Hi folks,

I’ve just finished Wraith published by Magabala Press and wanted to tell you about it!

James can fly, but not terribly well. His mate Darren is trying to help him, but the landings are still an issue. When James accidentally stumbles into a city hidden in the clouds his world is turned upside down. These people are (it seems) a completely different species to James and the people who live on the ground. James meets Aureole, who is the head honcho’s daughter and isn’t impressed by her level of snark. However when an important artefact is stolen, James gets caught up in Aureole’s plan to get it back.

This book is so much fun. It’s aimed at the lower end of YA and it just romps along. James and Darren are both young Aboriginal men (James is a Darug man) and I really love the way the information about the culture is liberally sprinkled throughout the book for the reader to pick up.

The world building in the book is also great. The world of the Azuriens in the clouds is original, and poor James is very confused to learned that a famous scientist is actually Azurien. The SAFFIRE, which is stolen, is a tool to assist with climate change, something the Azuriens are very concerned about.

The relationship between James and Aureole is pretty cute. She is very snarky, stiff and standoff-ish, and James helps her to become a little less stiff in her ways (but has no real impact on her snark levels which is pleasing to see). Initially they are thrust together by the circumstances, but their ability to nearly tolerate each other develops into a caring friendship.

I also have a soft spot for the “bad guys” in this one. Erebus is the brains of the operation and Collins and Wilson are doing his bidding for cash. These guys are the comic relief and have some great one liners, demonstrating that they are not deep thinkers. Or perhaps even thinkers full stop.

This book is set up to be the first in a series and I’m really looking forward to the next instalment (which I hope will be along before too long!) Definitely check it out – 4 out of 5 stars from me!

Cheers,