THE POWER AWAKENS continues the adventures of twelve-year-old Oelsa as she battles Idelisia's most powerful enemy, Anvyartach the Shadow Lord, the cunning wizard banished eons ago.
While Idelisia surrenders to Anvyartach's relentless winter, Oelsa struggles to reach her grandmother who has the knowledge she needs to control the Key's powers. But when nature interferes, Oelsa's doubts grow. Why must she bear this terrible burden? Why should she have to face the evil Shadow Lord? Maybe she isn't even meant to have the Key!
Oelsa's inner turmoil grows until she's convinced she isn't the Chosen One at all, and she can't wait to make her grandmother take back this terrible "gift." Before she can find her grandmother, however, she and her companion Promelious, a winged horse, are attacked by blizzard winds and blinding snow. They are blown off course and into the MacTiren Mountains where they are rescued by Sylvi and her parents, mountain people who seem to be her strongest allies. Their proffered friendship, however, depends on their Wise Woman, Thora, whose advice is tainted by old secrets and a long-held grudge.
Alerted by the ancient Great Grandmothers of Oelsa's danger, Oelsa's grandmother G.W., along with Samson, her magical feline companion, and the woodsman Ardreas set out to find Oelsa before it's too late. Racing through the great forest Finnis Fews, they locate strong, potential allies, but persuading them to help takes precious time, time that could mean the difference between life and death for Oelsa and her companion.
While Anvyartach builds his new army of cold-hearted, inhuman monsters, Oelsa is kidnapped by her new "friends" and taken to the Shadow Lord's impenetrable fortress. Without her grandmother's essential lessons, Oelsa's efforts to arouse the hidden Key's powers fail and she must face her formidable enemies with only her courage. In these enemies' hands, the Key's power will be used to destroy Idelisia.
With her companion Promelious, a winged horse, Sylvi, a new friend, her grandmother and a magical cat, Oelsa must face more dangerous threats and outsmart ever more cunning enemies. If she cannot accept her role as Idelisia's long awaited Chosen One, everyone and everything she loves will be annihilated.
THE POWER AWAKENS, book two in "The Key Trilogy," promises to keep readers on the edge of their seats.
Author Sharon A Roe, teacher, poet, memoirist, and novelist, has a long and varied career focused on the education and nurturing of children, the creation and enjoyment of writing in its various forms, and programs for the gifted and talented. She taught in high school, middle school and elementary school.
During these years she earned her MALS-Creative Writing degree from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota. The common thread throughout her life is sharing the magic of the written word with children and young people, a quality that is theirs to enjoy as both readers and writers. Her work displays her faith in children and the value of learning. It is vibrant with a sense of wonder, imagination, and fantasy.
The Power Awakens, her second novel, is the next book in The Key Trilogy, and continues the adventures started in The Key of Idelisia. These stories feature a young girl who confronts daunting obstacles as she searches for her true purpose in life. During her epic journey, she discovers true friends and gradually realizes the hidden power she possesses.
Sharon A. Roe lives with her husband of 57 years, her son and daughter-in-law, and her two teenage granddaughters in a delightful multigenerational home .
"All the action, adventure and heart that makes a great middle school fantasy!" — Marcus Lowry, Head Librarian, Ramsey County Libraries
"The Power Awakens, volume two of The Key of Idelisia, Sharon A. Roe's fantasy adventure for middle-grade readers, never ceases to amaze and amuse.From twelve-year-old Oelsa's page one ascent on a winged horse into a maelstrom of danger and adventure, the pace never slackens. Roe tells her story through various points of view--through the eyes of the ancient wizard G.W., or her cat vamiliar, Samson, or the archfiend Anvyartach, or Promelious, the flying horse as well as from Oelsa herself. Her finely drawn character--human and animal--are vivid, indelibly unique, and immediately believable.The heroine, Oelsa, fights her way, blindly at first, maive and afraid, to her inevitable realization of her world-heroic mission. The animal creatures are especially enchanting, such as the noble Iontac Ceffyls, Promelious's clan: their eyes, all shades of purple--violet, mauve, mageta, thistle, amethyst, heather. Their coats ranged from slate to frost, fog to moonlight, sorrel, sable, chestnut, and gray-as-a-whisper to a shadow's black.The relentless dangers are balanced by the deep goodness in the heartsof the odd band of sister and brothers, animal and human, she lovingly sets in motion to save their world from implacable evil. Everything inevitably builds to Oelsa's climactic confrontation with Anvyartach and his terrifying minions.See for yourself. You'll be amused, amazed and glad you did." — Larry Mellman, Author, The Ballot Boy trilogy
