Abigail's Dragons

by Patrick Matthews

Overview

Abigail has a powerful magic inside her, one that will turn her into a monster if she's not careful.

She's not the only one cursed.

There are other children just like her, kept asleep in a cave deep underground.

Abigail keeps them safe, draining their power just as she drains away her own, desperately searching for a cure.

But what if there is no cure? What if her cave is a prison instead of a place of healing?

How can she save the Sleepers when she's not even sure she can save herself?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781733077767
Publisher:	Second Story Up
Publication date:	07/01/2022
Series:	Bradley's Dragons , #2
Pages:	348
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.78(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

Editorial Reviews

★ 2022-07-15
From Matthews, a group of young teens must work together to escape fairy captors and control their own burgeoning powers.

Thirteen-year-old Abigail has spent the last two years shut up in a cave. She has a magical force growing inside of her, a gallu draigthat affords her the ability to both heal and put others into comalike sleep. But if the gallu draig isn’t drained periodically, it will turn Abigail into a monster. Or so Abigail has been told by the tiny fae man who guards her. That is why she endures her lonely life, working to protect six other “sleepers.” Abigail believes the fae are searching for a cure. But when two of her charges are taken away, their gallu draig having supposedly claimed them while Abigail herself was sleeping, her doubts turn to certainty. She and the others are being held captive! Abigail revives the remaining sleepers: Dwayne, Jeff, Meili, and Luca. At first they are hostile, holding Abigail to blame for her complicity in their imprisonment. But Abigail’s knowledge and healing powers help them to escape...as does the destructive force unleashed when Meili turns into a dragon! Can Abigail and her companions stay free from their fae pursuers and ward off their own transformations? Matthews writes in the third person from Abigail’s perspective, delivering realistic dialogue and a well-constructed storyline. The fantastical elements are fresh, and the relationships among the teens feel authentic. Abigail and the other sleepers are accepting yet temperamental, good-hearted but self-absorbed, brash though insecure. The cast is diverse—Dwayne is Black, Meili is Chinese, Luca is Latine, and Abigail and Jeff, who is deaf, are White. The plot, while never slow, gains traction as it unfolds and carries some genuine surprises. Abigail’s story is the second in a series but is more or less entirely self-contained, requiring no knowledge of the first book. Middle-grade readers (and above) will immerse themselves in the adventure.

A serious, exciting coming-of-age fantasy.

Kirkus Reviews