The Talisman of Elam

(Children of Hathor: Book I)

by
Jim Mastro

New Paradigm Pub., September 2010, 317 pp.
ISBN: 978-0-9827673-2-0

Genre: Young Reader
Subgenres: Science Fiction / Adventure
Reviewed: 4/1/2011

Reviewed by: Conan Tigard

Book Cover

Excerpt

"They've got Londro!" Jason told Amelia, as he ducked back into the woods. "C'mon! We've got to get to the ship!"

"Who's got Londro?" Amelia asked, running to catch up. "What are you talking about?"

"I don't know who they are. Men with guns. Thothians, I guess. Whoever they are, they've captured Londro and they're beating him. It's like a gangster movie!"

"What about Shalan? Did you see her?"

"No."

They were almost to the clearing, but Amelia grabbed his arm to stop him. "Wait! What if she's in the burning house? We have to help her!"

Jason was about to reply when he heard movement in the darkness up ahead. Something big was rustling the bushes by the side of the trail. He and Amelia began to back up, ready to run.

"Jason!" a voice whispered hoarsely. "Come quickly!"

It was Shalan. They rushed forward and found her kneeling by the side of the path, clutching her side. "Help me up!" she said. "We must get to the ship!"

"What happened?" Jason asked. "Are you--?"

"Hurry! We must leave now!"

"But, what about Londro?" Jason asked. He and Amelia each took an arm and helped Shalan to her feet. She held a weapon in her right hand.

It was too dark to make out her expression, but her voice tightened. "We have to go," she repeated. "There's no more time."

They helped Shalan to the clearing, then Jason reached into his pocket with his free hand and pulled out the controller. A few moments later, the saucer stood once more above the ground. They struggled over to the open ramp. Then Amelia stopped.

"Help me in!" Shalan said. "Quickly!"

"I . . . I'm not going," Amelia said. "I'm staying here."

"Foolish child! Don't you understand? They'll kill you now! You must come with us!"

"But . . . but why would they want to hurt me?" Amelia said, shaken. "I'm not--"

Shalan grabbed Amelia's arm, and Jason's eyes widened. There was blood on Shalan's hand. It was red, just like a human's, and she was smearing it on Amelia's shirt.

"There is not time to argue!" Shalan hissed through gritted teeth. "Come with us, or die here! It's that simple!"

A sound caused them all to turn. Kevin rolled into the clearing on his bike, a bulging pack on his back. He dropped the bike next to the path and ran over to the ship.

"Jason! What happened, man? There were a bunch of people standing in front of your house, and the one across the street is on fire!"

"Did they see you?" Shalan asked sharply.

"Well, yeah, I guess--"

Sharan swore angrily in her own language and struggled up the ramp into the saucer. Kevin bounded up after her, but Amelia still held back.

"Come on!" Jason said. "Let's go!"

"I can't just leave my parents without a word!" she said. "They'll think I was kidnapped or something!"

"You heard what Shalan said! You can't stay here!"

"Jason? Jason, dear? Where are you?" It was his mother's voice, calling from somewhere in the trees. "You dad and I are worried about you."

Yeah, I'll bet you are.

Then everything seemed to happen at once. There was a flash of light and an explosion rocked the saucer. The ramp started to close. Jason grabbed Amelia and yanked her inside. The saucer shook again, knocking Jason and Amelia to the floor. The ramp slammed shut and Jason heard the low hum of the engine. He jumped up and ran to the control room in time to see Earth recede in the window, growing smaller with each passing moment.

Synopsis

Jason Hunter is twelve years old and has suspicions about his neighbors across the street. One night, he sees the male neighbor doing something to his bicycle, which he left laying on the lawn. When the man goes back across the street to his house, Jason sneaks outside and follows. He peeks in a window and sees the man and woman manipulating a hologram in the middle of the living room. Inside the hologram is a picture of Jason. Shocked, Jason flees back home.

The next morning, Jason argues with his parents about the neighbors. Lately, he has noticed that his parents have been behaving strangely, but doesn't give it a lot of thought. Jason heads outside to his bike and finds a small, metallic, black wafer on the lawn, puts it in his backpack, and heads off to Maplewood Middle School. Jason is new to the school, having recently moved from California, and has only made one friend so far, Kevin Hayashi. At lunch, they are joined by Amelia Reis, a friend of Kevin's, a girl that always carries around a camera. Jason tells her about his strange neighbors that are watching him and how they run into the woods every night.

After track practice, Jason goes over to Kevin's house, which is huge. Jason finds Kevin playing a flight simulator, space shooter video game on his giant television. Jason shows Kevin the black wafer and tells him that he is going to follow his neighbors into the woods that night. Kevin reluctantly agrees to accompany Jason.

