Saving Samuel
Author: Doane Edwards
Paperback: 122 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (January 17, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1493761668
ISBN-13: 978-1493761661
List price: $7.16
Also available in digital for $5.00

Reviewed By: Cheryl Malandrinos

Rating:    

Christopher lives near the woods in Falmouth, where he enjoys exploring and archery. He longs for a friend, but the wealthy family that lives close by has a son who doesn’t seem to be interested in his friendship.

Then one day, the wealthy boy, Samuel Hopkin, turns up missing. Christopher volunteers to help get Samuel back, but he soon finds himself in danger. He must put his faith in God and use the skills he’s developed in order to save them both.

Saving Samuel is a Christian middle grade adventure story. Two young boys from diverse backgrounds are thrown together when they are abducted. The characters are likable and well drawn. The author also dropped in enough details to paint beautiful pictures for the reader.

The Christian message is strong, but subtly woven in so it doesn’t overpower the excitement of the story for adventure seekers. I did, however, have a couple of challenges with this book. It is heavy on narration, which slows the pace a bit. Part of that is because Christopher is an only child, so there are a fair amount of moments when he’s alone; especially in the beginning. The other is that Christopher’s parents allow him to help rescue Samuel, which leads to him being abducted too. The reasons given in the story weren’t powerful enough to this mother of three to make them plausible. Other than those two points, Saving Samuel is a fun read for this target market.

I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.