Tick lives with his brother, Leaf, and their grandfather in a remote cottage near the coast of Ellia. There is peace in this land but there is also always the threat of invasion by the Drene. As the story opens Tick sees some ships on the horizon. He knows the invasion is about to begin. He grabs his brother and races home only to find a stranger is robbing his house. Tick and Leaf's grandfather has died recently but Grandfather gave Tick lots of training and advice. Tick knows he need to flee with his brother to the King's Keep. It is a fortress in the mountains - a place of safety where everyone will be headed but it is a long journey and now he has no supplies - only his loyal (and fabulous) horse named Pebble and a small pocket knife.
"I won't always be here for you. when I'm gone, you'll have to look after each other. You'll take care of him, and he'll take care of you."
Tick does manage to rummage through the saddle bags of the hunter who has ransacked his Grandfather's cottage and yes he does find a few useful things such as a flint and some oats but he also finds some documents. Tick cannot read them because they are not in his language but he senses these are important. Now the race is on. The Hunter is chasing him and using his hawk to follow Tick's trail. The gateway to the Kings Keep will only stay open for a few days and winter is fast approaching.
This book has it all! It is a page turner. It has action and heroes. It has danger and disasters. It has a journey and edge of your seat desperate moments where survival seems impossible. And most of all it is about destiny. The writing here is so atmospheric - you will feel cold, you will feel hungry, you will feel the wounds of battle, and most of all you will want Tick to succeed. I enjoyed this book so much that I picked it up at 2am so that I could read the final chapters.
My text quotes are spoilers but I just cannot resist them:
"You are heir to the throne of Ellia. Suddenly there was a sound around him, of metal dropped on stone: all the knights of Ellia were kneeling before him."
"I can't do it. A child born with the mark of a king - that's not even me. That's Leaf ... he's the one with the mark!"
"Tell me what is the mark of a king? ... Lara spoke first, reciting words that she had learned by heart. 'A king must first have the mark of bravery. He must be bold and take risks, even in the face of certain defeat. ... A king must have the mark of modesty. He must always put his people first, even if it puts him in harm's way. ... But most important of all ... a king must show the mark of love. Love for his family, love for his people, love for his kingdom."
Ross Montgomery started writing stories as a teenager, when he should have been doing homework, and continued doing so at university. His debut novel, Alex, the Dog and the Unopenable Door, was shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book of the Year and Branford Boase Award. It was also selected as one of the Sunday Times' "Top 100 Modern Children's Classics". His books have also been nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Award, while his picture book Space Tortoise was nominated for the Kate Greenaway Award and included in the Guardian's Best New Children's Books of 2018. The Midnight Guardians, Ross's first fiction novel with Walker Books, was selected as a Waterstones Children's Book of the Month and shortlisted for the Costa Children's Book of the Year Award. I Am Rebel won the Waterstone’s Children’s Book of the Year in 2024. He lives in south-east London
The opening scenes in Small Wonder reminded me of these two books I read recently although these have a different time setting:
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