That night, Jason and Kevin run into Amelia in the woods who brought her camera and had also decided to follow Jason's neighbors. The three kids find Jason's freaky neighbors in a clearing hunched over something. When the neighbors leave, the kids enter the clearing, where the ground has been swirled, like recently stirred cake batter. Jason pulled out the wafer, which now has a green light and presses it. A flying saucer emerges from under the swirled ground. The three go inside and Kevin accidently actives saucer. After taking it for a short spin, Kevin finds he no longer has control of the ship, and they end up returning to the clearing to find the strange neighbors waiting for them.

The neighbors introduce themselves as Londro and Sharan and tell the kids that they are not from this planet. They they show them pictures of Thothians that are disguised as Earthers. The Thothians have been secretly damaging the environment of Earth so they can be award custody of the planet by the Council. Londro explains that he and Sharan are from the planet Elam and that Thothians are their enemy. Because of the amount deal of Elam DNA in Jason's makeup, Londro and Sharan believe that Jason is the only one who can save his planet because he has a high probability of being the Heir of Elam. They also inform Jason that his real parents have been kidnapped by the Thothians and they were replaced with robots. They only have a few days to stop the Thothians at the Council meeting.

Later that night, the Thothians capture Londro and Sharan is injured while escaping. The three kids and Sharon take off in the saucer. Hidden somewhere in space is an ancient talisman that will prove that Jason is Heir of Elam. With the talisman he will be able to rescue his parents, put a stop to the plans of the Thothians, and save his planet. If he cannot find the talisman, or he isn't the true Heir of Elam, touching the talisman will be last thing he ever does and the Earth will be handed over to an alien race.

The Talisman of Elam is the first book in Children of Hathor trilogy written by Jim Mastro. The series is intended for readers ?? years and older.

Review

The Talisman of Elam is a fast-paced, adventure-filled, action-packed journey through the cosmos. The three main characters, Jason, Kevin, and Amelia, are highly personable and Young Readers will instantly bond with them. The fascinating storyline will keep a Young Reader absorbing pages late into the night wondering how Jason is going to get out of the mess that he finds himself in.

As I read this book, the writing style reminded me of all of the early Science Fiction books written by Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov. Those books written in the 1940's and 1950's were some of the best Science Fiction stories ever written . . . in my mind. There were tales about kids visiting strange planets, space rangers, adventures in space, and so much more. The authors didn't always get everything right, like the idea of an asbestos suit (that still makes me laugh), but a lot the concepts they wrote about back then are true today. The Talisman of Elam reminds me of those old-style, space adventure books that made Science Fiction and major genre sixty years ago.

As for the bad guys, the Thothians, my, aren't they a nasty piece of work? Here they are on Earth working to destroy our environment and thereby proving to the Council that humans cannot take care of their own planet. If they are awarded the planet, all humans will be wiped out. Jason knows that the fate of the planet and every human being rests upon his thin shoulders. I found this to be a lot of pressure for a boy of twelve years old and I liked the way Jason handled it. With the help of his two new friends, Kevin, who can fly a space ship because of all the video games he has played, and Amelia, who is documenting their adventure in space with her camera, he cannot lose, can he? Well, he could easily be destroyed by the Talisman of Elam if he isn't the Heir of Elam. After all, others have tried before . . . and none have returned. Plus, he is just a kid, and no child has ever been an Heir of Elam before, especially not one from a backwater planet like Earth.

You know, it is hard not compare this book a little to the Harry Potter series. The formula these days seems to include a boy with a talent and two sidekicks, both a male and a female. But that is where the comparison ends. This is not a Fantasy tale of magic, it is a Science Fiction romp though space. Are there some parallels, sure, but it doesn't really matter. This story works, plain and simple.

I found this story to be high interesting. As the kids in the saucer travel through wormholes from planet to planet looking for clues as to the location of the Talisman of Elam, I couldn't help but picture the wormholes on the television series Stargate SG-1. Cool, who doesn't want to travel through a wormhole to another part of the galaxy? I know I do. Jim Mastro has created a masterpiece of Science Fiction that Young Readers will thoroughly enjoy and should not be missed by any kids that loves a good adventure.

Overall, The Talisman of Elam is an excellent read that I had a hard time putting down. When I wasn't able to read the book during the day, I found myself thinking about it and wondering what was going to happen next. You know, that is what makes a fantastic book. If the reader is constantly thinking of the book while they are not reading it, the author has succeeded in their endeavor. So, if you are looking for a wonderful story, pick up a copy of this book today. I cannot wait to see what happens in the second book in this series, The Hand of Osirus.

I rated this book a 9 out of 10.