• Author: P.J. Owen
• Genre: Middle-Grade Fantasy

I listened to Journey to the Underhill Gates at podiobooks.com and I received The Thrones of Fire and Stone through P.J. Owen’s website.

The “Seeking Daylight” story is broken up into parts like a TV mini-series.  From my understanding, there are five parts, four of which have been published, but I didn’t know that going in, and I was only able to get the first two parts for free.  Since I’m participating in the #ShelfLove No Book Buying Challenge, it’s going to be a while before I can read the remaining parts.  I came close to deciding not to write a review because of that, but, given the current prices of the remaining parts in ebook format, I’d have no problem with buying them if it weren’t for the challenge.  Together, I wouldn’t be paying much more than a mass market paperback, which the entire story’s page count would be about equal to.  Once the fifth book has been published, the complete set would make a nice little gift for any middle-grade reader.

That’s not an advertisement; I just really enjoyed these first two parts of the story.  There are some minor similarities to the Harry Potter series, but that seems to be common in middle-grade books these days, and the Harry Potter series certainly wasn’t the first to have a group of three children, two boys and one girl, all students at a school in which they’re living, finding themselves in an unexpected scrape in an underground place that they had no idea existed.  Also, there is a prophesy that no one is explaining, involving Louis, who is a bit similar to Harry.

Unlike other middle-grade books I’ve read, though, this doesn’t feel like a ripoff.  At least, not these first two parts.  I’ll have to let you know if I change my mind about that after I eventually read the remaining parts of the story.  Until then, since these first two are free, and not even 200 pages long, give them a chance and decide for yourself.  They’re the makings of a great Fantasy story.