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Narrated by Dani Martineck, Esme Symes-Smith
Esme Symes-SmithUnabridged — 10 hours, 9 minutes
Narrated by Dani Martineck, Esme Symes-Smith
Esme Symes-SmithUnabridged — 10 hours, 9 minutes
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★ "This page-turning second book in a rousing fantasy series that’s both an action-packed adventure and psychological study of young people persevering despite tremendous odds." —School Library Journal, starred review
"Exciting plot twists and a cliffhanger ending heighten anticipation for the next entry. A suspenseful fantasy quest driven by social themes." —Kirkus Reviews
★ 11/01/2023
Gr 3–7—This fantasy sequel to Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston is just as exciting as the first, and begins a few months later. Nonbinary Callie, 12, is now a page, and Prince Willow, 12, is expected to soon take the reins of power of Helston. Magic-wielding Elowen and her brother Edwyn are recovering from their banished father's physical and emotional abuse. Soldiers from Helston are attacked and killed in neighboring Dumoor, and Teo, a Dumoor shapeshifting human-dragon who uses xe/xem/xir pronouns, is captured. After Edwyn is outed to the court for being able to do magic, a practice boys are now reluctantly permitted, the distrustful Queen imprisons him and Elowen, and Edwyn is tortured. Callie and Willow rescue them and Teo, and they flee to Dumoor across Helston's bridge, pursued by the Helston soldiers. Callie and Elowen's growing relationship is threatened by Elowen's burning desire for revenge against Helston. Secrets are exposed, alliances tested, and heartbreak endured as the shocking ending guarantees more adventures. The intersectional cast that cues as white are fully realized, especially stubborn and determined Callie, as each character struggles to be found worthy and have agency in a world where adults erroneously believe they know best. (Author's note includes content warning). VERDICT This page-turning second book in a rousing fantasy series that's both an action-packed adventure and psychological study of young people persevering despite tremendous odds.—Sharon Rawlins
Narrator Dani Martineck creates a passionate and determined voice for Callie, who seeks to find true acceptance for themself and their friends in a world that is reluctant to change. Just as their homeland, Helston, takes steps to offer magic and fighting opportunities to all, a battle with neighboring Dunmoor causes progress to halt, and even move backward. Martineck captures Callie's growing frustration as obstacles keep standing in the way of their happiness. Listeners are treated to an introduction read by author Esme Symes-Smith, which adds a nice personal touch. Adventure fans and general listeners alike will enjoy this fantastical tale, which reflects the struggles for acceptance faced by so many in our own world. M.D. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
2023-09-22
In this follow-up to 2022’s Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston, aspiring knight Callie grapples with right and wrong as their kingdom prepares for war.
After Callie defeated Chancellor Peran, they thought Helston would become a more welcoming kingdom. Under the queen’s new decrees, anyone can train for knighthood or study magic regardless of gender. The rules may have changed, but people still fear magic. Even without Peran’s influence, the council pressures Queen Ewella to make Crown Prince Willow conform to their standards of masculinity—they are determined to push Helston backward. Meanwhile, a war with the evil dragons and witches of Dumoor looms on the horizon. All Callie wants is to protect their people, but when tragedy strikes, fear and prejudice turn the entire city, including the queen, against Callie and their family. Forced to flee to protect their friends, Callie joins forces with an unexpected ally and begins to question everything they know about dragons and good and evil. This fast-paced sequel confronts complex topics, including abuse, trauma, and unlearning bias. Although the messaging in Callie’s ruminations lacks subtlety at times, the story encourages critical thinking. Gender identity and self-expression remain significant themes as well. Exciting plot twists and a cliffhanger ending heighten anticipation for the next entry. Most central characters read white; the wider world around them includes racial diversity.
A suspenseful fantasy quest driven by social themes. (author’s note, map) (Fantasy. 8-12)
| BN ID: | 2940178282434 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Penguin Random House |
| Publication date: | 11/07/2023 |
| Series: | Sir Callie , #2 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
| Age Range: | 8 - 11 Years |
Callie
There are dragons in my dreams. There have been dragons in my dreams ever since we nearly got eaten in Dumoor Forest just a few short summer months ago. And every single dream is the same.
Kensa, bathed in flames, waiting for me. Calling me. Whistling for me like I’m one of the witch’s wolves. My body reacts, moving toward the sound of its own accord, falling for the sweet tune that sounds like home.
Come away, little knight. You don’t belong here. Come home.
I follow the song through the shadows. Birds join the chorus, their calls harmonizing with the dragon’s song; their black-and-white bodies bumping against mine as they guide me through the darkness. Flock as thick as fog.
But I always wake up before the dream ends, leaving me with nothing but confusion and an emptiness I don’t understand.
This is where I want to be. Helston—with all my wishes coming true.
I have never wanted anything else.
I should be happy.
I am happy.
Aren’t I?
Teo
“Stay close,” Lara murmurs, and Teo trots to obey, sticking close to her side.
