"A 'coming of age' battle against seemingly impossible odds."
"An enthralling romantic adventure."
Jaxaal Oostedd is on his way with Sarina, his racing kertle, to compete in “The Challenge” - the hardest, most gruelling race on the island continent of Fameral.
Jaxaal hopes to win fame, fortune and possible the hand of the girl he loves. Little does he realise that far more rests on his winning the Challenge for he must correct an old injustice and prevent a civil war before any hopes of personal gain.
Meeting and helped by relations he never knew, Jaxaal tackles the Challenge and all the hardships that are thrown at him while combating the highest nobles in the land.
Excerpt
“Five days to the veld, five velds to the alphen,
five alphens to the bathern and five bathern’s to the turn.”
Children’s chanting song, taught to teach the Fameral calendar.
Chapter 1
‘Why am I doing this?’ Jaxaal yelled as he looked to the sky. ‘Why am I on this awful journey?’ However, his mood instantly lightened and he laughed as he watched Sarina splashing around in the water.
Loch Mirroord was a welcome gift for both the man and kertle and they were both making the most of the opportunity to relax and get clean. However, Jaxaal didn’t have time to dawdle - he had to get the shroud that Sarina hated and detested so much, clean, dry, and back on her as quickly as possible.
Professional Reviews
An Enthralling Romantic Adventure
A very readable book which defies classification into any specific genre, Bob Hambleton goes his own way. It is a very relatable world he creates and fills with well drawn characters and a page turning story which grips to the end. TB
Sarina's Challenge is a delight, with more to come
Bob Hambleton’s ‘Sarina’s Challenge’ is the first of seven novels in a new series that isn’t fantasy, isn’t sci-fi and is quite frankly genre-defying in its own right. Playing out in a pre-industrialized society that’s vividly realistic, young readers are invited to join orphan Jaxaal Oostedd as he travels to compete in ‘The Challenge’ – his land’s most prestigious and fierce competition. What he doesn’t know is that he’s also about to try and win love, his late father’s reputation and a prosperous future for himself.
The bulk of the collection is eight short stories that are set in yesteryear. The compilation is filled out with four entertaining fantasy pieces and three poems.
Celts and Kings: The story behind the mystifying disappearance of the Celtic Earls in 1607. The story of a lost love and Celtic Spirituality.
The story of a forbidden love going back 400 years.
The story steeped in Irish history, Ce
