The Guardian of the Tomb

Arky Steele #1

by Eleanor Coombe

Meet Arky Steele.

He's not your average 12-year-old: he travels the world hunting for ancient treasures and trying to stay one step ahead of his nemesis, evil billionaire Goran Rulec.

Arky is on a mission to find the legendary Hand of Death, famous for its dark powers. But he's not the only one who's after it...

230 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

I was born in Tasmania, Australia and have a passion for history, myths, legends and adventure and exploration.
I write under my own name and also that of Dan Jerris.
I have written the successful series Dragon Blood Pirates under this name. These books are on the 2013, Premier of New South Wales Australia, reading list for all primary school children. They have also been published in Australasia, England, Brazil and Turkey.

I also enjoy sailing, farming, swimming and the wonderful Australian bush. My loves have influenced my writing.
I have been awarded a Distinguished Alumni Award from Canberra University for my services to Children's literature.

My series, The Faraway Fairies was listed on Books Alive, the top 50 books you can't put down, sponsored by the Australian Government in 2009, in which they choose 50 books from all over the world to list for people in Australia to read.

The Arky Steele series has just been published in 2013 and consist of 2 books which are great reading for pre teens and adults. The Guardian of the Tomb and The Cursed City.

I hope you enjoy some of my books and happy reading.

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book of a series featuring Arky Steele who is 12 years old, with a rock climber for a mum and an archaelogist for a dad. When Lord Wright pays Doc, Arky's father, to travel to Mongolia to research the lost treasure of Genghis Khan, Arky goes too. They are joined by Lord Wright's Step Son Bear, who is rather spoiled and whiny, and a Mongolian shepherd boy Tue (who somehow speaks perfect English :) The boys become caught up in a plot by Lord Wright's enemy Rulec to steal the lost treasure.

This is a rattling along adventure story. Lots of dramatic moments involving water rushing through caves and tunnels, threatening ptential death or injury. Lots of encounters with bad men. Lots of clues that have to be solved with keys and jewels and carvings, leading to - another tunnel with a threatening river/glacier. And strangely, lots of fart jokes :)

Aimed squarely at 9-12 year old boys, this is like Enid Blyton catapulted to present day. A rollicking, implausible adventure. One word of caution; Genghis Khan was responsible for murdering and torturing millions of people, which is discussed in this book. The boys also stumble across dead bodies. There will be some parents who will be concerned at this - in my experience the children reading this will not be overly concerned! - but you might like to warn parents if you are a librarian recommending this book.

[Willow Stevenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having a prior knowledge of Genghis Khan and his Mongolian Empire helped me understand this book a lot more, and I did enjoy it. The bonds the children formed with each other and the amount of obstacles they had to overcome made me overwhelmed with joy when they finally succeeded in finding the treasure. I did think that sometimes the descriptions of telling and not showing got a little old, But for me it was good read.

[Lyn Battersby · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lyn is a judge for the Aurealis Awards. Any reviews and/or ratings supplied by Lyn do not reflect the opinions of the Aurealis Awards Panel or Committee.

I shall be rating this work once the Awards are announced.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a touch of everything in it, Adventure, Suspense, thrills and Romance. This book has made me get into the second book of the series. I really rate this book high and recommend it for everyone.