First Hero (Chronicles of Avantia Series #1)

by Adam Blade

Overview

Deadly Beasts. Brutal combat. Welcome to Avantia.

At the age of seven, Tanner's father was killed in front of him by the evil warlord Derthsin. But his father's death was not in vain and Derthsin was carried away to his doom by a good Beast, Firepos the Flame Bird. Now, eight years later, another evil army is wreaking havoc across Avantia. But Tanner has been training with Firepos, waiting to avenge his father's death. There is something familiar about this new menace, who rides with a Beast of his own. The evil army is after the pieces of the Mask of Death--which allows whoever wears it to control all Beasts. Tanner sets off on a journey to stop them. Along the way, he encouters twins Gwen and Geffen, who hold the map to finding the remaining pieces.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545455251
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	02/01/2012
Series:	Chronicles of Avantia Series , #1
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	176
Lexile:	720L (what's this?)
File size:	470 KB
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Adam Blade is in his late twenties, and was born in Kent, England. His parents were both history teachers and amateur artists, and Adam grew up surrounded by his father's paintings of historic English battles which left a lifelong mark on his imagination. He was also fascinated by the ancient sword and shield that hung in his father's office. Adam's father said they were a Blade family heirloom. Sadly, Adam does not have his own Ice Dragon or Ghost Panther. But he really wishes he did!

Editorial Reviews

“This first volume in a promising new series is fizzy, fast-paced adventure all the way….A slim, easy-to-read, high-interest offering that will be an easy sell to readers just venturing into chapter books.” -Kirkus

From the Publisher

Gr 5–7—The Beasts have gathered. They must find their chosen riders since a dark force has entered the land of Avantia. Eight years later the story picks up again with Tanner, rider of the firebird Firepos, as an even more evil army ransacks his home. Their leader is looking for the Mask of Death, an evil and powerful tool that Tanner's grandmother cut into pieces and hid throughout the land. Tanner must find the mapmaker in another town before the destructive army does, but is too late and instead he finds another rider, Gwen, and her flying wolf. Together they rescue her brother, who has been captured by the army, and destroy the evil general. They win the battle and retrieve a map that shows the location of the Mask, but a stronger evil still lurks and will rise again. This slim first installment in the series uses the usual tropes of its genre and a typical good versus evil plot, with the suspense being who can get the sacred object first. The story itself focuses on the violence, with vivid details of killing. In one scene, Tanner's grandmother is tortured and killed, run through with a sword "dripping with gore." With nothing new to offer, this fantasy does not leave readers hungry for more.—Clare A. Dombrowski, Amesbury Public Library, MA

School Library Journal

This first volume in a promising new series is fizzy, fast-paced adventure all the way. When Tanner was just 7 years old, he watched as his village was attacked and his father was killed by a warlord called Derthsin. To his surprise, a great dragon named Firepos intervened and destroyed Derthsin. After the battle, Firepos stayed and began to train Tanner, who is to be his chosen rider. Eight years later, a new threat to Avantia has come in the form of General Gor, who is searching for the pieces of the infamous Mask of Death. Firepos and Tanner are shocked to learn that Derthsin, who must have somehow managed to survive the last battle after all, is behind this plan and that he intends to use the reconstructed mask to control the great beasts of Avantia, including Tanner's dragon Firepos. Gor steals a map of the pieces' locations, abducting one of the map-maker's apprentices, a boy called Geffen, to help him interpret it. Tanner soon goes off on a quest with Gwen, Geffen's twin sister, who has her own beast, a giant wolf called Gulkien, to rescue Geffen and recover the map. Will their mission succeed? Firepos' narration in a heightened first-person is interspersed throughout the third-person account, introducing transitioning readers to the linguistic style of high fantasy. A slim, easy-to-read, high-interest offering that will be an easy sell to readers just venturing into chapter books. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews