OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Mystery of the Sun Sapphire" by Samantha Manon.]

Come here, I've got something to tell you. Not only are dragons real, but they also live on the moon! OUR moon! The one you can see in the sky at night! One particular dragon (Speare Morgan) is picked on by all of the other dragons because of the color of his scales. But one day, a ten-year-old boy on Earth (Irwan) finds a wishing box and wishes for his deepest desire: a best friend. Speare Morgan's Grand Uncle, the dragon who gifted a human the wishing box many years ago, tasks him with fulfilling this wish.

Shortly after Speare Morgan and Irwan get to know one another a bit, Speare Morgan hears a cry for help from far away, and the two quickly take off to find out what's going on. There, a corrupt, greedy sultan betrays them and tasks them with an impossible mission: find the legendary Sun Sapphire in five days or Mubarak, the man who called the dragon for help, will be put to death.

I was fully immersed in Samantha Manon's Mystery of the Sun Sapphire as soon as I started reading it. Samantha has created a truly fantastic world where anything can happen. There are mysteries to solve, riddles to decipher, and a slew of unique characters (like a talking wishing well!). The friendship that forms between Speare Morgan, Irwan, and Malee (Mubarak's daughter who goes on the adventure with them) is realistic and wonderful as well.

As a whole, the book reminded me of classic movies like Labyrinth (but not as creepy) and The Neverending Story. The courage that these young children (and a young dragon) have to summon is immense, yet they push through. And just like those movies, the growth the characters go through as they experience hardships is excellent.

I really can't praise Mystery of the Sun Sapphire enough. It's one of the best books I've read in a long time. I loved seeing dragons that act like humans (but far larger, of course). I also loved the humor that was seeded throughout the book, particularly how quickly Speare Morgan grew angry with cats. My rating of the book is 4 out of 4 stars, and I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys YA fantasy novels. There were six grammatical errors in the 222-page PDF I read, although there were also numerous phrases that were a bit off. The book included no romance of any sort, and the only profanity I saw was the D-word.

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Mystery of the Sun Sapphire
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This definitely sounds like a book I would have enjoyed in middle school. Unfortunately, I find a lot of writing geared towards younger audiences too simplistic for myself, but I loved reading your review!

The plot sounds a bit young for a YA novel, but I suppose it's aimed at the younger end of that age group? I loved your comparison to the Labyrinth. I may have to give this one a look; there are many YA novels that I have enjoyed reading myself. Thanks for the engaging review!

This sounds like a cute story that I would have loved as a kid.

This sounds like a well-written book and an interesting one too. I look forward to reading it. Thanks for the review.

This sounds like an amazing book for little kids. I really like the cover of the book. Thank you for your honest review.