A war has been waging for centuries; a magical and technological battle between good and evil. This conflict will affect life everywhere, but not everyone is aware it exists. When twelve-year old Max Rigdon is sent to stay with his grandfather for the summer, he unwillingly enters the fight. The day Max steps off the bus he is marked with an evil curse and immediately becomes the target of evil men and creatures with designs on ruling the universe. Not only does this curse cause Max physical pain but it allows his enemies to track and find him. He soon learns that the reason for this unwanted attention is because his grandfather is the keeper of a gateway; a powerful machine that makes travel to hundreds of strange unknown worlds possible. The enemy will do anything to gain possession of this power in their quest to control all worlds. With the help of his friend Cindy and others, Max must quickly learn the necessary skills to survive if he is to avoid the deadly trap that has been planned for him and his grandfather. A trap that has been decades in the making with Max as the missing piece. If successful it will change life as we know it. A book for all ages.  There are several reviews here at AuthorsDen and Amazon.

Professional Reviews
MAX AND THE GATEKEEPER by James Todd Cochrane is page turner that entertains the entire family!
Max Rigdon is traveling by bus to visit his grandfather when a stranger on the bus asks the young boy where he is headed and why? Max responds, but when Max asked the stranger, “Who are you? What do you want? The stranger replied “To Kill you.”

Max “THINKS” he is just going to his grandfather’s house for a 'kicked-back' summer. A vacation, he “THINKS”!

Little does Max know but he’ll be traveling to other worlds. Max’s grandfather is a gatekeeper whose job is to help the forces of good in a centuries-old magical/technological battle. What do you “THINK” so far? Cool eh?

MAX AND THE GATEKEEPER is a fresh and sound young adult novel that the entire family will enjoy. The plot is great. The characters are believable. MAX AND THE GATEKEEPER is the first book by James Todd Cochrane and I would be very disappointed if there is never a sequel. These characters would make a great film ala “Harry Potter”.

In a recent interview the author said, “I learned a lot about writing fiction. Of course, I want readers to enjoy it. I hope they have as much fun reading it as I did writing it. I would really like it to hook young kids into reading like "The Wishsong of Shannara" did for me...One of the things Max discovers about his grandfather is that he is the keeper of a gateway. The gateway is a machine that makes travel into other worlds possible. The gateway is the most important weapon in a war between good and evil. There are hundreds of thousands of worlds. This gateway not only allows Max to travel to different worlds but allows creatures from other worlds to travel freely as well. Grandpa informs Max that travel to other worlds is possible with the use of magic but it has limitations. The downside is, when using magic to travel you are limited to the time you are able to stay. Those using magic to travel must go back to their original world. Only through the gateway can people or objects be moved permanently. For some, taking over the gateway is their main purpose. Grandpa's job is to keep the gateway from falling into enemy hands."

MAX AND THE GATEKEEPER will make you “THINK” and use your imagination. I “THINK” you should buy a copy of this book today!!!

John Weaver, reviewer www.authorspressreleases.com



Max and the Gatekeeper by James Todd Cochrane. Published by Dark Moon Publishing Inc.
Max believes it will be a long, boring summer at his grandfather?s house, away from his mother and all of his friends. A strange encounter on the bus makes him realize, right away, that this will not be the dull summer he expects it to be. As Max gets to know his grandfather, he learns that there is a lot more to the world than he realized.

This is a great new book by a first time author! I really liked it. It was fun, interesting, clear, consistent, but not predictable.

One of my pet peeves is when an author introduces characters or situations but then doesn't explain them or wrap them up. Everything in 'Max' made sense. It had no loose ends at all, except for the openness of the ending - but that makes sense, considering there is a new book coming out. It was easy to read and the characters were quite intriguing. It kept me interested and I DIDN'T read the ending first. That by itself is pretty big. I get bored easily and if that starts to happen, I read the ending to know what is coming so that I don't have to finish it all. ?Max and the Gatekeeper? is a magical adventure. It?s family friendly and entertaining for all ages. I would especially recommend it for those 8 years old and up.

Reviewed by Dayna Davis, LDSFiles.com Staff Writer

Reader Reviews for "Max and the Gatekeeper"

Reviewed by Michaela Sefler	5/14/2009
Max and the Gatekeeper (Paperback) by James Todd Cochrane , Max and the gatekeeper, is a beautifully written story, I was glued to pages as I let Todd Cochrane unravels with great imagination, a young boy's adventure into his grandfather's house to a the magical world through a gateway to new worlds. As Max and his friend discover the gateway, they begin to understand the mystery and danger of life attempting to reconcile reconcile as they transverse through the gateway, to worlds beyond. As Max our hero, unravels a wonderful plot, Todd Cocrane touches upon adolescent curiosity and interest through imaginative and interesting constructs. I was well entertained reading this book and would recommend it to the warrior in every teen.
Reviewed by roger talbot (Reader)	4/7/2008
i thought that this book was magnifecent. all the sentences and paragraphes were well put in to the book i would much like to get my own copy someday of this magnifecent book!

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