THE SECRET ROOM (Amber-Autumn Series, #4) by JOHN ALEXANDER *REVIEW* Lone Star Book Blog Tour
THE SECRET ROOM
(Amber-Autumn Series, #4)
by
JOHN ALEXANDER
Genre: Children's Mystery / Chapter Book
Date of Publication: October 14, 2017
Number of Pages: 159
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Amber and Autumn, elementary school sisters, don’t seek out problems to solve, but they often find themselves engaged in uncovering truths, solving mysteries, and helping others in the process. Autumn’s natural curiosity, combined with her boldness, leads her to push for answers to anything she does not understand. Amber, her older sister, more cautious and easily spooked, prefers to let Autumn drive ahead to solve mysteries which come their way, but her keen skills of observation often lead to the resolutions they seek.
In The Secret Room, the girls, during their stay at a B&B, discover a long-forgotten room in the attic and uncover its secrets. The story takes place at the House of Seasons, a bed-and-breakfast in historic Jefferson, Texas. Their quest to uncover secrets takes the girls on a journey through Jefferson history including a cemetery, a river boat tour, and even an evening ghost walk.
PRAISE FOR THE SECRET ROOM:
“Great book, really enjoyed reading. I'd guess a target audience would be 7 to 13-year-olds. Thank you for allowing me the honor to preview your book. I look forward to purchasing your published work.” -- Joseph (Teen Beta reader)
The Secret Room is a fun read. Not only is it a mystery; it also contains some of the history of Jefferson, Texas, and the surrounding area, as well as pictures of some special places there. Children and adults will enjoy reading it, just as I did. -- Carol (Adult Beta Reader)
“Overall I thought it was a great book. I would be excited to read the next book in the series.” --Madeline (4th grade Beta Reader)
“The whole time I liked the suspense and the mystery side of it.” – Beta Reader
“I relate more to Amber because she doesn't like a situation without light and she doesn't like doing scary things first. She sends her little sister in to do it first and I do that. Amber is the older sister and so am I.” – Beta Reader
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Well, and wouldn't you? Didn't you, as a child, go on exploration trips, and try to find "the secret"? I certainly did, and I loved the secret and its solve in this book. But the most powerful thing about The Secret Room, from my adult perspective, was how much it brought the joy of childhood back to me, with its view from a child's eyes, and the sisters whispering, and the sleuthing. I believe an imaginative child will become absorbed with this book and its secrets, and fantastic discoveries.
The setting of the book itself, is a jewel of a town: Jefferson. I keep saying that I want to go visit it, and I keep not going, why? Now I want to go more than ever. The neat thing is that when I finally do, I will know more about the city because of this book. I loved how The Secret Room told me things about the history of Jefferson without giving me a history lesson. It dropped a nugget here and a nugget there, with some pictures, leaving me wanting more instead of less. This approach is just right for both children and adult readers. Now, I not only want to go and see the sights, I want to taste that fruit pie with the cheese under the crust, and those sandwiches, and have that tea.
Also, I need to know more, as in the whole series more. These little girls and their mother fascinated me. There isn't much backstory about them, so I may need to borrow a little girl to read to so that I can order the whole series and just find out. Why were they on the trip with just mom? Does mom take them on many trips? Do they ever fight? Are there any men in their lives? I love a book that leaves me wanting more, especially with the fact that there is a series I can read to seek answers to my questions.
I am so glad The Secret Room went on book tour with us and that I got to read it. If you have any little girls in your life and want to find good fiction for them (while encouraging good reading habits), this book and series is for you.
Thank you, John Alexander for the signed book copy so that I could review it and give an honest opinion. I'm loving what you are doing here!
John writes chapter books that appeal to elementary school children to capture their imagination and help them discover the love of reading early in life. John lives in Frisco, Texas with his beautiful wife and his King Charles Cavalier Spaniel, Charlie Brown.
John spent his childhood in a small town in east Texas. He attended college at the University of Texas earning a BS in Physics and a BA in Math (minor in Computer Science). His years in the high-tech industry, most of it on the “bleeding edge,” allowed him to develop new technology with software.
John had the privilege of co-authoring two editions of CallManager Fundamentals. The two books sold over 23,000 copies, exceeding the publisher’s goal of 8,000. Having discovered his love for writing while still working in high tech, he began writing fiction in his spare time and published The Enclave, a mystery / suspense novel, in 2010.
After leaving high-tech in 2014, he now spends full time pursuing his writing passion. He loves writing books that help children discover early in life that reading is a fun adventure. He recently released illustrated editions of the first three books in the Amber-Autumn mystery series: Christmas Garden Illustrated, Grandfather’s Blessing Illustrated, and Golden Campout Illustrated. The Secret Room is the fourth book in the series.
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GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
GRAND PRIZE: Signed copies of all four Amber-Autumn series books + $10 Starbucks Gift Card
TWO RUNNERS-UP: Signed copy of The Secret Room
November 27-December 6, 2017
(U.S. Only)
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The Secret Room
By John Alexander
November 27-December 6, 2017
(updated 11/18/17)
11/27/17
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Book Trailer
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11/27/17
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Excerpt
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11/28/17
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Review
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11/29/17
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Author Interview
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11/29/17
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Guest Post
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11/30/17
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Review
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12/1/17
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Notable Quotable
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12/1/17
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Notable Quotable
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12/2/17
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Review
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12/3/17
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Review
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12/4/17
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Sneak Peek
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12/4/17
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Excerpt
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12/5/17
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Review
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12/5/17
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Author Interview
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12/6/17
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Review
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