The Lost Tide Warriors: Storm Keeper Trilogy 2

By Author / Illustrator

Catherine Doyle

Genre

Magical Realism

Age range(s)

Publisher

Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

ISBN

9781408896907

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

11-07-2019

Synopsis

In the sequel to The Storm Keeper's Island, winner of the Books are My Bag Readers Award, Fionn Boyle finds himself at the heart of the fight for the island's survival.

Fionn Boyle has been Storm Keeper of Arranmore for less than six months when thousands of terrifying Soulstalkers arrive on the island. The empty-eyed followers of the dreaded sorceress Morrigan have come to raise their leader and Fionn is powerless to stop them. The Storm Keeper's magic has deserted him and with his grandfather's memory waning, Fionn must rely on his friends Shelby and Sam to help him summon Dagda's army of merrows.

But nobody else believes the ferocious sea creatures even exist. And how can he prove he's right without any magic? As Fionn begins his search for the lost army, the other islanders prepare for invasion. The battle to save Arranmore has begun.

'Doyle's talent for creating windswept, stormy tension and physical threat sweeps all before it. This is one for a seaside holiday, whatever the weather' The Daily Mail. 'Magical in every way' EOIN COLFER. 'So magical and wild that it's like being swept away by the sea' KATHERINE RUNDELL

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Reviews

A-maz-ing... from the very first page of The Lost Tide Warriors (the second book in the Storm Keeper trilogy), the author puts the reader through a catalogue of emotions, from laughing out loud, to holding your breath, then keeping you on the edge of your seat and then reducing you to tears. That is the exceptional quality of the writing in this story.

Fionn has only been Storm Keeper on the island of Arranmore for six months and he still hasn't been able to trigger his magic that keeps the island safe. The island's inhabitants are all watching and waiting for his powers to be released as they are close to being taken over by the dark magic of Morrigan, an evil sorceress. With the help of his close friends, Shelby and Sam, and also, and very unexpectedly, his sister Tara, Fionn seeks to control the sea by finding a special shell that will summon the Merrows that guard the island from the sea. However, the Merrows will not answer to anyone; they will only come for the person that has bonded with the Tide Summoner. Who will that person be? Will Fionn's grandfather be able to help him find his magic before it's too late, or will his rapidly waning memory completely leave him while Ffion still needs his help?

The author has described the mystical Merrows with such detail that you can imagine them easily riding from the sea to devour their enemies between their shark like teeth! The author's imagination does not stop there, it fluidly carries on with the menacing descriptions of the soul stalkers as they come to the island to help resurrect their evil queen Morrigan, and continues through this tense magical fantasy adventure until the very last cliff hanging word on the last page.

This story is about family, community, love and relationships along with the battle of good and evil. I love the magic and mystery that the candles hold and the layers of the past that they can take the person who lights them to. I also adored the special relationship between Fionn and his grandfather, it made me remember how important mine was to me and definitely pulled at my heart strings.

318 pages of a wonderfully crafted adventure that is suitable for 8+ readers and older, less well read readers. The Lost Tide Warriors would also be great for intervention groups, (I personally would have purchased these for the groups that I used to run) and book clubs. Both of the books in this series are such strong reads, they are un-put-downable; both are such rapid reads that you will escape into and enjoy so very much. I'm eagerly awaiting book three.

336 pages / Reviewed by Linda Brown, school librarian