Kirsten Marion

Author/CEO and Founder of Common Deer Press

The story is reminiscent of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, The Pullman series, The Neverending Story, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, and all those stories that connect the real world with the imaginary.

Unexpectedly trapped in a fantasy kingdom, best friends Lucy and Dee embark on a quest.
Adventurous Lucy dreams of being a world traveler, while cautious Dee wants to be a scientist. Since the disappearance of his archaeologist parents, Dee conducts alchemical experiments, hoping to produce gold to fund a search. Lured by a flaming red bird into a tunnel with a road of silk, they encounter the Lord of Rock. He bargains with them to go on a mission to befriend the kingdom of Sericea’s young emperor, a lonely boy facing danger and needing companions his age. In return, the stone lord promises information that could help Dee locate his parents. Traveling on fantastical horselike creatures to the Celestial City, Lucy and Dee discover that young Emperor Yidi is a petulant, self-absorbed boy controlled by Xixi, his sorceress stepmother. Xixi is determined to retain power by eliminating Yidi. With the entitled ruler in tow, Lucy and Dee must find a way home with a mysterious feather and a dragon-whisperer (who looks suspiciously like a hedgehog) as their only defense against capture . . . or worse.