Book 4 in the Tales of Truth and Treasure Series by James Haddell (Emira Press)
The fourth, but thankfully not final, book in James Haddell’s ‘Tales of Truth and Treasure’ series has landed and it doesn’t disappoint.
The difficulty I often have with series of books, is that sometimes the next book just can’t keep up with the momentum of its predecessors. My huge concern before I started reading this was how could ‘Dagger, Sword & Spear’ compete with the mix of history, mystery, magic and adventure that books 1-3 had in abundance?
I have written about the first three books in previous posts, but here is a brief synopsis of them. At the start of the series, Tia (an orphan) moves in with her adoptive family and she is immediately enveloped in their loving embrace. However, she has many questions about who she is and where she comes from. Tia’s quest for truth sparks an adventure like no other where she discovers magical powers, sinister enemies and more questions than answers. Treasures are discovered, enemies are outrun and friendships deepen. If you haven’t read them yet – you must!
Anyway, back to the fourth book. At the beginning of each section of the book (aptly named ‘The Dagger’, ‘The Spear’ and ‘The Sword’) there is an excerpt from Tia’s book ‘Arthurian Legends’. Each excerpt gives us a deeper understanding of King Arthur’s dagger, spear and sword and why they became one of the ‘Hallows of Arthur’ that Tia and her friends are seeking. The section then moves on with Tia and her friends trying to find this hallows before it falls into the hands of others. I won’t ruin it by telling you whether they succeed.
Book four is set on the shores of Lake Bala in Wales and whilst I missed Stormhaven (where their home is) I felt that this move developed the story wonderfully well. The family have gone there as dad and other archaeologists are exploring the depths of the lake for submerged artefacts. Tia finds herself inexplicably drawn to the lake and the adventure continues. Solomon’s knots are discovered, portals are opened, lives are nearly lost and hallows are found (and lost).
Book four did not disappoint and I couldn’t read it fast enough. I have to say that when I finished it I was so disappointed as I didn’t want it to end where it did – I, like Tia, had so many questions.
I couldn’t finish without making a nod to character development and how well James has done this throughout the four books. Mr and Mrs Trevelyan (Tia’s adoptive parents) continue to be wonderfully supportive and ready to be there in whatever capacity they are needed. Their support of Tia is unwavering, as is their understanding of Tia’s need to know more about herself. Megan (Tia’s adoptive sister), who in book 1 was overly enthusiastic and ran into everything without thinking is now the most incredibly supportive sister anyone could wish for. At times, she gives Tia the courage she lacks and she doesn’t mind that she isn’t the one with the magical gifts. Instead she is always ready to say ‘How can I help?’.
Then there is Pasco (Tia’s best friend), who we are beginning to understand more as the series progresses. He is often the voice of reason and his recall of the stories he has heard and the books he has read allows Tia and the reader to understand the Arthurian legends more. Finally there is Tia. I think Tia is like so many of us – trying to figure out who she is. This is fundamentally the driver of the books – Tia trying to find out who she is and James has cleverly linked this to King Arthur and his hallows. I wondered, at times, what Tia’s driver really was – finding the hallows or who she was. What mattered more to her? I’m not sure I know yet.
I know that most people who have read the book and written about it have used this quote from the book but that is because it encapsulates everything that is wonderful about James’ series –
Stories tell us what it is to be human: to love, to fear, to forgive, to feel and to adventure.
As a year 4 teacher, this is a great book to use as a class reader but also as a driver for topics. Often, it can be hard to think of new and exciting activities to do when planning reading activities but James has eradicated this problem for us as he has written a list of activities at the back of the book (one for each chapter).
Let me know what you think of book 4 and James, would you please hurry up and write book 5!
I hope you enjoyed this review – if you did please like and share it.
To read others’ posts please go to their websites or find them on X.
To get hold of a copy of the book click here
Tiny Voice Talks 