Magical Tales of the Shee, Book 3: The Book of Dara (Hardcover) (ISBN-13: 9781069233776)

Magical Tales of the Shee Series will appeal to young readers ages 7-11 who are fans of the Fairy/Magic/Quests genre and are ready for slightly darker and more complex themes. Many contemporary fairy stories geared towards younger readers have simple storylines. With the inclusion of some risk, (very mild) evil villains (not that scary), mystery, and suspense, Magical Tales of the Shee series will appeal to young readers who are ready to level up. They have mastered the basics of reading but are still developing readers. They may not yet have the decoding and comprehension skills, nor stamina to tackle more complex vocabulary and stories.

Book 3: The Book of Dara

Dara is an ordinary boy living in the quiet Irish village of Cloone with his family. Everything changes when his younger sister, Tally, discovers a hidden library in the convent where their mother works as a washerwoman. This discovery pulls Tally, Dara, and their best friend, Óona, into the hidden world of The Shee-Irish fairies.

Book 1: Their first adventure sees them racing against time to save a Shee Ringfort. A few years later, just before her 13th birthday, Óona receives a mysterious letter, launching them into another hair-raising mission-this time to save her Uncle Cormac.

Book 2: Dara uncovers a shocking truth-he's not human. He is a Shee Changeling, placed with his human family at birth by Núada (Nu-o-da), a ruthless Shee leader. Dara's mission as a Changeling is to kill Óona, who is destined to become the leader of the Shee, so that Núada can reclaim his rule. When Dara refuses, he flees and takes refuge in the Ring Fort with Éire, Óona's Shee birth mother.

Book 3: Just as Dara is adjusting to his new reality, an even darker truth emerges-the despised villain Núada, whom Óona and Tally defeated and banished to the Ocean Realm in Book 2, is actually Dara's birth father. With Núada gone, his clan, the SheeNúa, need a new leader. As Núada's only son, Dara is the rightful heir. Lúgh (Loo), Núada's brother, tries to force him to accept his destiny by kidnapping Tally.

Refusing to take on the leadership of the SheeNúa but determined to save his sister, Dara and Óona attempt a daring rescue, infiltrating the SheeNúa fortress of Carrick Dubh (Kar-rik Duv). But it's a trap. Lúgh has anticipated their every move.

With time running out before Samhain (Saw-an)-the night when Núada's power must be passed on-Dara seeks help from Tailtiú Tall-chew), Lúgh's foster mother. To reach her at the Hill of Tara, he must first brave the terrifying Banshee Forest, where he stumbles across a group of Ógham (O-m) Stones bearing an ancient prophecy.

In the final chapters, Dara forges an uneasy alliance with Lúgh and accepts his destiny. At Samhain, Núada returns briefly through the portal from the Ocean Realm to pass on his magic powers and leadership of the clan to Dara.

Cliff-hanger: After the Samhain ceremony, during a visit to Tara, Lúgh arrives with dire news-Núada never returned to the Ocean Realm. He has vanished. Worse still, he may have escaped with The Cailleach Bhéara, (Kal-yak Bear-a) the most powerful and dangerous witch in Ireland.

Book 4: The Book of Tailtiú coming soon!