An action-packed fantasy with extraordinary world-building and complex characters… Triumphant.
Intelligent prose and sharply drawn characters elevate the intriguing premise in Owens’s gripping YA fantasy. Fourteen-year-old Abby has always struggled with fitting in. Her fears and insecurities make it even harder for her to forge new friendships. But when a monster enters Abby’s life, bringing her a vision of a devastating future, Abby sees her world turning upside down. The stakes rise when Abby realizes there is a connection between her past and the monster. Abby must prepare herself for an epic battle or risk losing the world to ensuing chaos. The narrative moves at a measured pace, revealing the protagonists’ troubled backstories. The fully fleshed, entertaining cast of characters and their intricate relationships elevate the plot further. Readers will respond to the sympathy with which Owens reveals the tormenting lives of his protagonists struggling to survive in a world enveloped in chaos. Abby is dynamic and complex, deeply human in the face of all her personal traumas. The novel’s pacing is swift and the tension stays ripe as the plot snowballs toward a mind-boggling, satisfying ending. Owens’s skillful incorporation of relevant themes of school and peer bullying, trauma, friendship, family, self-doubts, insecurities, resilience, determination, fear, and courage brims with empathy and understanding. This exhilarating work of imagination delivers both adventure and thrills while exploring adolescents’ struggles with finding their confidence. The novel will appeal to both lovers of fast-paced middle grade fantasy and early YA readers. Owens is an author to watch.
The Adventures of Abby and Friend
By Connor Owens
Gatekeeper Press
Pub date August 1, 2021
ISBN 978-1662911132
Price $15.99 (USD) Paperback, $5.17 Kindle edition
