The Shadow Dragons

Since I originally started reading the series, I have probably read each book at least twice, and the first three more then that. My hats off to the author for creating a series that combines both myth and modern tales to create a world where real life writers have been turned into fiction characters, and become part of a tale in their own right. It creates an interest in all the stories and myths mentioned and sheds light on forgotten pieces of classic literature.

I read all 4 books. The middle 2 were a bit slow, but this 4th one brought all the intrigue back. Read them all. I loved how authors of the past are all intertwined and interrelated in this series. Was fun to connect other author's stories to what was happening here. Great Series!

With four five-star books in a row James Owen is only bested by the author of one other series, C.S. Lewis with Narnia. James Owen has secured a spot among my favorite authors. This story finds John, Jack, and Charles facing WWII and the mysterious Chancellor. There is only one weapon which may defeat him and his army of shadows. Many old friends from previous books join and the Nameless Isle is full of great historical persons. With a plot as good as its predessessors there is much to be said for the dialogue which is so witty I found myself chuckling quite often. Eagerly awaiting the next book!

If you liked the previous books in this series, you'll love this one. It's a complex tale that weaves known historical events along with fictional elements from many of the great genre authors. We finally see references to Lewis' space trilogy, as well as characters and events inspiring Narnia as well as LOTR and even callbacks to more modern works. This is somewhat marketed as a YA series and there's plenty there for that market in pure story, but there's a depth and complexity that rivals anything available in 'adult' genre works. In some ways this could again be a fitting end to the series, just as the previous volumes have been, but I think that the plan is for this to be the only the midpoint! I can hardly wait for further installments.

The Shadow Dragons is the fourth book in James A. Owen's Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica. It follows Here, There be Dragons, The Search for the Red Dragon and The Indigo King. The premise of the series is that all the imaginary lands exist in a place called the Archipielago of Dreams, whose Atlas, the Imaginarium Geographica -and its secrets- has been guarded by famous writers from our world for a millenium. This time around, the present Caretekers of the Atlas, Inklings Tolkien, Lewis and Williams have to look for help in courageous inhabitants of the Archipielago such as Don Quixote, Hank Morgan and Alvin Ransom; while drawing upon all the accrued wisom of a millenium of Caretakers like Poe, Verne, Cervantes, Shakespeare and Chaucer in order to stop a villain that is about to take over the World... both the Imaginary and our own. The Shadow Dragons has a great pace, an interesting story, and much inspiration from which to draw in order to continue reading. To me, this series has become the best way to discover many of the classics I did not know or care about. Do try these books if you like classic literature, fantasy or a good adventure.