Customer Reviews

The Rock of Realm

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Rock of Realm by Lea Schizas is an exciting tale full of adventure, excitement, and surprises. While written for a young adult audience, the tale is ageless and makes for a great reading experience the whole family can share.

Fourteen year old Alex Stone and her best friend, Sarah, have just finished a babysitting job and are heading home. With Alex's frisky pet German Shepherd Butch, and Butch's pet squirrel Pops by their side the girls decide to take the shortcut through the park. Out of nowhere, a small pink stone falls from the sky hitting Alex on top of her head. Nearby the girls find a pouch with gold glitter. While both items seem innocent enough, the girls joke about the possibility of them being magic and recite a chant they had read in a book written by their favorite English teacher. Suddenly, nothing would ever be the same.

Being of royal lineage in a parallel world (a little detail her parents had not discussed with her) Alex finds she and her friends have been transported into the alternate realm and are on the adventure of a lifetime. In this world Alex and Sarah can understand everything Butch and the wise-cracking Pops say. They meet new friends who help them on their quest and learn powerful lessons of friendship and love as their adventure unfolds. Join Alex and her friends as they learn things are not always as they appear.

Lea is an amazing storyteller. Her characters are so interesting and colorful you find yourself wrapped up in their tale and encouraging them on their quest from start to finish.

I can hardly wait for the next adventure in this series!

I am a big fan of Harry Potter books and never thought I'd be so swept up in another Young Adult book until I picked up The Rock of Realm. Not only did I not put down the book once I started to read it, but I finished it in one sitting.

The author does an amazing job drawing her reader into each chapter with the cliff-hanging endings in each chapter. Her descriptive details draws you into the book along with the colorful and at times funny characters.

Lea Schizas' ability in storytelling truly shines through in her book. The moral lessons she is trying to teach children are woven in such a way a child would never realize they are actually learning some life lesson.

As an adult reader, I have to say The Rock of Realm was truly an enjoyable read and I would highly recommend this book for the whole family to share.

ALEX IS IN TROUBLE.

HER DOG ATE THE GARBAGE AND HER DAY WENT DOWNWARDS FROM THERE. WHEN SHE IS STRUCK IN THE HEAD BY A GLITTERY ROCK ON HER WAY HOME THROUGH THE PARK, SHE RECITES THE WORDS THAT UNLOCKS THE WAY TO A DIFFERENT WORLD. A WORLD WHERE SHE IS NO STRANGER!

THE ROCK OF REALM IS A HIGHLY ENTERTAINING READ WITH REALISTIC DESCRIPTIONS AND SITUATIONS THAT ADULTS AND CHILDREN ALIKE WILL LOVE.

JUMP ON BOARD AND GET TRANSPORTED TO THE FABULOUS WORLD OF LEA SCHIZAS!

On their way home from babysitting one night, fourteen-year-old Alex Stone and her friend, Sarah, take a short cut across the park. From out of nowhere, a small, pink granite rock hits Alex in the head. The park is deserted, except for the girls. But Sarah finds a pouch of gold glitter near where the rock fell. The girls joke that it was magic glitter like in the book their teacher, Mr. Ritchie, wrote. For fun, Alex repeats the chant from the book. There the fun ends, and the mystery begins.

Alex and Sarah, along with Alex's German Shepherd, Butch, and pet squirrel, Pops, are transported to a forest, where the animals talk, and a tree calling itself Sappy tells them they're at the edge of Dread's Forest, and the Rock of Realm, the rock that hit Alex, is a passageway to Rock Kingdom. And Sappy calls Alex "Little Princess."

In Rock of Realm, Lea Schizas weaves a fascinating story of magic, other worlds, danger, and mystery. She creates a cast of believable characters, both good and evil. Twists and turns and surprises make this book difficult to put down. I kept wanting to read just one more chapter. Then one more. But beware, things are not always what they seem. And is there good in evil? Or evil in good? You'll have to read the book for an answer. You'll be glad you did.

Now that was an experience! I've never thought a YA novel would really draw me into the story and keep me interested from the first word to the last... but that was until I started to read "The Rock of Realm" and found impossible to put it down. I read it with an adult eye, so to speak and, I have to confess, I finished it in one setting, while forgetting everything else I had to do for the rest of the afternoon. Beside the fact that it was a reading therapy for me, it was an enjoyable, engaging read.

Why? Well... for many reasons.

"The Rock of Realm" had a fairy-tale effect on me, while allowing me a chance to escape the stressful day and find refuge in a world of fantasy, with ordinary and extraordinary characters caught in extraordinary circumstances. It made me think of campfires.

The pace is steady, the plot is engaging and, as readers, we find it easy to identify with its characters. Once we enter the fantasy world of the real-and not so real-characters, we step into the world of fairy tales, which suddenly comes to life in front of our eyes. As a result, we are not passive readers anymore.

How does the author accomplish this difficult task? By taking the art of storytelling to higher levels. For Lia Schizas, storytelling is a gift, and she masters it so well, taking her readers along on an adventurous trip to an imaginary place, while she unveils to us the powers of "The Rock of Realm."

As readers, we become part of the story and identify with its characters. We cheer for them and encourage them to bypass the obstacles placed in their way, and earn to see them arrive safely home.

The author holds the merits for yet another element of surprise, which is difficult to accomplish-for example the smooth transition between human talk and animal talk. I bet you that, after reading "The Rock of Realm," you won't look at your dog or squirrel-or any other pet you may have-the same again. After reading "The Rock of Realm" you'll learn to be more loving, more understanding to your pets and also your family and friends.

"The Rock of Realm" is a book to read alone or to together with your family or friends. Read it and you'll see!