This is xir first mission for Dumoor, and Teo’s stomach has been flipping between nerves and excitement all day. Xe’s ready! Alis would never have let xem go if xe wasn’t . . . but it would’ve helped if Kensa had been able to feign even a little enthusiasm. Instead, the older dragon stared at xem, long and hard, with an expression Teo almost read as grief before it dimmed to a low anger that xe didn’t understand.
This was exciting! This was an opportunity to prove that xe had been worth taking in and taking up space. It didn’t matter how insistent folks were that Teo wasn’t indebted to anyone; xe knew how thin resources were stretched in The Roost and how much they risked taking in a dragon. Xe has to prove that xe’s worth the trouble.
Teo wants to fight, to defend xir new home against the threat of Helston.
And besides, it is a great honor to be chosen by Alis herself. If she believes xe’s ready, who is anyone to question her judgment?
It’s going to be okay.
Teo’s pointed ears twitch with every scrap of sound— a birdcall, an insect scratching at the dark bark of the trees, a horse’s footfall—
“Wait.” Xe grabs Lara’s sleeve, forcing her to a stop; holding xir breath to listen for more.
Lara makes a motion to the others, and they all stop, waiting for Teo to tell them it’s either safe to go on or not.
Teo closes xir eyes and listens, focusing on the sounds of the forest.
“There’s ten of them,” xe whispers, counting the hoofbeats in the distance. “Ten horses, all with riders. I can hear armor. And weapons.”
Gillian curses under their breath. “Helston’s getting bolder.”
“That’s one word for it,” Lara returns grimly. Her knife is ready in her hand, freshly sharpened to a brutal point. Teo has seen what she can do with a blade, but even so . . . Ten Helston soldiers.
As the others silently ready themselves for the skirmish, Teo does the same. In the dappled shadows of Dumoor Forest, xe holds xemself steady and focuses on xir breath; the warmth rising in xir chest and spreading out from xir heart to spark into something sharp and powerful in xir throat.
Teo’s wings might not have come in yet, but today xe feels like a real dragon.
Kensa would be proud.
Teo swallows.
Kensa should be here. Kensa wanted to be here, and when Alis gave xem a mission that sent xem far away across Wyndebrel, Teo was a little afraid that Kensa’s fury would turn the whole of Dumoor to ash.
But Alis stood firm, her decision final: She needed Kensa elsewhere. And who was Kensa to refuse her?
Still, Teo wishes more than anything that the enormous shadow of Kensa’s dragon-form would fall across the forest, even just for a moment. Just to know Kensa is watching over them all.
Especially as the sounds of the Helston riders get closer.
Gillian holds up their hand, the sign for Wait and get ready. They’re just around the corner now, so close, Teo can hear the men breathing.
Xe shivers.
Teo’s never been to Helston, never encountered the force spewing out across the bridge that everyone warns of. Teo knows xe’s lucky. Stories of Helston linger like ghosts in Dumoor.
Gillian counts down silently with their fingers as the crunch of hooves gets closer and closer, mingling with the voices of the Helston soldiers, who don’t care if they’re heard or not.
When Gillian throws up a fist, Teo’s fire collides with a rush of adrenaline.
Xe can do this.
Xe is ready.
Xe is a dragon.
For The Roost!
On Teo’s right, someone shifts into a shaggy gray wolf with glinting yellow eyes. On xir left, Lara lunges with her knife in one hand and a flame in the other. Gillian slams her magic down, ripping the ground apart beneath the horses’ feet before the soldiers even see them.
Horses scream. Men yell.
And the world erupts into chaos.
It’s so much more than Teo expected. Too many sounds, too many voices, too many flashes of magic catching on swords. Too much. Too much to think through.
Teo scrambles desperately to bring xir magic to xir fingers, but every lesson Kensa ever taught xem is gone. Forgotten. Fled from the trees like a frightened bird.
If Teo could fly, xe would flee too, but xir feet are rooted to the forest floor.
Frozen.
The sword’s blade glints in the sunlight as the soldier raises it, and Teo flings up xir arms with a yell—the last sound xe ever expects to make.
But the blow doesn’t fall.
A choking sound, and Teo cracks xir eyes open to see Lara’s knife in the soldier’s throat and blood spilling from between the man’s fingers.
Teo is no stranger to blood but this is different. Xe’s never seen a man die before.
Xe can’t look away, watching the long moments between living and dying, like a candle snuffed out.
A shove to the chest and Lara screams, “Run, Teo!” She hurls the ball of light right into the eyes of the Helston soldier descending on them with a raised spear. “Go back to The Roost! Tell them we need help! Tell them—”
But she never gets to finish her sentence.
Lara’s eyes go wide, her last gaze fixed on Teo, and then she falls with an arrow in her neck.
Xe can’t move.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this.
No one comes to help her. No one comes to help Teo. Everyone is fighting for their own lives, and everyone is losing.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this.
It was only supposed to be a handful of soldiers. That’s what the magpies said. Just a few unwelcome guests that needed to be seen off.
Something sharp zips past Teo’s head, grazing xir ear with white-hot pain. Xe whips around, hands up, staring from arrow to archer.
