Book Review: The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel by Gregory S. Slomba

by - Tuesday, September 04, 2012

Title: The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel
Author: Gregory S. Slomba
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
Form: PDF copy


Amazon: Paperback
Amazon: Kindle edition


Book Description ~ The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel


Twelve year old Eric Scott is called by Stig, a talking owl, to journey to another world to save a fishing village from a band of bloodthirsty pirates. Once there, Eric discovers that delivering the town is but one of the problems he'll have to solve.

Can a 12 year old boy, a talking owl, a headstrong girl and an outcast dwarf save a village, much less an entire world? Find out as they set out on the journey of a lifetime to defeat an immortal pirate, face their fears, and fulfill an ancient prophecy.


The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel Book Review

“A fantastic, poignant, and flawless story. This book made me want to dream more and be a 12-year-old again, and join the main character’s next journey. Yes, I want a sequel. :D”Ara of My Book and My Coffee

The copy of this book, The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel, was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Seriously, I don’t have any complaints about this book. As in nothing. That rarely happens. It’s kinda strange to me as well, and I'm very happy about it. Let’s talk about the story. The story, as you’ve read from the description, is about a boy named Eric Scott, a talking owl named Stig (I love this bird’s name – wait till you find out its real name), a girl from another world named Kate Endria, and an exiled dwarf named Hallo… Tosis. Yep, his last name was Tosis. :D Fun read, I tell ya. The two, Eric and Stig, were sent to a journey by the Gatekeeper, to a world that apparently needs their help, or at least someone’s help and save them from Sharky, the mean pirate, and his gang. How will they save them? That was one of my questions as well when I first started reading the book. I mean, he is only twelve years old, and it’s not like he has superpowers or anything. Plus, he will only be accompanied by an owl; yes, he talks, but what can that do? Those are my thoughts at first.

Well, the thing that I liked most about this book is that it explains (part of how it is written) the things that you, as a reader, need to know so you can connect and understand what has happened, what’s happening and what’s about to happen. I found the writing and the flow of the story to be flawless (I know, I always thought that there’s no such thing - but then again, that’s just me). This book will purposely explain the things you will need to know to be in the loop but the author knew when to hold and give out a certain information so as to give you a chance to wonder and keep reading for more. So, there's room for guessing and proving that you're a bad guesser - well, that's just me again. :D

The author did a very good job with the characters as well. You’ll love the four of them, Eric, Stig, Kate and Hallo. They are awesome. But I think, my super favorite characters are The Deliverers (Eric and Stig). I mean, Eric is a normal, pure-hearted boy who just appeared to be brave at first but, as readers, we know that he is rather scared but still trying to do what’s right. And actually, for me, he is brave - brave enough to take on this journey even though he doesn't really know what lies ahead. His intentions were good and I just love how he handled things, even the one journey that he had to take on his own. I loved those scenes. 

Stig is a very wise bird. Plus, I love how he talks. You’ll also love the town people, especially the Lord Mayor. I think he’s really wise and definitely knows how to lead. There was this one scene where he had to mediate between two of his people, and just how he did that was amazing. Very righteous.

Sharky’s the antagonist in this story. He’s the leader of the pirates. Well, there’s more to that but you have to read the book to find out. Let’s just say that I was really surprised to find out who he really was. I am saying too much already. :D

The story, Eric and Stig’s journey, was a lot more dangerous than expected. At least, more than what I expected and I’m thrilled with the twists and turns of the story. Let me just say that Eric and the gang have to worry about other things as well – most especially, Eric.

As a middle grade fantasy, I didn’t see any faults on how it was written, how the story was laid out and how the characters were described. Someday, I would let my son read this. He’s almost three years old now; So maybe after 10 years or so? But I know that he will love it as much as I did.

So, my lovelies, if you want a middle grade fantasy read then I recommend that you read this book. As an adult, I did enjoy it a lot and hopefully, you would too.


About the Author:

Gregory S. Slomba grew up in Connecticut reading The Phantom Tollbooth, The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Lord of the Rings and dreaming of being a children's writer. After receiving his BA in English from the University of Dayton, he was raring to go. However, fate stepped in, turned everything upside down (as it so often does), and he found himself a banker. While working in the world of finance, he spent 17 years as an advisor to his church's high school youth group, writing them a Christmas story every year. After taking a four year career detour as an editor for a trade magazine, he felt ready to write his first book, The Deliverers: Sharky and the Jewel. He is currently hard at work on the sequel, which will be released early in 2013. Greg lives in Connecticut with his wife, Stephanie, and his children, Christian and Abigail.

Connect with the author here: Gregory S. Slomba's Blog

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4 Dazzling Comments

  1. How exciting for me that I saw that you were following your blog and came here to find a post about one of my favorite author friends! Greg is so nice and I was lucky enough to meet him at a book signing he was doing. His book is excellent and he did a wonderful job developing his characters. This is a book that MG and YA readers (and adults will enjoy). I completely agree with your awesome review!
    ~Jess
    (I am now your newest follower) :)

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    Replies
    1. Wow, really lucky :D Good for you, that you were able to meet him. I know, his book is really excellent and did an awesome job with his book's characters :D It's good to know that you agree with my review :D I really enjoyed reading it; it was a real pleasure. Thanks so much, Jess for following :D

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  2. Hi Ara!
    I'd like to nominate you for the One Lovely Blogger award!
    Get the info here http://nettesbookshelf.blogspot.com/2012/09/i-got-some-blog-love-today-d.html

    Happy Friday! =)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Nette! Thank you for nominating me ;) I do appreciate it a lot :D

      Happy Friday to you, too :D

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