Shepherd's Quest, Hunter of the Horde and Quest's End are among the Nominees for this year's Pluto Award. The reward is given each year to one of the many books they reviews during the previous year.

**Update** None of the three went on to the finals.

I feel honored to be included among this year's nominees. I'll include Yellow30's review for each of the books.

Shepherd's Quest is currently on sale at Mobipocket.com as an eBook for $4.99.

Shepherd's Quest:

Riyan Borenson of the small village of Quillim is a shepherd boy. His best friend is Chadric Kelon, son of the village miller. Together they have all sorts of high spirited adventures, but only in their daydreams. Life is rather mundane for Riyan and Chad. Tending sheep and grinding grain does not make for high adventure no matter how they might wish otherwise. Yet despite the calm in the little hamlet, Riyan has managed to acquire an enemy. Rupert, son of the village magistrate, is determined to make Riyan life miserable no matter what. To add insult to injury Rupert even gets engaged to Freya, the girl who Riyan suddenly realizes he loves. Riyan distraught by this sudden announcement decides the best thing for him to do is take his sheep to some high pasture. There he will have time to sort things out, get over his anger and find a way to stop Freya from marrying Rupert. Meanwhile, Chad along with Bartholomew Agreani devise a plan to humiliate Rupert, but it only makes things worse for Riyan. Change is in the wind. Up in the high pasture, one of Riyan’s sheep goes astray. While looking for the lost sheep, he finds the lamb in a hole in the ground. Despite the trouble the sheep has caused him, Riyan also finds a coin which will bring him and his friends back to this same place a few days later. Riyan, Chad and Bart stumble upon an ancient burial tomb, which they later learn is the fabled King's Horde. Legend has it that this burial site holds a vast fortune. If Fate has brought them this far, Fate has also thrown them a curve. To gain access to the King's Horde, they must first recover the segments of the key that will open the inscribed portal. One fragment of the key they find within the ancient burial tomb in the hand of a long dead thief. Finding the other segment of the key will take them deep into hostile goblin territory and a place where even goblins fear to tread. Shepherd’s Quest is a fun, well paced novel that any Dungeon and Dragons gamer would love. It has all the elements of the game rolled into an adventure story about young lads looking for riches, fame and adventure. Parts of the book do get rather bogged down with the repetitive finding of chests, crypts and such. Once inside goblin territory the story picks up the pace and moves the reader right along with the uneasy, uncertain air that makes goblin territory so feared. Brian Pratt weaves a true Dungeon and Dragons type of story with this first book in the Broken Key Trilogy. Gamers should love this trilogy!

Hunter of the Horde:

The Quest Continues

The Death Mark! Not a good tag for a thief, even one of the best. For Bartholomew Agreani it meant that the price on his head was worth more than a lot of booty other thieves could pilfer. So, Bart’s life had a bleak future - death, unless he could buy back the mark. Fate would place him in a strategic spot to ensure he could do just that. Having befriended Riyan Borenson and Chad Kelon of the small village of Quillim the trio stumble upon the fabled King’s Horde. Now with money in hand, Bart is able to buy back the death mark. Meanwhile his other companions, Riyan and Chad enlist in the Warriors Guild, while their other friend, Kevik, tries to improve his craft as a magic user. One does not come into a lot of money without word eventually leaking out and finding it’s way to other sinister ears. For you see, the King’s Horde is famous and a number of villainous folk have been searching for years to find it. Some will stop at nothing to get the riches buried with the fabled King. Riyan is no longer the timid shepherd boy from Quillim or Chad the clumsy miller’s son. The Warriors Guild has molded them into strong, determined young men. While Kevik is learning, through trial and error, how to become a successful magic user, he too is growing in confidence and ability. All these new skills will be put to the test as Bart finds himself the focal point of the Hunter of the Horde, a ruthless villain who has ways to make men talk. Riyan and his friends must use every skill they’ve learned to rescue their friend from this deadly hunter. This second book in The Broken Key trilogy continues to weave a spellbinding story that carries our four fellow adventurers on their quest to find the final two segments of the Key that will unlock the fabled King’s Horde. Intrigue, adventure, terror and excitement carry the reader page after page. For the fantasy addict this will add to your addiction. Read with care, but enjoy the trip, for this is an exciting one.

Quest's End:

At Last-The Quest's Conclusion

Finding the last segment of the Key to the King’s Horde has become an obsession with Riyan and his friends. Traveling into forbidden lands is not a problem. Riyan, Chad, Bart, and Kevik have faced more dangers and unusual challenges in their short history together than many a man in a whole lifetime. Now the road they’ve traveled in their search turns toward the land of the Moran Tribes. Setting out in the dead of winter for the Moran lands might seem foolish, but there is an urgent need to get there. If the last segment of the key is to be found in the land of the dread Moran Tribes, then Riyan and company will find it. Regardless of the dangers, weather or inhabitants of the land, this brave little band of treasure hunters will no doubt prevail in their search. Yet, finding the key and returning home may prove to be the gravest danger in the whole quest. Others have learned of Riyan and his friends quest and they are quickly scouring the countryside around Quillim in hopes of finding the entrance to the King’s Horde. Yes, the greatest peril and challenge of their lives may be when they return home. The final installment of the Broken Key Trilogy could be classified as a nail biter. Brian S. Pratt puts the finishing touches on his sure to be a classic trilogy of young friends and their quest for gold.