Allie Strom and the Ring of Solomon

Bringer of Light #1

by Justin M Stone

Allie thinks she's a normal kid with normal problems on her first day of seventh grade. She hopes for a fresh start despite her mom being overseas with the Army, again. But none of that matters when she discovers that her mom has gone missing.

On the same day of her mom’s disappearance, Allie finds the necklace her mom was never without. When the necklace magically teleports her new friend Daniel and her to Central Asia, she learns her necklace contains an ancient magic; the power of the ring of Solomon, which she must use to fight off an army of darkness and a giant with eyes of fire.

Most important of all, the necklace appears to be the key to finding her mom.

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Childrens, Young Adult, Ebooks

141 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 15, 2015

Reviews

[Mandy Walkden-Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully imaginative read.

Magic, mayhem and mystery abounds, and caught up in it all, two seventh graders Allie and Daniel, an intelligent and resourceful pair.

Battling together against modern-day bullies and ancient evil, they're an unstoppable duo, but even they may find themselves out of their depth.

Packed with action, intrigue and suspense, and also with humour and heart. It's a terrific read, age no boundary. I particularly enjoyed the interweaving of the King Solomon myth.

Also great to have Allie's missing mother a currently deployed military parent - not a parental career that appears very often, and this was a little glimpse into how the children of such families may deal with it.

Highly recommended.

[Hakuzo Sionnach · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read this book but for some reason... The book did not sit right with me. Towards the end, there was a lot of confusing passages and transitions.

For the most part the characters were plain and okish. Some of them were flat. There was very little character development in this story.

The story structure was kind of rough. Several sentences did not flow well at all and I tripped over the meaning of what was happening. There were points where characters did something then suddenly they are elsewhere. Not only in action but in "location". It was as if all transitions are missing.

Overall this book still feels like a rough draft and very unpolished.

[Carol Kean · Rating 4 out of 5]

We love Allie Strom for many of the same reasons we love Harry Potter, who starts life as an ordinary boy unaware of his magical powers. Around age twelve, that classic time for a hero's journey to begin, our protagonist faces more than the usual challenges of starting middle school. The bullies and the popular kids are always there to heap more misery onto the notorious age of adolescence. The nerds are the only true friends, but they come with the price tag of being known only as a nerd yourself.

The hapless Harry Potter gradually discovers he is not only gifted with magic, but he alone can save the world. Allie is burdened with the same gift. She is "chosen" by a necklace, by a ring, and swept from her usual daily life into an alternate dimension, something like virtual reality except for the physical pain of a fight. Like one of the Power Rangers, like any good video game heroine, Allie can parry and kick and cartwheel through one action scene after another.

I first met Allie in the latest Samuel Peralta "Future Chronicles" anthology, "Tails of Dystopia." Sloan's short story, "The Last Bobcat," is funny and snarky and wonderful. In my Perihelion Science Fiction ezine review (January 2018), I raved about Allie, the crazy kick-ass heroine with the flaming sword and warrior spirit. The Allie we meet in Book One of this series is embryonic, compared to the confident, bold heroine she grows into. As a veteran reader (and grandma), I'd rather read the more adult version of Allie.

For young readers, Book One is a shorter and easier read than Harry Potter (my gold standard; never mind that I was almost 40 when the series began). For me, the story is simple, relying on tropes that are all too familiar. But the tropes endure for a reason. We never tire of the classics.

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twelve year old Allie’s mother goes missing, and she must enter a world of magic to save her.

I instantly liked Allie. She’s a typical young girl, just entering the seventh grade. The vivid descriptions of not only setting but emotion took me back to when I first started junior high. It really is a big step, and Allie finds herself a bit over her head. Not to worry. She soon makes friends with Daniel, who is the target of some bullying. I really enjoyed the way Allie stood up for him. That’s a great role model for kids today, reminding them never to be afraid to do the right thing.

The first half was pretty straight forward, with a few confusing spots. Allie didn’t know what was going on, and at times, neither did I. Luckily, as the story progressed things were explained, and I learned the source of the magic and how it came to Allie’s hands. There are some tidbits of history thrown in. Not enough to bore a young reader, but enough to justify what’s going on.

The action scenes were nicely done. They kept me entertained and on the edge of my seat. I’m so glad the violence in this book is tame. There is action, and some characters take a beating, but the violence doesn’t go over the top. It stays PG throughout, and that’s as at should be for this age group. I don’t know why so many kids’ books go over the top. I’ve read some with graphic violence, and thankfully, you won’t find that here.

All in all it’s a fun adventure that kids ages 8-13 are certain to enjoy.

