Goddess Fish Promotions Presents

The Dithereens
Zoom Barrier Reef
by Cal Devney

A randomly drawn winner will receive a $10 Amazon/BN GC – Enter Below

Solving this mystery could change everything…

From the deep ocean to a secret doughnut-shaped reef, Zoom and Stephen must confront their fears and find the clues they need.

This time Zoom and Stephen have their friends with them. But will it be enough when it comes time to face their greatest enemy?

4 out of 5

This was a fun adventure/mystery great for kids reading at a middle grade level. The characters are great, and they inhabit a complex, well-developed world. I appreciated the map included at the beginning, or I’d have had trouble keeping up with all the unique places the story takes you. My only complaint is I felt like I was missing key information right at the start of the story. You’re thrown right into everything, with no introduction to anyone, and referencing a plant unique to this particular universe. I found it a bit disorienting, but I think if you’d read the previous books in the series, you’d be fine. That said, once I got past my initial confusion, I was able to get into the story, and lose myself in the magical world Devney has created. The images sprinkled throughout the book are a nice addition, and help bring the story to life. This would be great to read together, or for kids to read independently.

‘I don’t know Zoom. I’ve also been thinking about some of the creatures that live in the deep dark ocean, and some of them aren’t very friendly,’ Stephen fretted. 

Before Zoom could respond, Tuxta, who had been listening in, answered while nodding enthusiastically, ‘Stephen, you are absolutely correct! There would be a lot of animals in the deep ocean that would want to swallow the pair of you whole.’ 

Stephen spluttered. ‘Just us? What about you, Tuxta?’

Tuxta confidently pulled out the stinging jellyfish tentacle and waved it in front of them. Zoom and Stephen jumped back, instinctively reacting to the paralysing tentacle. ‘I have my secret weapon.’ 

Zoom moved away from the tentacle. ‘Yes, we know about your weapon,’ he responded. ‘It is very effective at discouraging animals from coming near you.’

Stephen giggled, ‘Yeah, we weren’t at all scared of you at first because of your teeny tiny body, until you pulled out that tentacle.’

Tuxta huffed and said gruffly, ‘As I recall, you raced away like chickens. Puk Puk Pukaaak!’

Stephen frowned at the little jungah, his brow coming down over his eyes. Zoom cleared his throat. Wanting to change the subject, he said, ‘I just love how the sun rays come through the water like the sun has been broken into long rectangles.’ 

Without really looking where Zoom was pointing, Stephen responded huffily, ‘Yeah, neat.’ He cast Tuxta a cranky look. 

Zoom, Stephen and Tuxta swam silently for several minutes. Then Tuxta whispered, ‘Look out! There is something coming ahead of us that will be wanting to eat you two.’

Amazon | Amazon AU | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Director & Author Innovator

Cal Devney is an educator, innovator and children’s book author. She has worked in primary, secondary and tertiary education, specializing in science and digital technologies teaching. Cal’s stories are kooky, fun and creative, but mostly based on sound science principles… aside from the made up characters and the magic that is!

At Blue Sea Books, we are re-imaging reading in the 21st Century context by bringing emerging technologies into the children’s book publishing ecosystem. We are passionate about using innovation to engage, entertain and enliven young minds in new ways.

Website | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Goodreads

Follow the tour here
The more posts you comment on, the more entries you get!

a Rafflecopter giveaway