Tag Archives: Mary Stanton

Sunchaser’s Quest by Mary Stanton

Overview
Sunchaser's Quest (Unicorns of Balinor): Stanton, Mary ...

Title: Sunchaser’s Quest
Author: Mary Stanton
Series: Unicorns of Balinor #2
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Fantasy, Unicorns
Dates read: 24th – 25th June 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Novel
Publisher: Scholastic
Year: 1999
5th sentence, 74th page: She got on her knees and softly stroked the collie’s ears.

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Synopsis

A DANGEROUS JOURNEY

Princess Arianna has returned to Balinor – a peaceful, magical world watched over by a herd of beautiful unicorns. But a dark presence has invaded the land. And Arianna has no memory of her past or how to tend to her wounded unicorn, Sunchaser.

The unicorn’s horn was broken in battle and he is very weak. The journey to get Suncahser’s horn restored will be long and very dangerous. But it is Sunchaser’s only hope. And – as Arianna and Sunchaser soon learn – the only hope for all of Balinor.

Thoughts

This is one of those very fun, quick and easy reads. One that you can sit down and spend half hour, hour on and enjoy it. Without having to think too deeply about what you are reading and just genuinely enjoy the journey. It’s a nice journey and one that I found was a pleasant way to spend the afternoon, between reading textbooks and trying to cram other information into my poor brain.

I like that the first story in this series starts with a bit of a mystery as to Ari’s past and what happened in her “accident”. In this novel, they begin to remember their horrible past and find ways to move onto the future. There are so many instances where things are nicely revealed, and you can begin to build upon the history of the story. And can’t wait to find out what’s going to happen next.

Probably one of the things that I really like about this novel is that it is got a world that is full of unicorns. And they’re integral to the connection between man and animal. It is such a sweet, innocent world. Something that is great in a children’s fantasy novel. The innocence that you associate with unicorns just flows off of the pages.

This is such a nice, pleasant read and I seriously wish that I was able to read it as a child. Its definitely one of those very childish, easy reading stories. But it was also cute and ridiculously innocent. Which is what all good young children books should be.

<- The Road to BalinorValley of Fear ->

Image source: Amazon

The Road to Balinor by Mary Stanton

Overview
The Road to Balinor

Title: The Road to Balinor
Author: Mary Stanton
Series: Unicorns of Balinor #1
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Fantasy
Pace: Medium
Format: Novel
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Year: 1988
5th sentence, 74th page: “I should…”

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Synopsis

CROSS OVER INTO BALINOR

In the crevices of a glacier mountain ridge there is a secret place – a place that connects our world to the world of Balinor. It is a peaceful, magical world watched over by a herd of beautiful unicorns. But darkness has fallen over Balinor.

The royal princess and her majestic unicorn, Sunchaser, are sent from Balinor to our world to find safety. But they can’t stay for long. Danger has followed them.

Princess Arianna and her unicorn are the only ones who can truly save the kingdom.

It is time for the princess to find her way back to Balinor.

Thoughts

I remember reading this when I was younger. I remember loving it. And, although as an adult I’m not quite as in love with this story, it’s still good. I can see why younger me enjoyed this so much. Older me is a little bit eh about the writing style and language. But, it all still works.

I read this story in an hour. It is the typical young girl story of a girl suprememly attached to a horse… or at least, typical for the 90’s when I was reading this for the first time. The girl is a secret princess and she is going to save the world with her unicorn companion. It doesn’t take a genius to work out how this series will end.

BUT it is something that I would quite happily hand to my young daughters (if I ever have any) and watch them enjoy. It’s not overly “girly”, and it shows that girls have their own strength and independence. It also shows the importance of our relationship to animals and the horrors of being a spoilt brat (the Carmichael kid is a perfect illustration of this). All in all, this is a sweet little story for a mindless half hour read. I’ll probably pick up the next one in the series next time I don’t feel 100%, but still want to read something.

<- More Mary StantonSunchaser’s Quest ->

Image source: Goodreads