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League of the Daring #1
Finding Pedro
YA Steampunk, Mystery, and Adventure
It’s a big day for the young members of the League of the Daring, a group of friends who meet in twins Alroy and Zella’s attic to experiment, design, and build gadgets and prototypes. Not only are they taking a ride in the airship their scientist friend Grace built, but Doc Grimes invited them to help test his time travel machine.
However, with everyone else busy, Alroy Doyle is the only member who witnesses the seemingly successful experiment that sends a rat through time and back. But Alroy’s excitement quickly fades when he realizes his friend and fellow League member Pedro is missing. Could Pedro’s disappearance be connected to the League’s investigation of a potential smuggling ring? And what are the mysterious marks that have suddenly appeared on Alroy’s wrists? It’s up to Alroy, Zella, and their friend Toby to unravel the clues—and find Pedro—before it’s too late.
Mystery meets steampunk in this thrilling and satisfyingly enigmatic first book of the League of the Daring series, with enough twists and turns to keep readers guessing until the last page.
Fans of the "Enola Holmes Mysteries" by Nancy Springer and the "Stoker & Holmes novels" by Colleen Gleason will enjoy this series.
It’s a big day for the young members of the League of the Daring, a group of friends who meet in twins Alroy and Zella’s attic to experiment, design, and build gadgets and prototypes. Not only are they taking a ride in the airship their scientist friend Grace built, but Doc Grimes invited them to help test his time travel machine.
However, with everyone else busy, Alroy Doyle is the only member who witnesses the seemingly successful experiment that sends a rat through time and back. But Alroy’s excitement quickly fades when he realizes his friend and fellow League member Pedro is missing. Could Pedro’s disappearance be connected to the League’s investigation of a potential smuggling ring? And what are the mysterious marks that have suddenly appeared on Alroy’s wrists? It’s up to Alroy, Zella, and their friend Toby to unravel the clues—and find Pedro—before it’s too late.
Mystery meets steampunk in this thrilling and satisfyingly enigmatic first book of the League of the Daring series, with enough twists and turns to keep readers guessing until the last page.
Fans of the "Enola Holmes Mysteries" by Nancy Springer and the "Stoker & Holmes novels" by Colleen Gleason will enjoy this series.
- GenresSteampunk
369 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 14, 2020
About the author
Cora Foerstner
7 books14 followersThe most surprising thing about me is that I've lived in the jungles of South America. When I casually mention that people are shocked. I'm not sure why because that fact seems natural to me.
Less interesting is that I was born and raised in California, have traveled and lived in South America, and have lived in several states and visited 38 states.
What all that means is I'm pretty opened minded and like new experiences.
FYI: most authors are sort of boring. We spend most of our time alone, sitting at a computer writing or reading. I'm not an exception.
Here are the tedious details:
I write young adult, science fiction, fantasy stories with a touch of adventure and mystery. I read almost anything as long as there's a good story. I drink too much coffee. I play Word of Warcraft for fun and relaxation.
In case you haven't guessed, I'm a geek.
Less interesting is that I was born and raised in California, have traveled and lived in South America, and have lived in several states and visited 38 states.
What all that means is I'm pretty opened minded and like new experiences.
FYI: most authors are sort of boring. We spend most of our time alone, sitting at a computer writing or reading. I'm not an exception.
Here are the tedious details:
I write young adult, science fiction, fantasy stories with a touch of adventure and mystery. I read almost anything as long as there's a good story. I drink too much coffee. I play Word of Warcraft for fun and relaxation.
In case you haven't guessed, I'm a geek.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 28, 2021
4.25 time machine and kidnapping stars
WHAT AN EXCITING STORY !
This was such a compelling book, full of friendship, mystery and unexpected twists and turns. The end of the story kept me on the edge of my chair. I wasn't sure how things would turn out and it was thrilling to finally see all the loose ends getting tied up.
To be honest, I had some trouble getting into it. The first fifth of the book was quite slow paced. We got to know the characters and learn a secret, but nothing really set the story in motion - not even their adventure on the dirigible, however strange it seemed. It's only when his friends finally began looking of Pedro that I clicked with the book. I really loved this investigation!
Diverse important themes were explored. Ethics stood out, but also eugenics and knowledge gate-keeping. Tolerance was also a primordial element of the story, having two characters being part of the LGBTQ+ community.
"Figure out how you want to live, and to hell with the rest of the world."
Independence of women came up often through Zella's behaviour, for better and for worse. The whole story talked about family's relationships - good or bad - and the one you create by surrounding yourself with close friends. So, a lot of underlying elements contributed to make this adventure very meaningful.
About the characters, I'm a bit parted. I loved Toby! His story and overall personality touched me. I liked the idea of Zella, by that I mean a female character who stands her ground and brings feminism into discussion in 1890. My main concern was Alroy. I found him childish and undisciplined to the fault. His reactions towards Wyatt, and sometimes Zella, left me unimpressed. He had some qualities to his personality that will probably be well used later, but it didn't really work for me in this first installment. I'm hoping for some more character development.
This first book only hinted at the magical side of the story. It made me VERY curious! I'm still glad the author concentrated more on the investigation, so we didn't get too sidetracked, but I'm looking forward to know what will come next.
I voluntarily reviewed this after kindly receiving a free copy. These were my honest opinions.
WHAT AN EXCITING STORY !
This was such a compelling book, full of friendship, mystery and unexpected twists and turns. The end of the story kept me on the edge of my chair. I wasn't sure how things would turn out and it was thrilling to finally see all the loose ends getting tied up.
To be honest, I had some trouble getting into it. The first fifth of the book was quite slow paced. We got to know the characters and learn a secret, but nothing really set the story in motion - not even their adventure on the dirigible, however strange it seemed. It's only when his friends finally began looking of Pedro that I clicked with the book. I really loved this investigation!
Diverse important themes were explored. Ethics stood out, but also eugenics and knowledge gate-keeping. Tolerance was also a primordial element of the story, having two characters being part of the LGBTQ+ community.
"Figure out how you want to live, and to hell with the rest of the world."
Independence of women came up often through Zella's behaviour, for better and for worse. The whole story talked about family's relationships - good or bad - and the one you create by surrounding yourself with close friends. So, a lot of underlying elements contributed to make this adventure very meaningful.
About the characters, I'm a bit parted. I loved Toby! His story and overall personality touched me. I liked the idea of Zella, by that I mean a female character who stands her ground and brings feminism into discussion in 1890. My main concern was Alroy. I found him childish and undisciplined to the fault. His reactions towards Wyatt, and sometimes Zella, left me unimpressed. He had some qualities to his personality that will probably be well used later, but it didn't really work for me in this first installment. I'm hoping for some more character development.
This first book only hinted at the magical side of the story. It made me VERY curious! I'm still glad the author concentrated more on the investigation, so we didn't get too sidetracked, but I'm looking forward to know what will come next.
I voluntarily reviewed this after kindly receiving a free copy. These were my honest opinions.
February 8, 2021
An engaging YA novel, where mystery and steampunk meet time travel. A group of kids meet to conduct experiments, but strange things begin to happen: one of them goes missing, another receives strange marks upon their body.... A well written, throughly entertaining read with believable characters and great world building. I can’t wait to gift this book to my grandkids; I’m sure they will live it as much as I did! This book is a winner and I can’t wait for more to come!
August 23, 2022
Wow, what a complicated back to the future story! Fascinating approach to teenage characters, very modern issues, time machines -- good or bad?-- overall a great story!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews