The Avatar Battle

Cragbridge Hall #2

by Chad Morris

The adventure continues when Abby and Derick begin second semester at Cragbridge Hall, the most prestigious secondary school in the world. But when Grandpa Cragbridge admits them to the Council of Keys--a secret group of people who have keys to travel back in time--strange things begin to happen. One by one, members are found unconscious and unable to wake, their keys stolen. Now Abby and Derick must scramble to figure out who is behind the attacks before they become the next victims, which would give their enemy the power to change the past forever. A page-turning, time-travel adventure that teaches powerful lessons about choice and consequence, believing you can do hard things, and valuing history

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Childrens, Time Travel

352 pages, Hardcover

First published March 4, 2014

About the author

Chad Morris coauthored The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry, Virtually Me, Mustaches for Maddie, Squint, and Willa and the Whale, with his wife, Shelly Brown. He is also the author of the Cragbridge Hall series (The Inventor's Secret, The Avatar Battle, and The Impossible Race). He has won the Utah Book Award, the Buckeye Award, and the Nebraska Book Award, and the Silver Foreword INDIES award for Juvenile fiction. Chad also wrote one of the short stories in True Heroes: A Treasury of Modern-day Fairy Tales Written by Best-selling Authors. His story was based on JP Gibson, an amazing boy who faced cancer with courage, heart, and a basketball dream.

Chad grew up wanting to become a professional basketball player or a rock star. (Inspired by Animal from The Muppets, he has been banging on drums since he was eight years old.) Neither of those plans quite panned out. After high school, he left the Rocky Mountains to live in Brazil for a few years then returned home to write and perform sketch comedy while going to college. He graduated from BYU with a couple of degrees and became a teacher and a curriculum writer.

Reviews

[Laura Maxwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series so much. Lucked in to the first one. Bought some audio Books at Half-Price and thought it looked kind of interesting. Turned out it was fantastic and so entertaining. The 2nd one(this one) is also great.Can't wait to read the 3rd book!

[Jonathon Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

On edge the entire time! So many plot twists and crazy things that change predictions and turn the tables. Great book

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely LOVED the first book in this series and was excited to see that book 2 was out! Abby and Derick are involved in another mystery and have a new secret to uncover. Abby's former roommate and nemesis, Jacqueline, is still giving her a hard time. Jacqueline feels that Abby doesn't deserve to be at Cragbridge Hall and doesn't hide how she feels. To make matters worse, Abby's grades are actually low and she needs to figure out how to bring them up so she can stay. Derick loves the avatars and he tries out for an exclusive avatar club that his friend Rafa is part of. Rafa was secretive and made me wonder what he was up to. I kept thinking he had to be one of the good guys and we find out which side he's on towards the end.

Abby's friend, Carol, is still one of my absolute favorite characters. She enjoys flirting with Derick and embarrassing him any chance she gets. My favorite line from her this book is "...Your hotness kind of confuses my thinker." (p. 27) [I say it in my best Valley Girl voice and it makes it even funnier to me!] Carol is a good friend to Abby and adds comic relief to tense situations.

We meet some new teachers and it was fun to try to figure out what was going on. There are more twists and turns and Grandpa Cragbridge's nemesis, Muns, is back and is now in direct contact with Abby and Derick. History plays another big role and again, I loved the way history was tied in and made interesting. He reiterates the lessons we are able to learn from tragedies and how, even though we don't want them to occur, some lives are changed for the better because of them.

This series is a huge hit with me and my kids. Again, it doesn't end on a cliffhanger but it definitely leaves us all wanting more!

Mel's Shelves

[Sheila (sheilasbookreviewer) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read The Avatar Battle: Cragbridge Hall Book two in less than 24 hours. How does it compare to the fabulous first book The Inventor’s Secret? The second book is just as engaging as the first book in this middle grade fantasy series. This series has some of my favorite elements in a story: humor, memorable characters, and time travel. Once again we enter the world of Cragbridge Hall where the brightest students in the year 2074 attend secondary school. Here they learn how to design their own virtual worlds and control robot animals. This is also where Grandpa Cragbridge is fighting to protect his school, and the world, from the evil Charles Muns who wants the keys to control time travel where he can change history to suit his means.

I love the adventure found in the books. The twins, Abby and Derek, also learn so much about themselves. They learn so many life lessons as they help their grandfather battle Muns. Some of the powerful messages readers will gain from this book are believing in yourself and doing hard things, realizing that with every choice you make comes great consequences, and that there are important lessons to be learned from studying about history. As a teacher I’m reminded of how much I’d love to work at a school like this one. What amazing technology happens at Cragbridge Hall!

Author Chad Morris’s writing style is fun, moving and there is never a dull moment in The Avatar Battle. The story is a good read for anyone from 8 years old and up. Adults will enjoy this story/series as much as the tweens and teens. There are some fantastic surprises found in the last ¼ of the book. What a great way to write an exciting finish to this book. Now all that’s left to wonder is how long do we wait until book three comes out?