I was given a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Bonnie Dale Keck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kindle Unlimited, Read this in the collection, holding the first 3 books in the bringer of light {teen supernatural thriller is how they billed it} Allie Strom - The Bringer of Light Trilogy: The Eternal Light Saga

ALLIE STROM AND THE RING OF SOLOMON (Book 1) Allie is starting the seventh grade in a new school, just wants to fit in, and is about to discover that it is up to her to save her missing mom she thought was just overseas with the Army, deal with evil, and find missing ancient relics {one of which is the necklace her mom is never without but which Allie finds and which magically transports her to another country}, which they'll need to defeat Samyayza and the fallen angels.


˃˃˃Allie Strom: The Bringer of Light Trilogy is part of the Eternal Light Saga.
Eternal Light Saga Titles Include:
Back by Sunrise
Dawn of Destiny
Allie Strom and the Ring of Solomon
Allie Strom and the Sword of the Spirit
Allie Strom and the Tenth Worthy
Allie Strom - The Bringer of Light Trilogy: The Eternal Light Saga

*The series will eventually crossover with the Cursed Night trilogy, which includes HOUNDS OF GOD.

[James Crawford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Allie is starting 7th grade. Her mother is serving in the Army. She finds her mother's necklace and puts it on. She meets Daniel, a boy who has been bullied. She gets in trouble on her first day of school and in P.E. There's a specific group of bully boys.

Daniel and her end up in the forest and are followed by the bullies who say that the necklace she is wearing is the Seal of Solomon. The principal and the librarian seem to know what is going on with the necklace (although the principal doesn't seem to do anything against the bullies which is unfortunate. Bullying should be an automatic two-week suspension from school for the first offence, a four-week suspension for the second and expulsion for the third.)

The story is an introduction to a series.

[Kendra Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Allie Storm and the Ring of Solomon is a classic tale of good vs. evil set in a supernatural junior high. It is definitely written for the teenage fantasy mind, but in a way that adults can enjoy just as much.

Justin Sloan does a decent job developing the characters and story line in a way that keeps you interested and wondering exactly who is good and who is evil. There are a few very unexpected twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat. In many ways it reminded me of the Chronicles of Narnia.

I received a review copy of this book

[Shakera · Rating 4 out of 5]

What's not to like?! This is a classic story of good vs. bad. Allie's mom is in the military and is declared missing. Before mom was deployed, she left Allie her necklace. Unbeknownst to Allie, there's something special about this necklace. The necklace is a part of a bigger picture, dealing with the myth of King Solomon. Along with the help of a friend, Daniel, they navigate uncharted waters and save her mom. I enjoyed this story, as it makes you use your imagination. It was well thought out and executed. I think it could be an interesting series.

[Jordan (BlueJayBookworm) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I genuinely liked this book. Allie was a nice protagonist with a good character arc. Her adventure to find to her mother was fun to follow. Though it was a bit slow to get into. The writing was great and the flow went smoothly after the beginning.

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Allie Strom and the Ring of Solomon - a review by Rosemary Kenny

A gentler YA meander from Justin Sloan's usual sci-fi epics comes in this tale of Allie Strom, a young teen who's unaware her soldier Mom has
gone missing in the wilds of Kyrgyzstan while on active duty - of a most unusual kind. As Mage of Fantasy Justin Sloan portrays the dangers and
destruction of her kind by those who seek Mankind's destruction in a very different setting.

Allie has just started high school and her only would-be pal seems to be the nerdy Daniel, whose only ambition is to make it onto the baseball team.
Herself a football fan, Allie's reluctant to spoil her 'school-cred' before it even gets started by associating with him, but as is later shown, Daniel's got more to him than meets the eye - as has Allie, thanks to her discover of her Mom's special necklace, [which has a history too important to ignore] and her Spirit Eagle guardian.

What do Principal Eisner and librarian Gabe have in common and how do they encourage Allie?
Why do bullies at the school (and others) wear black? When does Allie save Daniel from Clive and his pals?
What is special about the map in the library? What does Daniel find about the Ring of Solomon online?
How does Paulette help Allie and what happens after she teleports with Allie and Daniel?

With Bringers and Guardians of Light, Strayers, demons in the smoke and many more secrets and events than it behoves me to reveal, this is definitely another winner from Justin Sloan, which I can highly recommend to fans of Harry Potter, The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe and the like...spirit yourself off to grab your copy now!

