Keeper of the Realm [Paperback]

H. J. Ralles (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: Keeper

Matt is trapped in his computer game! Three hundred feet below sea level, he faces his second terrifying mission. The tyrannical Noxerans have invaded the beautiful realm of Karn. Matt's laptop is locked in the Noxeran vault and the penalty for crossing into enemy territory is death. With the help of his friends and mysterious girl, he sets off on a frightening underwater expedition. But his plan goes dreadfully wrong. He must beat level two of the game without distroying the Realm.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-7-Believing himself trapped inside a computer game, Matt "lands" in a 26th-century undersea colony inhabited by amphibious Karns, who are being held captive by a megalomaniac landlubber plotting to conquer his coastal homeland by devastating it with an induced earthquake. Closely resembling a low-end computer game in book form, this sequel to Keeper of the Kingdom (Top, 2001) features stock characters and situations, trite dialogue, shaky internal logic, and a sketchy setting. The author pitches Matt's strenuous efforts to get his laptop out of the tyrant's clutches so that he can exit the game against his associates' conviction that he's delusional-a potentially clever conceit that doesn't come off because, though commands typed into the laptop do seem to affect events, the narrative point of view keeps switching, which wouldn't be possible if Matt were the only "real" person. Predictably, the tyrant is overthrown, and in the end the laptop sends Matt and friends on to the next episode. Unlike Vivian Vande Velde's similarly premised Heir Apparent (Harcourt, 2002) or William Sleator's rousing Parasite Pig (Dutton, 2002), this story is unlikely to lure young gamers away from their PlayStations.
John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

stands alone as a captivating read for young gamers and sci-fi fans. -- Carol Dengle, Dallas Public Library

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 231 pages
• Publisher: Top Publications (January 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1929976216
• ISBN-13: 978-1929976218
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,618,127 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great book by Ralles, March 22, 2004

By 

WhataSlacker.com "Scifislacker.com" (Scifislacker.com) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Keeper of the Realm (Paperback)

Keeper of the Realm is a continuation of the story of Matt, who was pulled into his computer game in H.J. Ralles Keeper of the Kingdom.

The sequel picks up almost immediately from the point where the first book in the series let off. When we last saw Matt he had completed the task at hand, but instead of being released from the game, Matt is back in somewhat familiar surroundings. He's not home. He's just progressed to another level of the game.

Once again our hero meets up with his friends Varl and Targon, who he met in the previous level. Matt and his friends must help this under water realm of Karn, which has been invaded by the Noxeran. The only problem is that Matt doesn't have his laptop and he must get it back from the enemy's well-guarded vault.

Young sci-fi fans will once again enjoy the tales spun by this excellent author.

Be sure to check out all the titles by H.J. Ralles!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Dangerous Computer Game, May 16, 2003

By 

Joan W. Martin "Quinessential Reader" (Baytown, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Keeper of the Realm (Paperback)

A Dangerous Computer Game

Ralles, H.J. Keeper of the Realm, Dallas, TX. Top Publications, Ltd. Co. 2002. 232 pages. ISBN 1-929976-21-6.

H.J. Ralles continues to offer readers a fascinating affiliation between computers and books, a wonderful reading experiences, constructed to keep the pages turning from beginning to end.
Although Matt has had enough adventure to last him the rest of his life, he is in trouble from the first line in the sequel to Keeper of the Kingdom. His only interest, after escaping entrapment in Zaul (Keeper of the Kingdom, 2000) is to go home. When two old friends from Zaul, Varl and Targon, appear, Matt has company in his misery.
A beautiful girl, Keela, shares a map of The Realm with the three wayfarers. They plan a strategy to retrieve Matt's laptop computer and escape Karn. Citizens of Karn become their allies as they plot a rebellion against the cruel Noxerans to reclaim their underwater realm, three hundred feet below sea level.
Matt recognizes they are ensnared in another computer game. Zaul was Level 1 of the game and they have reached Level 2, Karn. Matt and Varl use an obsolete dolphin-looking submersible to proceed on their doomed mission to locate Matt's laptop and rescue Braymar.
An old friend, Dorin, shows up with Matt's laptop, but their problems are not solved. Getting safely back to Karn they realize that Balbus plans to destroy Karn and Noxera and set himself up as a dictator.
When Matt accesses the rules of Level 2 game, our heroes get yet another poetic riddle. Even Matt, usually the optimist, has severe doubts about freeing Braymar and feels their whole plan is doomed to fail. The reader, like Matt, is also trapped in the adventure and must continue to play the dangerous game
Despair is replaced with cautious optimism when Varl, with his scientific mind, and Matt, with his technological training, use sonic encryptors, identification chips, double laser vidium, electronic bracelets, genetic engineering and microsubs to advance their plans and defeat Balbus and his legionaries.
Another twist at the end when Matt completes Level 2 will lead the reader to Keeper of the Empire. Players of computer games will see themselves as right in the middle of the game, rather than simply watching on the monitor.