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Ryann Watters And The Shield Of Faith Vol 2: Book Two in the Annals of Aeliana Series
Ryann, Liddy, and Terell each encounter a mysterious, glowing blue light while on summer vacation, drawing them back to Mount Dora, Florida. Is it a sign for their return to Aeliana? What about the ancient book on dragons Liddy discovers in her attic? And how will they recover the shield of faith, as requested by the archangel Gabriel? Return to Aeliana as supernatural battle lines are drawn as the white unicorn assembles “the Chosen” to battle Narcissus and the Hugons, a race of half human-half dragon creatures.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published April 16, 2009
About the author
Eric Reinhold
4 books21 followersRaised in Miami, Florida and graduated from Westminster Christian High School in 1983. Recruited to play football for the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD and majored in Economics. Served 5 years as an officer in the Navy and then started a career as a financial planner. Attained MBA at University of Baltimore and Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Designation. Currently a financial advisor in Orlando, FL. "The One Thing - to Achieve Life-long Financial Success," is his first finance book. Ryann Watters and the King's Sword is the first in the Annals of Aeliana series. I currently reside in Orlando, FL, am married to my high school sweetheart, Kim, and we have 3 children.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 16, 2009
“I am not naïve enough to believe that circumstances will not change. There is a time coming when Narcissus will turn even the Aelianians against dragons, unless –“
“Unless what?” Liddy looked intently into Sorcha’s thoughtful light blue eyes.
The dragon’s eyes sparkled with an obvious tinge of excitement. “Unless the chosen one comes first.”
The above quote sums up Ryann Watters and the Shield of Faith quite nicely. That is what this book is all about. Faith. Hope. Surrender. Trust in the name and power of Jesus Christ. Forgetting the cares and worries of yourself and diving off the edge of the cliff. Standing at the side of one you know the world will hate your for. That’s the theme of this book.
It’s the end of summer and school begins in days. As vacations come to a close the trio of characters begins to feel Aeliana tugging at them. They want to go back, and strange occurrences bring them to believe that the Word desires their return as well.
By faith they enter back into the magical land, but not all is as it once was. Hundreds of years have passed, while only one has taken place on Earth, and all the creatures they knew have passed away. An evil unicorn has seized the throne of Myraddin through his twisted words and beliefs. Those loyal to the Word have been run out. They are hunted, scorned, and hated. The creatures of Aeliana have turned to themselves and made gods. They no longer worship the King.
But hope is not all lost. Words are spoken of one who will save the land in its time of greatest darkness. And the white unicorn, Carwyn, steps in to save his people.
Eric Reinhold has crafted a tale here that can shine the light of truth into darkness in an unthreatening way. Bible verses are spoken from characters’ mouths and stories are acted out with fantastical creativity. If there are other worlds, how would their savior walk on water? What would he come as? Would he be crucified? Discovering an answer to these questions was a thrill and at times stirred me to laugh out loud and at others caused my heart to skip a beat. The interesting thing is, though I thought I knew what was coming due to the following of Scripture throughout the book the unique and creative writing that Eric Reinhold has done was able to keep me on my toes guessing until the end. I was thrilled and surprised.
What more could you ask of a story? There are strong young characters, loving adults, noble creatures, and wretched villains. Good triumphs over evil, mystery lasts far beyond the last page, epic battles, and holy truths. I ask again, what more could you want? The fantasy is as strong as C.S. Lewis, and at times it is found that Aeliana surpasses Narnia.
I absolutely loved this book. It’s fast passed, funny, and simply entertaining all around. It’s good clean fantasy in a world where such ideas are scorned. Ryann Watters and the Shield of Faith was a great read, and I’d recommend it specifically for pre-teens as well as young teens. And if you know an adult that wants to get in touch with their youth, hand them a copy of The Shield of Faith, see what it does. May we all hold fast to our confession of hope with the faith of a child. May we put it all on the line for what we know is true.
For if we do, we will have found the shield of faith.
“Unless what?” Liddy looked intently into Sorcha’s thoughtful light blue eyes.
The dragon’s eyes sparkled with an obvious tinge of excitement. “Unless the chosen one comes first.”
The above quote sums up Ryann Watters and the Shield of Faith quite nicely. That is what this book is all about. Faith. Hope. Surrender. Trust in the name and power of Jesus Christ. Forgetting the cares and worries of yourself and diving off the edge of the cliff. Standing at the side of one you know the world will hate your for. That’s the theme of this book.
It’s the end of summer and school begins in days. As vacations come to a close the trio of characters begins to feel Aeliana tugging at them. They want to go back, and strange occurrences bring them to believe that the Word desires their return as well.
By faith they enter back into the magical land, but not all is as it once was. Hundreds of years have passed, while only one has taken place on Earth, and all the creatures they knew have passed away. An evil unicorn has seized the throne of Myraddin through his twisted words and beliefs. Those loyal to the Word have been run out. They are hunted, scorned, and hated. The creatures of Aeliana have turned to themselves and made gods. They no longer worship the King.
But hope is not all lost. Words are spoken of one who will save the land in its time of greatest darkness. And the white unicorn, Carwyn, steps in to save his people.
