Yum breakfast - This book made me hungry! I had to stop reading and make some at the pancakes. I was glad I did when I came to the cinnamon toast and then pancakes again. There is a lot of food in this book, but grandmothers are known for cooking.

This was another interesting fantasy read with a few well-placed surprises. ( )

At the end of the first story, I wondered how Beebop, Nana and the grandchildren were going to be drawn back to the mythical world of Celahir. Now I know. To lore them back, Naesse, and his evil henchelves, kidnapped the children’s father. For what purpose, I have no idea. From what I’m surmising, that won’t be revealed until probably the last book.

In this story, we’re introduced, in more detail, to Aidan and Maggie’s mother, Laura, who is suddenly thrust into their wild adventure to recover the stolen gemstones, and save her husband. Once again, we’re traipsing through Celahir, tracking down a giant named Brendan. Stuart didn’t go into as much detail about the land this time, but it still amazes me that people, who aren’t used to walking long distances, can walk for hours without their legs giving out.

We meet the same elven friends from before, and are introduced to new friends, and even a love interest for Aidan. The bad guy in this story is Brendan the Giant. He terrorizes and enslaves the human villagers that live in his territory. But has he been misunderstood all along? I liked the moral of this story, and how Aidan stuck to his beliefs, even when faced with pressure from his family and friends. Beebop is still the main POV, but Aidan gets a chance to grow. Stuart does a very good job describing how each character feels, but when it comes to the dialogue, they have a tendency to sound the same. I just don’t see a young boy talking with the same vocabulary that Beebop of Nana does.

Talking about dialogue, it can be a bit stiff. People don’t say I am, or, we are. We use contractions all day long. Reading words without contractions tendd to make the reading a bit formal. And that could be some of the reason why I just don’t feel as attached to the characters as I should. I want to love the world Stuart has built, but it falls flat for me. I think some of it is also his writing style, more of a telling vs showing, which keeps the reader at a distance, and not as emotionally involved. But it’s still an entertaining series, and I want to see what happens with the Crone and Mike. If you’re not as nit-picky as I am, you’ll love this series. I give it 4 feathers. ( )