Dark Ground Coffee - Premium Roast for Home & Office Brewing

Robert Doherty has been whisked out of his comfortable modern world and thrown into a dark and vicious wilderness where he must find a way to survive. In veteran author Gillian Cross's newest book, she proves again why she is one of the most popular children's authors in Britain. With deft storytelling and an atmospheric writing style, she takes a familiar plot element and transforms it into something new again. While Ms. Cross is not yet as well known in the US, I am hoping The Dark Ground can begin to change that.What readers will encounter here is a mix between a fantasy and a survivor story. Robert is a teen traveling with his family by plane when something happens to him that he can't comprehend or quite remember-and he finds himself cold and naked in a dark and forbidding forest. What happened and how aren't quite as important as staying alive-and it's only when he discovers other people living in this strange forest that he begins to consider how to get back home. But getting back home won't be so easy-because Robert's home is both closer than he dreamed and farther away than he could have imagined. It's going to take all his strength and bravery, along with the help of his newfound friends to undertake the expedition. The fantasy element of the book is not inherently magical. Beyond the situation Robert finds himself in, there is no magic or magical way out of his predicament. The characters are left to figure their own way out.Ms. Cross writes a riveting book, full of action, emotion and imagery that roars into the mind and sweeps the reader up into the experiences of the characters. But Ms. Cross does not write an easy book-this is not a tale of whimsy and Harry Potter-esque characters. Every individual is realistic, complex, sometimes unlikable and ultimately human. The world Robert faces is unforgiving and yet remarkable-and death comes all too easily. Ms. Cross doesn't give readers easy answers or a pat ending, nor does she tease readers by making them wait for the second volume in the trilogy to have some kind of closure to this first adventure. This book is best for children who are ready to deal with some of the tougher issues of adventure, and can handle endings that are thought provoking if not a hundred percent "happy". While still a young teen title, I do think both young adults and adults can enjoy this story as well. Ms. Cross never talks down to her audience, but offers universal perspectives and emotions that almost any individual can relate to.Those who have read and enjoyed this book and want more survivor style fiction should check out Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell and Hatchet by Gary Paulsen. Likewise, those who are fans of Science Fiction may want to look for titles such as The City of Ember by Jeanne Duprau or Obernewtyn by Isobelle Carmody. The Dark Ground is only the first in this trilogy, I can only hope the other two books can live up to the promise of this first one.Happy Reading! Shanshad ^_^