YA Fantasy into a Medieval World

Elai Nelson and the Prophecy of the Child is book one of the Fire on the Clouds Trilogy. The novel begins when Elai’s home is broken into by two goons who kill his adoptive parents and attempt to kidnap him. But with the help of his talking toothbrush (you read that right) the sixteen-year old manages to escape. The toothbrush leads Elai to a storm drain where there’s a portal to another world.

Elai knows nothing about his real parents, for the Nelsons found him a decade ago aimlessly wandering the streets, and Elai could only remember his name. With one of the goons electrocuted back in his house and the second hot on his tail, Elai is forced to enter a portal that won’t reopen for another ten years.

Thus begins Elai Nelson and the Prophecy of the Child by Michael Ban. Once on the other side of the portal and away from Earth, Elai’s toothbrush turns into a magnificent long sword. Together boy and sword try to survive in this strange medieval world where they meet a litany of characters including elves, dwarves, a beautiful princess, and an emperor. Their adopted new world is under attack by a species known as Zul’im who destroy anything and anyone in their path. Elai is in the center of the conflict because he maybe the child in the prophecy that will save this fantasy world.

Michael Ban uses teenager Elai to tell his story in the first person, however, there are a few battle scenes, far from Elai’s view, described where it would have been impossible for the boy to have seen. The characters are developed nicely, the scenery described adequately, and the story flows quickly through a well-organized plot.

However, as in most trilogies, many plot threads were left unresolved leaving an unsatisfied reader needing to purchase book two, Elai Nelson and the Storm on the Sand.

About the Author

Until recently, Michael Ban worked in the legal profession, and before that, managed a movie theatre. As a child Ban drew comics and wrote articles for his school newsletter. Fighting the fear of the unknown, he took a leap of faith and became a full time writer creating the Fire on the Clouds trilogy.

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