Beast Quest 9 – Soltra the Stone Charmer

Adam Blade's Soltra the Stone Charmer is a Beast Quest adventure for 7 year olds in which Tom heads home at last, only to find a Beast has got there first.

What happens

Tom hasn't seen his village, Errinel, since his quest began. So when the magic map shows the next piece of golden armour glowing right beside his own lake, he's thrilled and frightened at the same time. What has the Beast done to his aunt and uncle?

The clues on the way are very creepy. A row of birds on a gate that don't fly off. A hare frozen in mid-leap in a field. Then Farmer Gretlin and his two oxen, standing in their own field as cold grey statues.

Soltra is a different kind of Beast. She's tall and slender in a cloak like black water, with no face at all until a single green eye opens. Look into it and all your fear melts away... and then you turn to stone. (That's why the stone farmer is smiling!)

How do you fight something you're not allowed to look at? That's the puzzle at the heart of this one.

There's a lovely quiet bit in the middle too. It turns out to be Tom's birthday, which he'd completely forgotten, and his uncle digs up a box from under the forge that Tom's father left for him years ago. It's sad and happy at once, in a series that's usually all action.

Elenna is as good as ever. When Tom gets stuck in the marsh with the mud up to his armpits, it's her arrow and a rope that save him.

The chapters are short and nearly every one ends on a cliffhanger, so it's very easy to say "just one more".

It's worth knowing the opening is spooky. The prologue has the farmer slowly turning to stone while a little boy hides behind a wall, wondering how long it'll be before he dies. Later Soltra grabs Tom by the throat. Nothing is gory, but a child who's frightened of statues or of being frozen might want you close by.

This one sits partway through Tom's quest and mentions Beasts he's met before, but it explains enough to follow.

What to read next

If they'd like to see Errinel before all this, Ferno the Fire Dragon is where Tom's adventures began. Farmer Gretlin is there too, staring at a wheat field that's been burned black in ten minutes flat.