Dreamwood -- a Great Read for Kids and Adults

When people tell me that they don't "do" Facebook, I smile politely and think of friends from college with whom I would have lost contact had it not been for Facebook. Heather Mackey is one of those friends.  When we found each other years after we both graduated from Smith College, we were delighted to discover that we were both writers. Heather has a job in the high tech world, two children and somehow has managed to write a lovely book for middle grade readers although this middle aged reader loved it.

Here's my review:

From the first scene on a train when we meet Lucy Darrington, we can tell she’s made of stern stuff, determined to find her missing father in the deeps woods of Sadaarthe. At every step of the way Lucy encounters great obstacles — giant sea snakes, native people who zealously guard the land, animals with dangerous magical powers. The closer Lucy gets to her goal the more dangerous and complicated her world gets. Will she find her father? Will she survive even as grown men are dying on this expedition? What exactly happened to the settlement of people on Devil’s Thumb, the haunted outcropping of land where Lucy seeks her father? As the story expands, so do the plot twists and mysteries. This is a rollicking adventure with a lovable heroine who is both prickly and serious, not afraid to push for what she wants. Both boys and girls will enjoy this adventure story as will the parents lucky enough to spend their time reading this story aloud. I loved it and recommend it for all ages.

Heather Mackey is a writer and editor with two kids, a lot of household disorder, many books, a mischievous dog, lovely husband, and a sinking feeling that the word that best describes me right now is “harried.” I am so so thrilled that my first book, DREAMWOOD, a middle-grade fantasy, was published by Putnam’s in June of 2014.