[Sandra Stiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given this book to review a long time ago. Unfortunately it fell way down the stack of my pile of books. I am sad I waited so long to read and review this book. I live in a district where books have to be read and reviewed by a group of people to be considered for our classroom libraries. Unfortunately this one has not had that privilege. I can recommend it to my students, which I will, but I can’t put it on my book shelves. Here is why I believe this should be allowed to be on my school shelves.
First we have very relatable characters. Allie is just starting middle school. Her mom is in the military and is missing. She stands up against bullies to defend Daniel, one of the nerds. Their friendship is necessary as they have many battles ahead of them. When Allies mom is deployed she leaves the necklace she has always worn behind. Allie wears it and of course we can expect things to happen.
There are many lessons to learn through reading this book. One stand up for those who seem weaker than you. That’s what Allie does when she defends Daniel. Never give up no matter how impossible it may seem or what obstacles are placed in front of you. A great author like this one knows how to wrap lessons up in a story line that is so amazing that the reader doesn’t realize until afterwards all the lessons they have learned. If I asked my students what connections they had with this book after reading it, those lessons would be the things they connected with. I will definitely read more in this series. I will also recommend it to my students. After all, we still have public libraries and book stores.

[Rebecca · Rating 1 out of 5]

I know a lot of middle grade fantasies use the trope of the main character being dropped into a magical world and not knowing what's going on, so the reader learns along with them. However, by the end of the book, both the reader and the character really shouldn't be more confused than when they started. This is only 117 pages, but it was a bit of a rough go and felt like more but also probably should have been more. So many mysteries are thrown at Allie and the reader but virtually nothing is ever explained. Everything happens so fast, yet there is a weirdly large percentage of repetitive passages that don't move the story forward. If Allie thought one more time about how this new reality was like the dorky D&D stuff she used to play/makes fun of her brother for playing...

I also found myself not just confused with the plot but also confused by the physical space and actions. There's a lot of bouncing between realities, and I usually love a good reality shifting story, but there didn't seem to be any rules as to how this worked. There were also a lot of times where I felt like the characters and the space just didn't work - they were suddenly next to each other when they had just been across the room or the space was too big/too small/too unclear for what was happening.

Basically there's too much going on, too many mysteries, and not enough explained or resolved. If I hadn't been reading this for a reading challenge prompt (book with "ring" in the title or on the cover) and it hadn't only been 117 pages, I don't know as I would have finished it. There is a seed of a good idea here but it really doesn't play out well.

[Peggy Darling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excitement, danger, adventure, heroine

I loved this book Very few books ever keep me up all night. This one did. I couldn't put it down. Allie starts a new school with an agenda in mind of how she plans her year will go. Daniel walks into her life the first day and her world is turned upside down. They face off with bullies, get caught up unintentionally with magic and face a deadly adventure together. We see Allie fight against what is her destiny to eventually embracing it with Daniel at her side. I can't tell you much about this book as far as the story line. I hate spoilers. I enter a book expecting to be drawn into the world the author created. I want to feel all the emotions of the characters. I hate it when reviewers say "spoiled alert" and blurt out part of the plot that the reader shouldn't know ahead of time, so pick up your e-book and read this book. You'll love it. Then write your own review so the author knows how you feel about his creation

[H.P. Holo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Closer to 3.5 stars. A fun little Indiana Jones-style adventure for kids. It starts off with some interesting concepts - I was really interested to see, for example, how the story would handle the protagonist's mom being Missing in Action in the military - but by the end the setup is mostly there to serve a Magical Macguffin plot that takes a little too long to get off the ground. There's a lot of adult-characters-knowing-stuff-but-withholding-information-because-plot and characters-making-weird-choices-because-plot. The individual adventure scenes, though, are still pretty entertaining, and I was curious enough to see it through to the end.

[Shruti · Rating 3 out of 5]

( I received a digital copy of the book. Thanks to Justin Sloan!)

I hadn't read any children's book in a while and so it was good reading a middle grade book again. To me some parts seemed very silly but the book is well written and I'm sure younger group would like it. I moreover liked the story which was about a girl who thinks that she's grown up when she isn't and the way she rescues her mother and learns her strength and in the meanwhile finds a true friend.

[Cal Bowen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a bit of Dorothy Gayle meets Percy Jackson meets history.

Justin Sloan is an excellent writer and tells an interesting tale of a young girl in search of ... well, I won't ruin it, but this is done quite well and the female lead is a modern-day Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz trying to understand what is going on when her world is turned upside-down.

[dawn lynn cline · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a cute story!

Great for all ages, it's fun, kinda has a Narnia vibe ( not storyline, just the vibe), it flows along very nicely and makes you want to skip supper and read the next one...which I may just do.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I give this 3.5 stars. It is the first book in the Bringer of Light series. The book does not end in a huge cliffhanger, but by the ending you know the story is not over. There is violence so it might not be suitable for more sensitive readers.

