The Travel Twins and the Lost Secret of the Vikings by Charles A Salter

Josh and Hannah are visiting their uncle in Norway.  When the Viking Sunstone is stolen from his museum, they decide to recover it.  They are taking on more than they think.  Have you ever heard of a berserker?

PR by the Book and the author shared a copy of this with me for review (thank you).  It has been published and you can buy a copy from Outskirts Press or Amazon now.

It all begins with a train trip to where they think they might find the missing sunstone.  They keep going through tunnels where the train cars are in the dark temporarily.  All of sudden, they get captured and are made unconscious by a gas.  They wake up tied up in the luggage car. They are resourceful, though, and get loose.  As they try hiding on the train, they take the ropes with them.  They'll be glad they did!

They meet an older woman who is going to the exhibit they want to see so they get more information from her to help with their quest.  She poopoos the idea of berserkers saying that it was just a bigger man who wore furs and probably was drunk who ran about yelling and taking on all comers.  They'll see one before this story is over.

This series is exciting, full of action, and full of danger for the young ones.  It's a good thing they are smart and have their act together.  If they didn't, they'd fail on their quests!

Charlotte and the Mysterious Vanishing Place: The Kare Kids Adventures #2 by Charles A Salter

Charlotte used to be afraid to go in the woods.  Now she easily goes through the woods to get to her vantage point where she can see around the countryside.  She loves surveying the land and the trees and feeling like one with nature.  When she notices something strange, she decides to check it out...

PR by the Book and the author provided me with a copy of this book to read for review (thank you).  It has been published, so you can grab a copy now.  You might want to read The Secret of Bald Rock first.  This one can stand alone, though.

Charlotte finds that the ground is sinking and the trees are going with it.  She also finds a puppy stuck in the brambles and she frees him.  She takes him home and asks to keep him.  He looks purebred, so her parents warn her it probably belongs to someone who will be looking for him.  Sure enough.  A breeder down the street lost him.  When her parents ask him to let her have the dog, they negotiate.  To get the dog, she will have to give up the fancy birthday party planned.  She says she will.

They tell a geologist about the sinkhole and he agrees to come and look at the next day.  Charlotte sees it's getting much further down, and decides to check to see if more dogs have escaped from the breeder's yard.  The land under the fence is dropping a bit.  Sure enough, another dog is out.  Can she save that puppy?  When her puppy goes to see the other dog, they both end up in the sinkhole.  Can she save them?  Can she save herself?

Charlotte is resourceful and determined but some things are dangerous.  It's a good thing she left a message about where she was because help comes in time.  Being independent is good but you have to be careful to stay safe.  Charlotte did her best and saved both dogs with a little help from the adults.  We all want happy endings like that. 

The Secret of Bald Rock Island by Charles A Salter

This story is about an independent little girl who misses her father who was lost at sea.  She's a good girl, but she's also going to help her friend and find out what happened to her father...

PR by the Book and the author sent me a copy of this book to read for review (thank you). It has been published and you can get a copy now.

Kelcie believes Mr. Bartleby when he tells his tale of seeing a big eye in the blow hole of the rock by the sea.  Higher tides during storms cause the water to jump out of that hole and it was a stormy night when he saw it.  Everyone thinks he's making it up or that he saw something that wasn't there.  Kelcie is going to check it out herself and she's going to try to answer the question of what happened to her father the night of the storm when he disappeared.  Her only problem is that she goes very early in the morning and she doesn't see any warning but a bit of red in the sky.  Red sky in the morning is a warning.

As she goes deeper into the rock, she finds a cove.  She also finds her father's shoe.  And she finds out what that big eye belonged to also.  The monster is in there with her, the tide is coming in higher than usual and her way out is blocked.  What now?

Adventuring alone is okay but you need to think about the dangers and the consequences you may be facing.  Kelcie didn't plan for any of those things but she did manage to survive.  Just like most children do.  Learn to face your fears and overcome them but be careful out there.  It's a dangerous world sometimes.