"Here, There Be Dragons" - James A. Owen

     Three Oxford scholars, John, Jack, and Charles, are thrown together when John's mentor, Stellan Sigurdsson, is mysteriously killed. In his death he left the Imagnarium Geographica, a book which records all fictional and mythological places, to John. But there is someone sinister after the book, and the three new companions are thrust into a magical and dangerous world they know little about. With the help of Bert, a friend of Stellan Sigurdsson, they escape on his ship from a pack of Wendigo, dark cannibalistic creatures, that were chasing them through the streets. Little do they know they are all headed for lands they all thought imaginary, and that all of the lands are in great danger. The Winter King has come to conquer and enslave the world in darkness and he literally brought Pandora's Box to do it for him.

     Written by the always amazing James A. Owen this book tells an amazing fantastical story about life, love, loyalty, and friendship. He brings together a truly magnificent tale about triumph and defeat. His characters have so much depth I immediately connected with them. And his illustrations completely blow my mind. I really wish I could draw like that, but it seems like all I can do is draw some stick figures!

    All right so I learned some exciting thing about this book a few weeks back, and oh my gosh I am so excited! James A. Owen is in talks with the producers of The Lord of the Rings movies to turn the first book into either a movie or a television show. In 2006, upon it's release, Here, There Be Dragons was almost immediately optioned by Warner Brothers and producer David Heyman. However, Mr. Heyman, being the producer of the Harry Potter series, found he was unable to produce the film due to the fact that the seventh Harry Potter movie was split into to two parts. I believe the the new producers are much better equipped to take on the challenge of putting Mr. Owens words to screen, especially given the subject matter!

      This entire series is mind-blowing and each book had me hanging on the edge of my seat wanting more. Though the books have a fantastical feel it still feels very grounded and very human, and I loved his use of mythology in the story line. All I got to say is just wait till the big end reveal! I had chills. I would give this book a 9.5 out of 10. Seriously one of my favorite series ever. Make sure you follow me on Twitter for updates on the blog and for what I'm watching and reading! Check back next Sunday for next blog post!

Peace,
Jake