Title: Chasing the Valley: Borderlands
Author: Skye Melki-Wegner
Genre: YA/Fantasy
Opening lines: ‘…It’s the sixth night when the hunters find us…’
BORDERLANDS was the first book I read in 2014 and my first 5 star read; was an amazing thriller of a read. When I discovered that it was the second in the Chasing the Valley series, I was a bit worried because I hadn’t read the first. Not a problem at all. I was sucked into the story from the very first line and at no stage did I feel that I had missed anything. Having said that I am going to go back and read the first one to catch up on the background in depth. BORDERLANDS is a wonderful blend of adventure, science fiction and magic set in a dystopian world. In this world is the country of Taladia which is ruled over by a really nasty king who is set on conquering all the surrounding lands so he can make even more people miserable. Danika and her friends have escaped death and destruction and are heading for Magnetic Valley, an almost mythical land where everything is beautiful and peaceful. They have survived getting out of the city, now they have to survive the borderlands. They are being hunted by the king’s special troop of hunters who have everything to gain by capturing the group; on top of this little set back of being hunted there are smugglers with ulterior motives and a huge army between the group and their destination.
In Taladia everyone has a magical ability, when they reach their late teens their ability becomes known and a little tattoo appears on the back of their neck that reveals the ability. Danika is just learning hers – it is night. She can create an illusion spell to hide herself and the others, and she can melt into darkness and get through solid things. Others in her group can control animals, start fires and become one with birds. BORDERLANDS is about friendship and working as a team despite personality clashes; it is about using your magical talent and it is about ethics; most of all though BORDERLANDS is about survival. Fast paced, full of drama and humor the story was action packed, I was constantly wondering what was going to happen next. The ending was great, edge of the seat stuff, and with some deaths but nothing graphic. It is good to know that there is a third book to come (due out in July 1914 and hasn’t been given a title yet) but this knowledge means that possible the nasty old king is going to have another crack at conquering the world – or is he vanquished finally? Will the Magnetic Valley be the utopia Danika and her friends are hoping for? All will be revealed I’m sure, and I plan to be front and center getting it when it comes out. I HAVE TO KNOW what happens in the end.
Rating: A – Excellent Stuff – a real page turner and hard to put down. I carved out extra reading time just so I could finish it. This book got carted into the bathroom with me, read over meals, read at work, and/or kept me up late at night. If this author has more work, I will certainly read it.
For more about the author – Click Here
With thanks to The Reading Room and the author for my copy to read and review
Chasing the Valley: Borderlands by Skye Melki-Wegner is book # 1 for AWW2014
[…] is a wonderful blend of adventure, science fiction and magic set in a dystopian world” says Sally from Oz about the second book in Wegner’s Chasing the Valley series. Sally actually picked up the […]