The Legend of Black Jack by A. R. Witham
Genre: YA Fantasy
Length: 495 Pages
Publishing: 20th May
“All songs fade in time, but for a thousand years, this one, the simplest one, remained:
Ol’ Black Jack, the man with the knack Stole the people their money back.
One quick flick of his walking stick He fed the poor and healed the sick.
Black devils fear his cunning spear He’ll cut them down and disappear.
So play us fair or just beware: There’s nothing ol’ Jack wouldn’t dare.
Those are the legends about him. If you want to know the truth, I will tell you”.
The blurb
Prepare to be whisked away to another realm in this epic fantasy adventure, perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman’s characters in Stardust or Patrick Rothfuss’s prose in The Name of the Wind.
Jack Swift remembers everything—even the horrible things he’d like to forget. To keep his guilt-ridden memories from haunting him, and to dodge his abusive foster mom, he buries himself in any book he can find, dreaming of his ultimate escape: becoming a doctor.
But fate has another escape in mind.
At 3:33 am on his fourteenth birthday, Jack is kidnapped by a monstrous rhinoceros and whisked away to another sphere of existence: the land of Keymark. Though this world is filled with pixies, monsters, pirates, elves, warriors, and mythical wonders, it is without healing magic—that magic was stolen by an evil, immortal prince hell-bent on domination. With no understanding of medical science to heal their wounds or illnesses, Jack’s kidnappers ask the impossible of him: use his knowledge to save a life…or be trapped in this bizarre world with no chance of rescue.
Jack doesn’t have secret magic, a great destiny, or any medical experience.
Why do they all expect him to become a legend?
My review
Wow – What. A. Ride! I used to love fantasy when I was younger, but not so much these days. Don’t get me wrong, I still love the idea of other worlds and unusual creatures, of dragons and elves, witches and demons – I just don’t reach for fantasy books. When I read the blurb for The Legend of Black Jack however, there was something compelling about it. I really wanted to hear Jack’s story. When I was accepted onto the blogtour it was a welcome surprise and I was NOT disappointed!
I don’t get on that well with ebooks so I bit the bullet and bought the audiobook, then did a combination of reading and listening. This worked really well for me, and the author narrated the audiobook with real passion. It was helpful for some of the pronunciation of names too.
The Legend of Black Jack is a fairly long book and there is A LOT of action, adventure and information packed in. Poor Jack must be utterly exhausted! There is a whole host of characters including my favourites – Memphis the Trol and Fuji the Tam. There are knights, daemons, dragons, pirates, a minotaur and more.
I love the way that the story happens on Earth and then on Falikos. It’s a book that deals with grief and loss, guilt, identity, responsibility and friendship. It’s a coming-of-age story and it’s clearly written with intelligence and sensitivity. Following his happy early years, Jack has a rough few years on earth. I love seeing the way that Jack’s character evolves over the story – he learns a lot about himself and his skills, about the new world he is thrust into, bit I believe the other characters learn from him too.
The book is an action-packed, gripping, thrilling, rollicking roller-coaster ride. The action pops in and out relentlessly and keeps you excited throughout. The ending is powerful. I really want to hear more from Jack and I would love a prequel too. The illustrations were great and I would have perhaps liked a few more.
It’s not a book I would normally have chosen, but I am so glad I got the chance to read it and, do you know what? When I get the time I’ll read it again, especially if I can get hold of a physical copy. (I think it’s easy to miss bits the first time round and I love re reading good books) I am also recommending it to my husband and children as well as anyone who will listen to me!
Many thanks to Dave from The Write Reads and the author for the gifted e-book and my spot on the blogtour. I highly recommend this if you like YA, fantasy, coming of age books or even if you don’t – you might surprise yourself!
🦏🦎🐊🐈⬛🧝♂️
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
About the Author
A. R. Witham is a three-time Emmy-winning writer-producer and a great lover of adventure. He is the world’s foremost expert on the history of Keymark. He loves to talk with young people and adults who remember what young people know. He has written for film and television, canoed to the Arctic Circle, hiked the Appalachian Trail and been inside his house while it burned down. He lives in Indianapolis.
If you would like a sneak peek at his upcoming work or upcoming events, please reach out to him:
Twitter: @ARWitham
Facebook: ARWitham
Website: http://www.arwitham.com
Purchase link:
Green Reads Books 
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