'Erec Rex: The Dragon Eye' by Kaza Kingsley

ISBN: 0978655567
Format: Hardcover, 360pp
Publisher: Firelight Press, Inc.
Price: $17.99

In the world of young adult fiction there are a lot of reading choices you could make. There is something for everyone out there and one of the books we should all be reading is Erec Rex: The Dragon’s Eye, Kaza Kingsley’s first novel in a new series about an adventurous 12 year old with a glass eye and magical cloudy visions.

Erec Rex is not your average kid, having grown up in a home where slightly odd household items are the norm. Such as an alarm clock that will jump on you if you don’t wake up. But waking up one morning to find a strange babysitter watching over him and his several brothers and sisters and no idea where his mom is doesn’t sit well. When Erec has one of his cloudy visions, a vision that lets him know she could be in trouble, he rushes out to her rescue.

Erec’s vision leads him through a magical door in the sidewalk and down into another world. Bethany, a girl who helped Erec find the door in the first place, goes with him and soon the two are fast friends. Underneath New York a whole different city is bustling and moving along. Strange shops selling silver garments line the street, men and women fly overhead, and doors keep popping in and out of existence.

Unsure of what to do or where to go, Erec and Bethany follow the crowd and end up entering a contest to be the next kings and queens of this strange magical country. Erec discovers where his mom has disappeared to but is unable to help her right away. But since Erec and Bethany are both entered in the contest they decide they might as well stay and try to win. But one bad thing after another is slowing the contests down and it’s only a matter of time before someone gets hurt.

There are a ton of mysteries to solve along the way. Who is Erec Rex really? Why was his mom kidnapped and taken to this strange world? Who is behind the mischief in the contests? What do they want?

Great characters people this story and the small touches like a dancing coat rack or a pair of glasses that let you see the person you miss most are icing on the cake. Not to mention the magical remote controls — who wouldn’t want one of those? Also the vivid descriptions of the world are fantastic. Your imagination is given free rein to enjoy all the magical, wacky, wonderful creatures, people, and devices that roam through Ms. Kingsley’s story.

The Dragon’s Eye is a great introduction to a whole new world. This would be a good book to curl up with your little one and read to them or read first yourself and pass it on. The action is constant and just keeps you turning pages as you wonder what could happen next. Erec’s adventures continue with Erec Rex: The Monsters of Otherness, and I can’t wait to get started.