This is the first book I have read by this author so I wasn't sure what to expect. What I found was a wonderful fantasy filled with magic and learning there is more to the world than you thought. He wrote a strong female heroine in Allie who is struggling to figure out this new reality and what she will do to save her family and friends.

The book blurb adequately describes the storyline so I'm not going to repeat all of that info here. The author did a fantastic job of giving depth, thoughts, emotions, and struggles to these characters. Join Allie, Daniel, and a few others as they fight Samyaza and his forces of evil. As usual, everything is not as it seems.

While this book is written for those of middle school age, adults will enjoy it too. At least this adult did. I look forward to reading more of this series.

[Jennifer Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for an age-appropriate, junior book than "Allie Strom and the Ring of Solomon" will fit every need you have. When I say age-appropriate, I am using that as a good thing. This book brings back memories of the Chronicles of Narnia in that it provides a great story without forcing love triangles or drama but instead focus on a strong heroine that is trying to save her mom. Allie is a seventh grader with smarts, skills, and a great personality that shines through our the book. While the book starts off slow, once I actually get into it I was hooked. I am actually now making my nine year old son read it and he is loving it so far. Even with a female lead I think boys can also enjoy the story since it doesn't concentrate on typical girly girl things but just on a good person.

[McKenzie Richardson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay.
There was a lot of action in it, but the plot didn't feel cohesive. The narration felt more like a running list of things that happened. It really lacked complexity. The characters felt flat as well and the plot twists were fairly predictable.
This is a pretty simple book, quick read, but it didn't really hold my interest.

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Allie Strom and the Ring of Solomon (Bringer of Light Book 1) by Justin Sloan is a marvelous fantasy book for kids! Allie, our gal of the story, finds her mom's necklace that her mom was wearing, when she left for deployment overseas, in her bedroom. She puts it on and magical things happen. She finds it causes the attention of evil forces that wants the necklace too. Lucky for her, there are those that want to help. Some how she has to find a way to help her mom using the necklace while battling evil, fighting bullies at school, and acting like she is a normal girl. No problem! The characters are great, the action fun and exciting and the plot great. I enjoyed it and I know my grandkids that age will love this book. Received this book for a honest review.

[Emmie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful start to a new series. Intense and gripping. Great read for around 10 - 12 year olds. I would love to read the rest of the series to see how it pans out.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book in the 'Bringer of Light' series and while I think it was written with a younger audience in mind I enjoyed the story enough that I may pick up some of the others in the series when my TBR pile gets a little smaller. Allie is a likeable heroine for the story and she finds out that she is stronger than she thinks while trying to rescue her mother. While I liked that there were other adults that could help her figure out what was going on, it sometimes seemed like they had no help to give her during the story. And I really thought that her father should have been someone she could turn to instead of someone else who did not believe her.

[Beverly Laude · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable & well-written book. Action, adventure and fun abound! Allie Strom is a typical pre-teenaged girl, trying to fit in at her new school. She wants to be "cool", but quickly finds out that loyalty and friendship are more important.

Part Indiana Jones, part Harry Potter, part Pendragon..well done! A great book for middle grades, teaching morales and loyalty in an action packed story. I loved it and look forward to more adventures with Alive!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although this book is designed primarily for young people (which - at 34 - I'm definitely not!), I really enjoyed reading it. Well-written, with characters you can really relate to, a good plot that contains lots of adventure, including twists and turns and a great pace to keep the readers attention. I'd definitely recommend this book to all readers who love adventure, including magical elements and a touch of history to ground it, no matter what their age. And I'm definitely going to read the rest of the series!

[Patti · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a perfect read for the YA! These young characters are quite endearing and seem more mature than their twelve years of age. This read supplies just the right amount of action, suspense, and mystery all while still maintaining the integrity of the youthful characters. The conclusion is skillfully written and gives you much to ponder about what comes next! A very pleasant read! I have been given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review,

[Amber Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book so much I read it all in one sitting. Allie and Daniel are a couple of kids that go out to save Allie's mom and go on an adventure of a life time. Action packed and so much fun it well keep you on the edge of your seat to see if they make it in time to save Allie's mom. A must read for sure.

[Allie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was not my usual genre of reading, however, the author has created a great adventure that I feel will appeal to not only children but adults too! There is a lot that children will relate to here and there is a lot of magic, mayhem and action. Beautifully written!

[amelia Davies · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was a good book because it shows what it is like from the girls prospective in the story .I recommend this book to people who like a mystery and a little bit of fighting in the lunch room thank you xx

[Kelsy Flanders · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book would be good for children, but it is slow moving.