Years ago, I received an unexpected phone call. Michael Ross, then-editor of Focus on the Family’s Breakaway magazine, asked me to brainstorm a big, bold adventure for teens: “Maybe fantasy. Maybe science fiction. Maybe both mixed together. I don’t know. Just make it big!” Such an intriguing challenge! I accepted the assignment and developed a 3-part Christian sci-fi story, The Next Fithian. Those three installments reaped enthusiastic reactions from readers. However, after Part 3, that assignment was done. I moved on.  As years passed, my Fithian characters refused to let me forget them. They kept coming to mind, urging me to create an exhilarating, novel-length adventure for them. At first, I refused. I was giving priority to my novels about World War II airmen.  Gradually, though, I noticed something. Whenever I attended homeschool conferences to sign books for shoppers, teens visited my table to chat. What were those teen guys and girls wearing? T-shirts. Specifically, T-shirts portraying the Avengers, Spider-Man, Captain America, the Hulk . . . It was obvious what kinds of adventures these young adults were into. I began to wonder—what kind of uplifting novel could I pen for Christian fans of the Marvel universe? In reply, my thoughts jumped back to The Read More ...

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