviews: 42% (5 stars), 33% (4 stars), 19% (3 stars), 4% (2 stars), 1% (1 star)

Long ago the great wizard Merlin planted the seed that would become the peaceful world of Avalon. Now, the enchanted land is in peril, and its fate lies in the hands of three people-but only one of them is Merlin's heir who can save Avalon, while the others are destined to destroy it.

Shadows on the Stars - T.A. Barron

- 6 October 2005 by Philomel

- (Hardcover) 432 pages

- GR reviews: 44% (5 stars), 33% (4 stars), 19% (3 stars), 2% (2 stars), 0% (1 star)

Continuing the Great Tree of Avalon epic, three companions embark on separate, far-reaching quests to solve the mystery of the vanishing stars-confronting the very powers of darkness along the way.

The Eternal Flame - T.A. Barron

- 19 October 2007 by Philomel

- (Hardcover) 400 pages

- GR reviews: 43% (5 stars), 33% (4 stars), 19% (2 stars), 0% (1 star)

I'm not putting the blurb because it has a SPOILER! I got SPOILED!!

Friday Finds [2]

Friday Finds are books that you've heard about during the past week. For me, I'm taking it a step further: these are books I heard about and may potentially read. Friday Finds is hosted by MizB @ Should be Reading

If you have any information on any of these titles please lemme know! :D

My finds this week:

The Troll Trilogy by Katherine Langrish.

Troll Fell

A secret kingdom of trolls, and their legendary gold, lies in the mysterious shadows of Troll Fell. It is to this eerie and dangerous place that Peer must go after his father's sudden death, to live with his greedy uncles, Baldur and Grim, at their mill.
When Peer discovers his uncles' plan to sell children to the trolls, he has to bury his fears and set out to stop them somehow. In a world filled with magic and mystery, Peer has only his bravery, his wits, and two new allies -- a daring girl looking for adventure and a mischievous house spirit looking for a good meal. Their story will become part of the legends and lore that fill this extraordinary land by the sea.

Troll Mill

Fifteen-year-old Peer Ulfsson is haunted by his past. Forced to live with his evil uncles under the eerie shadows of Troll Fell, he nearly fell prey to their plan to sell children to the trolls. Now Peer lives with his friend Hilde's family, but can he ever truly belong? And will Hilde ever share his deeper feelings?
One rainy night, Peer watches in shock as his neighbor Kersten pushes her baby daughter into his arms and then disappears into the sea. Rumor says that Kersten is a seal woman who has returned to her ocean home, and the millpond witch, Granny Green-teeth, seems intent on taking the "seal baby." Peer also discovers that the mill, abandoned when his uncles joined the troll kingdom, is running again -- all on its own?
With angry trolls, mysterious seal people, a mischievous house spirit, and three unusual babies in the mix, Peer and Hilde have their hands full and more! Katherine Langrish returns to the magical world of her acclaimed debut, troll fell, in this second story set in an extraordinary land by the sea filled with Viking legends and lore.

Troll Blood

The dramatic and gripping conclusion to Katherine Langrish's highly-acclaimed TROLL trilogy. When seafaring traders, Gunnar, and his sword-wielding son, Harald Silkenhair, land in Trollsvik, looking for crew to join their journey to Vinland (North America), Hilde is desperate to join the ship. She begs her parents to let her go as Gunnar's wife Astrid's companion, and when Peer agrees to go and look after her, her parents reluctantly agree. But Gunnar and Harald are dangerous men. Harald has killed a man, and Gunnar has been cursed and is losing his wits in fear that the dead man's ghost is following him. Harald has an uncontrollable, raging temper, and a perilous rivalry develops between he and Peer. By the time they finally reach the shores of Vinland, the settlement is looking less of an attractive proposition. And that's before they meet the "Skraelings" (the Native American people) and the terrifying Jenu -- the cannibal giant with a heart of ice! Action-packed, suspense-fuelled and with a wonderful cast of characters, Troll Blood is a truly rip-roaring read.

And look - mighty purrty cover designs! That's almost always a good omen (except if you're Wicked Fugly, of course...sorry I couldn't help myself!)

I cannot wait to read these! My brothers read them over the Christmas break and they absolutely loved them! Did I mention my little jock brothers are avid readers?! So we're going to do a Avalon-for-Troll swap in a few weeks!