183. The Ruby Kingdom

The Ruby Kingdom by Patricia Bow
Passage to Mythrin, Book 1

Pages: 256
Finished: Dec. 3, 2008
First Published: 2007
Genre: YA, fantasy
Rating: 5/5
Reason for Reading: Received a review copy from Chapters Top Reviewer Club.

First sentence:

Forever afterward they remembered it, all three of them, as the day when the
world changed.

Comments: Amelia Hammer must go live with her cousin, Simon, in a small town in Ontario while her parents take off to Peru for work-related reasons. Amy, a city girl, at first does not take kindly to the simpler life in a tiny town but soon events prove to be more interesting that Peru ever could be. Ammy finds a peculiar red ring which seems very special to her. Then later one evening Ammy and Simon find on their building's roof a very tall, pale woman with very long hair wrapped around her naked body sitting in the winter's blizzard cold. At first she doesn't talk much but after sheltering her in a store room they learn she is called Mara and not from this world. Her brother has sent an assassin after her and the teens find themselves right in the middle of the action.

This was one of the better YA fantasy novels I've read this year. The contrast between the city teen and the small town teen showed that real teens come in all sorts of temperaments. The dialogue was realistic and the book was very well written. The plot was gripping and very exciting to see it unfold with a big surprise reveal towards the end. The book ended nicely, wrapping up the plot points in the novel, yet leaves an opening for a sequel to continue with the characters. I have nothing negative to add as I thoroughly enjoyed this tale of fantasy, magic and other worlds.