Cover Image: On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness

On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness

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Member Reviews

Great series and even read aloud for the family. An amazing storyteller and creative fantasy world. An array a fun characters.

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I received an ARC, and I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

Age and Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
Gore Level: Appropriate for most kids in elementary school

This is a fun world where Fang, lizard-like people, have taken over. Janner is the oldest of the kids at 12, and he's in charge of keeping his siblings safe—which is impossible! Tink is the next brother, and he's incredibly curious. Leeli is the youngest, and she's disabled with a loyal dog and has an amazing singing voice. Each one is unique, and I think kids will relate to at least one of them. There are also secrets. (But you're going to have to read to learn more about that.)

I love how the grandfather is an ex-pirate and the kids' mother looks tougher the more scared she gets. It's wonderful to see adults involved in the kids' lives. There are plenty of body jokes that kids tend to enjoy. But the footnotes were some of my favorite pieces of silliness—they reminded me of some of my other favorite books because they deepen the world.

I would definitely recommend this book!

Happy reading!

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This captivating book rivals other fantasy allegories like Tolkien and Lewis. There is beautiful world-building and character development in this first volume and does not disappoint with excitement and suspense. Ultimately an accolade to the power of family, it provides a strong moral message. My granddaughters from 8-12 were all compelled with the series and insisted on grabbing subsequent volumes immediately. We all enjoyed it at all ages. Highly recommend!!

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This series starts out a bit unassuming. Honestly, it took me a bit to get past the first couple of chapters. I started reading them aloud to my 3 children and they quickly got into the story. There are some painful moments as the characters go about trying to fight against the darkness. I highly recommend this series to older elementary aged kids!

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This saga shows us what can be accomplished when good people step up, when good people start speaking out, when we fight for what is right despite our own personal comfort. It’s a great book to read as a family this year and is certainly the tonic that I needed right now. Alas, not nearly enough Sea Dragons in this book.

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A really fun start to a series. Whimsical and atmospheric in equal measure and I love the characters so much!

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Peterson certainly has a way with world-building. While the direction of the plot was ultimately fairly predictable, the characters were interesting enough to keep the reader engaged.

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This book drew me into the lore within the first few chapters. The characters simply seemed to jump off the pages. From a grandfather who chases varmint from his gardens to siblings who like to drag each other into trouble (well, mostly one in particular), this book starts out as a completely normal story for middle-graders. That's one thing that Peterson instills very well in his stories: the absolutely ordinary in completely extraordinary, unique circumstances. It makes readers feel like they could just climb into the pages, or that the characters could just hop right out. We soon learn about the absolutely worrisome corruption in the world that Tink, Janner, and Leeli are growing up in. Children and elderly alike are taken by something called the Black Carriage, never to be seen again, and groups of things called Fangs terrorize citizens. With a mysterious map, a few dangerous encounters with these Fangs of Dang, a mysterious man ostracized to the forest, and some equally mysterious jewels to track down, this story grabs you and draws you in. While the story is fantasy-laced, the children, especially Janner, learn great lessons about family, bravery, and responsibility that will be crucial to middle-grade readers (and perhaps some great reminders for adult readers as well). It's something that anyone of any age can enjoy, really. It's a refreshing, original storyline that I loved. And the prose is absolutely a work of art in and of itself.

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I lost interest in this so I won't be continuing to read or review this title. I wasnt interested in this book any longer.

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This story is interesting, but it seemed to take too long to get to the point. There is too much side description of the odd creatures living in this environment. Would the story really have been diminished if there were rabbits instead of flabbits, etc. But there were these constant interruptions in the narrative to describe animals that pop up momentarily and don’t help push the story forward.
I liked Tink and Leeli, but found Janner whiny.
I felt like this book was very slow until the last 30 pages where it moved at lightning speed. I will probably try book 2 hoping for a faster read now that the author has established all the boring stuff in book 1.

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I was excited to receive an advanced copy of the updated On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness. The story was fun enough and I can see how most children would love the humour and imaginative settings. For me, as an adult reader who loves middle school novels, I had a difficult time engaging. Nonetheless, I recommend this book to young families who enjoy stories that incorporate Christian values without being preachy.

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A fun start to a wonderful middle grade fantasy series! Peterson's style improves significantly in later books, and he leaves behind much of the boyish humor for more serious topics; this one is very light-hearted and often silly, but the true heart shines through: love for adventure, fierce defense of family, and an ever-present reminder of the Maker's love.

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Firstly, I would like to thank Netgalley for providing me with an e-arc of the book. This review is based on my personal opinion and enjoyment of the book.

To be continued.

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This book was a surprise! I requested this copy wihtout really knowing what I was getting into but, man, I LIKED it. SO so GOOD. Super original and enagaging.

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I got about 20% into this book before giving up. I just couldn't get into it. The summary sounded so interesting, but no matter how hard I tried to focus, I couldn't. The artwork was so fun and exciting! I wished I could've continued the book, but I felt no connection to the characters or story. I didn't think it was fair to rate the book since I couldn't pay attention to it long enough to tell you what it was about. Since NetGalley requires a star rating, I included one, but I didn't do so on Goodreads.

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I found this story to be okay. I don't think Andrew Peterson's writing style is for me. I also didn't really care for the religious undertone. But If I were to recommend this to a young reader, I believe they would enjoy getting to know the characters and their dynamic. I do think it would be for readers who enjoy series and are fine with reading the first book that has a lot of set up for a continuous saga.

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This book was a can't put down until read all the way through kind of book. The story was good and kept me entertained for the duration. I kind of wish there was more to the trilogy but at least I got the chance to read this series. It was a really good one!

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What an adventure with memorable characters and a fascinating mystery at its heart. I appreciated this first book in the series by Peterson, and will be recommending this to young readers who appreciate the Narnia series as well as any adventure or fantasy texts.

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I have totally fallen for the 2020 versions of the series, in hardback. With new illustrations, this book is just so incredible. It's time to fall for The Wingfeather Saga, all over again!

This book was so great I wound up getting it in more than one group by accident! WOW! You will find a few added links, and a list of other people who reviewed this book too! YEAH! Another fantastic book I got to read! I can't wait until my cousins get to read this one! :D On The Edge Of The Dark Sea Of Darkness is this first book of an incredible story. It is well spun, and a wonderful read. Shoot, if I didn't like this book I would just not even like to eat anything at all like a flabbit! Could anyone not love Nugget? And why would anyone wish to be near the Fangs of Dang? Uggg! :p Can you read this book and not want the Seadragons to sing more often? They are nothing like the real Earth bound Seadragons which I have studied and are cousins to the beautiful seahorses which I have raised, but yet they are powerful and I am just *sure* they mean more than just what they did in this book. Would you like to know what all you can do with Thwaps? Does a Toothy-cow of Scree scare you, or make you happy? Have you seen a meep, or did you chase a chorkney? You will just never know if you don't read this book! The wonderful words aside, the footnotes and extras were priceless! And boy did I feel happy, and dumb when I got to the end of this book and found out that this Author was a singer-songwriter and rather well know Christian recording artist! WOW! Now where is book #2? I am sure I need to review it in case I come up against any Qill Diggles.

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A fun middle grade fantasy novel with great detail and world building! It had a slow start, but picked up after the first few chapters. Also, there is a lot of descriptive violence for being a middle grade novel, which may be a bit too scary for some young readers. Other than that it was a great read.

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