Gina Vallance

Amberly and the Secret of the Fairy Warriors Gina Vallance

Twelve-year-old Amberly doesn't quite fit in with all the other fairies in Whimsical Land. One of her wings is undersized and paralyzed and instead of flying she has to run and leap through the air with the help of a stick. It's awkward, it's no fun, and she sometimes gets bullied for it, too. Worse than that, her mother worries about her disability and won't let her take sword-fighting lessons with her sorcerer uncle. But Amberly's been reading a fascinating book, Secret of the Fairy Warriors, and it's given her a clue to where her father disappeared when she was a young fairy. If she doesn't learn how to be a fairy warrior, she'll never get the chance to rescue him. Dark forces are at work, though, and Amberly and her fairy-butterfly watcher Safflower fall through a magical portal to where everything's in dark and scary contrast to the brilliance and light of Whimsical Land. Someone she meets and what she does there will change her life forever. This middle-grade fantasy bursts with imagination and tucked into all the fun and adventure are unforgettable lessons on self-acceptance, personal-empowerment, and overcoming adversity.