The Gatekeeper of Pericael | Book Review

Thank you, Hayley Reese Chow, for sending me the eARC of The Gatekeeper of Pericael, in exchange for an honest review.

The Gatekeeper of Pericael is a middle-grade fantasy following 12-year old Porter, a boy cursed with splitting his life between our world and the dangerous, full of magic, Pericael. His family has been guarding the portal between the worlds for generations, and it's now Porter's turn to train to become the Gatekeeper.

But after an attack by a very powerful soul-stealer, that made Porter see he's in way over his head, he's now trapped in the middle of the Pericaelian forest, with his clueless cousin that didn't even know magic was real. He has no idea how to get back to the gate to protect it, or how to defeat the Raspurn, but he only has six days to figure it out, or else the world he knows and loves will be destroyed forever.

This book had everything I want from a fantasy story. It's got a magical quest, creepy and dangerous creatures, adventure, high stakes, and a reluctant "chosen one". It gave me all of the best of The Hobbit vibes, but in a way I actually enjoyed. An unexpected group of children coming together to defeat an evil shaman, while having to fight every creepy creature in the forest? Yes, please.

Even though it took me a while to get to this (reading slump), as soon as I started, I couldn't put it down. It's incredibly fun, entertaining, and overall a brilliant adventure story. It's made me remember why I love middle-grade and that I should definitely read it more often. The writing was also amazing. It was immersive and like I was actually in the forest with these characters. I couldn't help but want to take care of these children and protect them from all they were going through. I didn't even notice I was this attached to them until they were all going through actual hell.

Overall, I really loved this story and it was such a pleasant surprise. I'm really happy Hayley contacted me last year because I wouldn't have found this brilliant book otherwise. Highly recommend it to any fantasy lovers looking for a fun adventure. It feels like a classic fantasy book and I really want more people to find this incredible story.

Love,

N.

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