Pillage by Obert Skye

Pillage

Author: Obert Skye

Publisher: Shadow Mountain Publishing

4 out of 5 stars

Beck Phillips’ life isn’t really going as planned at the moment. He is an only child, fifteen and three-quarters years-old, who lives with his mother Francine. However, Beck’s mother isn’t what we would call, “normal.” She is unbalanced, and Beck sometimes has to take care of her. Sometimes she hides behind buildings, and once even locked him out of their apartment for two days straight, thinking he was someone else. But Beck still loves her. At the moment, Beck thinks he will be in a heap of trouble once he gets out of the mess he’s in. Surprisingly, the principal doesn’t punish him. He soon finds out this is because…his mother has just died. 

It is all too much for Beck to take in. He understands that she wasn’t well, but now where is he supposed to go? He has no relatives that he knows of. However, it turns out that he does have one relative. It’s his wealthy, yet almost crazy, Uncle Aeron. His very well-off uncle lives in seclusion at the top of his mansion in Kingsplot, a town up in the mountains. In Kingsplot, fog and mist constantly covers everything in thick layers. Beck is amazed by this manor, which is now his new home! But something’s not right, and Beck can feel it.

It turns out that Beck’s suspicions are true, something strange is going on. He finds out what when he finally climbs over an abandoned conservatory wall, in the back garden of the manor. He uses his newfound talent, of instantly growing plants, to climb over the solid and very tall wall! What he finds inside is amazing! Dragons! Well, not quite. He does find dragon eggs though, and mistakenly hatches them. Now he must raise these dragons without anyone finding out. Not even his Uncle Aeron, or the staff of the house must know. However, it turns out that someone has been using Beck to get to these dragons. But who? Will Beck be able to raise these magical creatures, discover the secrets of this mysterious mansion, and find out who he really is? Obert Skye reveals all in this strange book Pillage!

If you haven’t already noticed, the author is Obert Skye, who wrote the Leven Thumps series. So, if you are a fan of that series, then you might want to try this new fantasy trilogy out. Pillage is an interesting story that hasn’t been seen before. Yes, it includes dragons and fantasy, but it also has a boy who has a complicated family tree that lets him have the power of making plants grow at his command. There was also a sense of mystery to this book as I read it. When Beck is exploring the old mansion, I got shivers down my spine. It can get a little scary and suspenseful when he’s crawling through tunnels, or discovering what’s behind locked doors. But, this always kept me on edge as I turned the pages of this intriguing book.

Another aspect that I definitely enjoyed was the pages of the journal, The Grim Knot. The Grim Knot was included at the end of each chapter. Once you read the book these excerpts from the journal will make much more sense, but for now, let me give you a little tip. Try looking at whom each journal entry was recorded by. As you read the story this will also make more sense, but when you reach the end you’ll be going, “Ohhhh…I get it now.”

The ending of Pillage is quite phenomenal, as there is a big twist at the end. Two big twists really. These two surprises had me gasping in shock, and suddenly everything made sense. I also liked how many things were resolved at the end. However, not everything stays all dandy and fine, since the sequel to Pillage, Choke, recently came out.

All in all, this is a fantastic story, with characters that are all unique. Of course, the plot to Pillage has some old themes, with dragons and magic, but at the same time introduces new concepts and ideas within it. Join Beck Phillips through his first real adventure, as he discovers who he is and learns how to use his new magical power for good, or for bad, in Pillage!

-This is T.B. with Another Book Back on the Shelf…

Until Next Time, Keep Reading!

Check out the Pillage website at http://www.abituneven.com/.

Pillage is available from Amazon here.