Review of Maggie Turncoat

[Sam Ibeh]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Maggie Turncoat" by Ziah Miller.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Fourteen-year-old Maggie Galain is faced with the need to defend her father's image and free the rest of her family from the shackles of a needy and dictatorial queen. Alongside friends and groups, she pursues her desire to save the kingdom from the queen. A particular coat from her father believed to be infused with magic proves vital to her mission.

The kingdom of High Desert is ruled by a queen who subjects the people to do her bidding no matter how gruesome or malicious it may be. Maggie's father falls into the queen's black book, and he is executed despite his position in the queen's courtyard. Maggie puts herself on the task of clearing her father's name. Maggie Turncoat takes the reader on an adventure filled with hope and love.

Ziah Miller writes this book in the present tense and uses simple English to smoothen his work. The words employed are not ambiguous in any way. The words are simple and straight to the point. This makes it very readable. The creativity employed in the entire work deserves applause. The names given to religions, planets, and places have creativity oozing out of them, like "Jewel's Disciples" for a particular religion and "Beseame" for a planet.

According to the author's profile, he is a game developer and loves to tell stories to his nephews and nieces, and they ask him to turn his stories into a book. Little wonder this fictional book is so children-friendly. I can't help but imagine a fourteen-year-old me doing all the adventures in this story. The book is devoid of heavy vulgar words or erotic scenes, making it suitable for young readers.

I have to address a minor issue on the cover page. The cover page starts with "Forgotten Bastions" in initial capital letters on top. Beneath it is "Maggie Turncoat" in initial capitals too with yellow ink and "and the Empire of Chains" in small dark letters. It is hard to tell where the title of the book starts. Is "Forgotten Bastions" included in the title, or are they just two words that depict something else? Having read the whole book, I doubt "Forgotten Bastions" is part of the title. This observation should be worked on, considering that this book targets young readers; it might confuse them.

Maggie Turncoat is a wonderful read. The issue with the cover page will not cause me to rate this book lower; that is to say that the book is flawless. The editing is okay, as there are only a few errors. Therefore, I give it four out of four stars. This book is perfect for young readers who love reading about adventures.

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Maggie Turncoat
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[Astral Magi]

This queen sounds abusive and terrifying! Thanks for a lovely review.

[kirthana_shivakumar]

First of all, I enjoy books with female villains. In some twisted way, it's actually quite empowering because it emphasises that women are powerful enough to be villains too. The world building seems extensive which I always enjoy. I'd like to give this a shot.

[GNerd]

I think the author should really deal with the title problem. I'd have the same difficulty if I was to pick this book. Nice work.