[Monica H at The Readathon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the first book in the series, The Inventor's Secret, and was really excited for book two. My boys (12 and 10) have been asking me for months when this book would be out. Well, it's out, and it did not disappoint! I may have even liked it more than I liked the first one. The characters are so fun. They are believable and realistic. I like Abby and Derick. I like that they have flaws but they never give up. They keep trying. I love the humor that Carol brings. She'd get annoying if she were a roommate, but she adds a bit of fun to the book. Rafa adds a little mystery, and I liked finding out more about him in this book. I love the gadgets and machines in this book, especially the build-your-own-world bit. It is so creative and fun. I love the way Grandpa Cragbridge makes them dig for their answers, and I love how it brings history to life. There are so many great lessons in this book. My 12 year-old read it in less than two days, and he loved it as well. There is a surprise twist at the end that he did not see coming, and it was fun to see him excited by it. There is no language or "intimacy." There is some violence; a few characters are injured, and it may be scary for some younger readers. This would make a great read-aloud. I recommend it for third grade and up. You may read my full review on my book blog: www.the-readathon.blogspot.com.

[Andria · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review at the aasl conference in 2016. This series is a new twist on the sci fi scene for tweens. In age progression, it is similar to Epic and Ready Player One...but for the younger audience. It has some character development but it seems more like changes in a short period of time than serious development. The technological twists of the virtual world and the avatars is very creative. The world building seems logical, like it could happen in our future and is not so far off that it is unimaginable. I would like there to be more back story and perhaps that is coming in book three, although that would be a shame for the series to end just as I was getting hooked into the back story in the last book. The descriptions were pretty well rounded in the taking of familiar situations and creating something unknown from the known, for example the games played by the "crash." All in all a solid offering for a middle grade series, action and adventure without serious gore and violence.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't like it as much as the first one but it was still good. I'm looking forward to reading the final book in the trilogy. It's so imaginative and creative!

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to the Audible recording of this book.

Kirby Heyborne's voice acting skills were once again excellent, but there was too much yelling, as in the first book. At least the volume of the yelling seems to be decreased compared to the first book.

The best part of book, in my opinion, is Carol, the best friend. She is absolutely hilarious and almost everything she says had my wife and I laughing. Kirby gives a great tone and voice for Carol.

Sometimes the inventions are a bit over the top, made to serve the story line rather than being realistic. But the story is distracting enough that I was able to suspend disbelief and just enjoy it. Kirby still yells loudly too frequently, although the volume levels seem to be better than the last book. Still very good though, and we are eagerly awaiting the next installment.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

There were a couple of irritating things with the main actor. I also am not a fan of Kirby Heyborne's readings since he does these weird yelling into the mic that just is loud and obnoxious. He also adds too much anger to characters that may be speaking only stearn.
From the title of the book I thought we'd see more of the Avatars, but it is how the book wraps up.
I think it was an intersting set up for the final book.

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW! Several parts of this I didn't expect. Maybe it's been too long since reading the first one, but wow. A lot of twists in the plot. I loved the courage that Abby found at the end, and hope it makes it through to the next book. I was glad to see Derick fail a bit, and to be able to grow from that, and learn some lessons. Great read.

[Tonya Tingey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 2 and such a satisfying story! Great adventure complete with the worries of young kids and then their ability to overcome those fears to rise up and save the day. Very believable characters and a great imaginative story line. On to book 3. Thx Chad Morris for sharing your talent and for making it a series!!

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow

Wow…just wow. This has to be the most absolutely thrilling book I have read recently. It’s one of those good books that makes your heart race, and makes you demand more. Chad Morris has just made my top authors list, and that isn’t easy to do. I recommend this book, absolutely!

[Kim Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. This one wasn't quite as good as the first one, but still really enjoyable. (I think at least part of the reason I didn't like it quite as well is because there wasn't as much history.) There were some surprises at the end. Overall, it was a great read and I look forward to the next book.

[Valerie · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are so fun and so exciting! Never a dull moment and lots of teaching items for everyone! I learned so much about giraffes that I never knew. Very cool. Anyway, I highly recommend these books for anyone!

[Neil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as enjoyable as the first episode but am def going to finish off the series. It’s aimed at a younger audience than me (much younger) so for it to still retain my interest over two novels and going to be a third is a testament to how good the premise actually is. A lot of fun.

[Joy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun read but the digital copy of this book had several words missing or typos that needed fixing - hence, I marked it down. An adventure, fantasy, science fiction story that I think my 12 year old grandsons would enjoy reading.

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book with tons of action. I like the style of history blended with science fiction, although this one didn’t have as much history as the first one. Morris is a great story teller. I’m looking forward to the last one on the series.

[Kayden Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Avatar Battle," by Chad Morris was an awesome extension of "The Inventor's Secret".
I recommend to anyone who wants to read a book about adventure, action, and fun.
ten out of ten.

[Isaac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

[Edward Rempala · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book. Had a few interesting plots in it.

[hennefaus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing plot twists, definitely a page turner

Amazing plot twist, definitely a page turner. This book was one of the best I've read for a long time. Thanks Chad Morris!

[Shannon Symonds · Rating 5 out of 5]

See my review of the first book in the series. I listened to the audio version on Deseret Book Bookshelf

[Katrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great book in the series!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good follow up to the first book.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly imaginative!

[Jana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book 2 did not disappoint. As good as the first. Fun twist at the end.

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a twisty, turney ride with a surprise ending.

[Andrea Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic second book in the series full of action and adventure. I love to see how they solve the problems that come up. Excited to see what happens next and how they remove the bad guy.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 10 year old loves this continuing series about genius children at a private boarding school in the future. It is a fun combination of science fiction and fantasy with time travel.

[Clint Covington · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 9year old daughter and I have LOVED reading this series together. It’s always fun to dig into stories where kids learn to conquer fears.