The Stone Awakened – Guardians of Erin, Book 2

PARANORMAL:  After celebrating Halloween and Ashling’s 18th birthday, the four Donoghue children are heartbroken when their parents mysteriously disappear in the night. Ashling helps her younger siblings adjust to their new reality of Irish mythology and magic. She also becomes involved in a romantic triangle between Aengus Braesling and his nemesis Lorcan.  Diedre starts to receive her new magical powers and gains a suitor. The twins, Kian and Conall, must await their powers destined to arrive in the coming months.  Aengus is finding it difficult to deny his love for Ashling. Brigit’s feelings for a long ago, unfulfilled attraction are returning. Both families search for the Donoghue parents while dealing with the evil machinations of Aiofe, the witch with a millennia-old grudge against them all.

Ms. Sterling’s second book in the Guardians of Erin series is a continuing adventure for young readers. Her use of family, romance, magic, and mystery sweeps readers away to a modern mythological land. The plot is the typical heart wrenching mystery of missing loved ones and there is some repetitive rehashing. However, the story is filled with many things to give readers the sense that the impossible is possible. There is the intrigue of young love mixed with conflict of a unique romantic triangle. There are the deeply felt bonds of familial love from characters developed with strong, individual voices.  And let’s not forget the thrilling interactions with malignant villains. Readers will be caught up in Judith Sterling’s magical world filled with modern, relatable characters, Irish legends, mystical creatures, sweet romance, and a suspenseful mystery leaving them with hungry anticipation for the next book in this series.

Tonya Mathenia