Troll Hunters Hardcover – August 1, 2012

I started thinking I will just read another isekai story. But in the end, I enjoyed the trip. The illustrations are incredible,

My 10 year old son is not an avid reader. He came across the first book in this series and that weekend he didn't put the book down. So I bought him this book, (the whole series). I have never seen him so excited to hold a book.

I'm not quite sure what I expected when I first opened this book, but I surely didn't expect a book this good.First, the basic story. On a quiet evening, rural teens Pablo and Zak, siblings Bryce and Thora, and young Louise, are waiting for and then watching a meteor shower. There are odd noises, awful smells, then shrieks, then sounds of destruction. Monstrous trolls have emerged from underground, and are intent on retaking the world of man.Now, here's the thing. The paragraph above could be the summary of a great book or a terrible book. Those characters could be lame and sketchy. The trolls could be jokey and derivative. The plot could be transparent, the heroic solution weak and obvious and the writing overheated, phony or pedestrian. But guess what? Each teen hero character is nicely created, established, described and developed. The trolls have the ancient fearful presence of Lovecraftian monsters. The plot is clever, twisty, imaginative and in places inspired. The writing is restrained, (except when action or horror require some excess), and sometimes almost lyrically apt. The story tears along at a feverish pace. As a bonus, even secondary characters have some presence, and there is always a new development, a new character, or a new plot twist around the next corner.I particularly liked the fact that each character had some featured moments, that a solid supportive dynamic among the young would-be heroes was established early on, and that predictable extraneous teen angst type themes were avoided. Heck, even the illustrations are edgier and more interesting than usual.Every time it felt like the plot was going to settle into a predictable pattern, (like a zombie novel clone), something new arose to shake up the reader's expectations and amp up interest. I've read lots of reviews that describe a book as unputdownable. I've always been able to put a book down, but I kept going back to this one because I was curious about what would happen next and I was honestly enjoying it as it raced along.This book suggests but does not really portray bloody violence. It feels like there has been a lot of bodily mayhem, but there actually isn't much explicit or graphic content. In that sense, again, it's very Lovecraftian. That said, there is a palpable sense of hooror, threat and dread, and so this makes me hesitate about recommending the book for younger or more sensitive readers. At the middle grade level and maybe even early YA I would expect this book to be well received by readers who like a more literary, more engaging and less graphic horror experience.So, really a very pleasant and satisfying discovery. Please note that I received a free advance reading electronic copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a frank review.

We are all told as children to reach for the stars. But, what if your destiny is infused with the actual star constellations? Pablo, Thora, Zak and Louise discover their destiny and their superhero powers when tragedy strikes their small community of Zion Falls. It starts with missing bunnies, a bad car wreck and even worse, missing family members. The countryside has been invaded by Trolls. On this frightful night a spectacular meteor shower and an ancient prediction has come to life. The Trolls have arrived to take over the earth and enslave humans. The only thing that can stop them is the light of the sun.Dr. Hoo and Mara are Cryptozoologists who have been monitoring this day of doom. They know who can save the planet and find it tricky to convince the foursome of their powers. But when the kids encounter the Trolls first hand it doesn't take long to make them believers. Together with the help of the experts and their books, the team gather strength from their powers and the bond of friendship they share to battle the Trolls and rescue their families.Dahl has created another amazing fantasy realm that is imaginative. His use of descriptive words bring this realm to life. A frightful and exciting read that anyone would love. This page turner will take no time to read and kids will relate to the characters and root for them all the way. This story shares family, friendship and what we might expect from the unknown, bringing reality to possibility.

Set in the outskirts of a small community, a group of teens, Pablo, Zak, Thora, and Bryce, head out to the quarry to watch the Draconid meteor shower, but something strange occurs as if something came out from the depths of the quarry's water. Giant troll creatures are unleashed.The kids take refuge at Dr. Hoo's mansion that was hidden in the woods. He is one of the few people that have known that the trolls, whom are afraid of light, were going to take over the world. The bad trolls call themselves the Gathool, whereas the good trolls go by the name Drakhool.They end up rescuing a young girl named Louise who's searching for her father who went missing in the woods. To stop the evil trolls from taking over, the kids must travel beneath the ground into the troll's lair. They encounter strange creatures on their quest, but in the end they must make sacrifices to defeat the Trolls.After reading Hocus Pocus Hotel last month, I eagerly signed up to review Troll Hunters, which is by the same author, from Netgalley. I have to say that Troll Hunters is on an epic scale and the author did a marvelous job creating the troll mythology. Fans of the Harry Potter series will enjoy reading this fantasy tale. I can easily see this book becoming a blockbuster feature film with dazzling special effects. Troll Hunters is a fast-paced, action-packed read that I recommend to everyone.

It was a good book but the ending of it was a cliffhanger. I thought there would be sequels to it. The trolls in the story were cool though.