The Lost Child's Quest by James Haddell

In a few weeks, the second book in the 'Tales of Truth and Treasure' series is out. They are written by James Haddell and truly are a mixture of 'history, mystery, magic and adventure.' So prior to reading it, I wanted to dip back into the first book 'The Lost Child's Quest' and remind myself of Tia's adventures.

If I am honest, I had forgotten how exciting 'The Lost Child's Quest' is and as I read it again I felt as if I was running through the pages with Tia as she was trying to find out, more than anything, who she was. You see, Tia is an orphan and she knows little about her past and only has a bag of precious items - not that she knows what they are, who has given them to her or where they are from.

I was reminded too, how much I had loved the strong family theme that runs throughout the book. As Tia moves in with the Trevelyans, family sprouts up all around her. Often adventure books can just be about the children but this book incorporates the strength of family and the bonds therein. There are a number of characters to keep hold of but they all work wonderfully well and give this sense of being there to keep Tia safe.

Naturally, there is the villain and from the first chase, it is clear that he is a nasty piece of work. I say first as there are a number of chases, falls, near misses and tasks. What makes the book even more wonderful is where it is set. Personally, as I read James' description of Stormhaven I just wanted to be transported there to see the caves, castle, keep and village for myself. I wanted to see what Tia was seeing but thankfully James vivid descriptions enabled me to picture it all in my head (I still would like to visit though).

If you are using this with your class then there are lots of activity ideas on James website to use with them https://www.truthandtreasure.com/activity-ideas

I won't spoil the book by giving too much away but I would suggest you read it sooner rather than later as the next book is out in November! If you fancy being read to instead then check James' YouTube page as he has recorded himself reading it!