Eric Reinhold has crafted a tale here that can shine the light of truth into darkness in an unthreatening way. Bible verses are spoken from characters’ mouths and stories are acted out with fantastical creativity. If there are other worlds, how would their savior walk on water? What would he come as? Would he be crucified? Discovering an answer to these questions was a thrill and at times stirred me to laugh out loud and at others caused my heart to skip a beat. The interesting thing is, though I thought I knew what was coming due to the following of Scripture throughout the book the unique and creative writing that Eric Reinhold has done was able to keep me on my toes guessing until the end. I was thrilled and surprised.
What more could you ask of a story? There are strong young characters, loving adults, noble creatures, and wretched villains. Good triumphs over evil, mystery lasts far beyond the last page, epic battles, and holy truths. I ask again, what more could you want? The fantasy is as strong as C.S. Lewis, and at times it is found that Aeliana surpasses Narnia.
I absolutely loved this book. It’s fast passed, funny, and simply entertaining all around. It’s good clean fantasy in a world where such ideas are scorned. Ryann Watters and the Shield of Faith was a great read, and I’d recommend it specifically for pre-teens as well as young teens. And if you know an adult that wants to get in touch with their youth, hand them a copy of The Shield of Faith, see what it does. May we all hold fast to our confession of hope with the faith of a child. May we put it all on the line for what we know is true.
For if we do, we will have found the shield of faith.
July 29, 2009
Ryann Watters is definitely back, one year older, and with far more action to his second book than the last. With 157 more pages to its name, just from comparing the size of the two books shows that the second has lots to tell. The world of Aeliana is further explored in this sequel, far more than it was in the first. Countless talking creatures fill Aeliana, along with new races such as unicorns, fauns, and elves. The Author added more “battle scenes” in this one than the last and even the description of blood. Bible versus are still wonderfully added into the book as a moral compass to the trio, guiding them in the Ways of the Lord. More stories of Jesus are shown through Carwyn, the white unicorn, in this title, where Christ wasn’t mentioned in the last book. The miracles of healing and some of the awesome parables Jesus told are expressed through Carwyn, who is the prophesied savior of Aeliana.
I have some cons to this one, so here I go. This is to the Writer, but also for wary readers.
The unicorn Carwyn is similar to Jesus Christ in our world, by his actions and the words he speaks, why doesn’t Ryann and his friends recognize the similarities? For a child who went to church and reads his Bible, Ryann should at least be wary of the comparison through the adventure. I think, many of the reasons why the Writer didn’t have the characters think too hard during these events was because he was trying his best to conceal his plotline and secrets, but to most of us its drudging on what’s already expected.
Chapter 21: The Dark Lament: this chapter’s dialogue needed to be revised. The unicorn villain here sounds so ridiculous all I could do was laugh. I understand he needed to sound possessed, but maybe not exactly like that. For a villain his intended emotions felt tacky and laughable, he definitely needed a change, especially the “good” part.
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Other than that, the book is still wonderfully enjoyable! If you liked the first, in which I recommend you read the first, this book is just for you. Look ahead, O fans, for the third book coming out soon!
~Reviewed by Fawn Carter 8/4/09.
I have some cons to this one, so here I go. This is to the Writer, but also for wary readers.
The unicorn Carwyn is similar to Jesus Christ in our world, by his actions and the words he speaks, why doesn’t Ryann and his friends recognize the similarities? For a child who went to church and reads his Bible, Ryann should at least be wary of the comparison through the adventure. I think, many of the reasons why the Writer didn’t have the characters think too hard during these events was because he was trying his best to conceal his plotline and secrets, but to most of us its drudging on what’s already expected.
Chapter 21: The Dark Lament: this chapter’s dialogue needed to be revised. The unicorn villain here sounds so ridiculous all I could do was laugh. I understand he needed to sound possessed, but maybe not exactly like that. For a villain his intended emotions felt tacky and laughable, he definitely needed a change, especially the “good” part.
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Other than that, the book is still wonderfully enjoyable! If you liked the first, in which I recommend you read the first, this book is just for you. Look ahead, O fans, for the third book coming out soon!
~Reviewed by Fawn Carter 8/4/09.
August 30, 2009
Every once in awhile a really good series comes out that you can read aloud with the family or read to yourself and you just get swept away into another world. I have been fortunate in some of my reading lately to discover some gems that I otherwise might not have been able too... Mike Hamel's Matterhorn series, Robert Liparulo's Dreamhouse Kings series, Lisa Samson's Hollywood Nobody series... and now I've been fortunate enough to have discovered Eric Reinhold's Ryann Watters series.
In book #1, Ryann Watters and the King's Sword, we meet Ryann and his best friends Terell and Liddy. Ryann is visited by Gabriel who gives him a special staff, ring and horn and tells him that he will need to find the King's Sword. He is taken to a world called Aeliana where the animals talk and humans are few. It has a very Narnia-esque feel and is captivating. The beauty of this book to me is the way Eric shows spiritual warfare in such a way that it is easy for kids to understand. Searching the scriptures for answers, praying for wisdom, leaning not unto his own understanding... these are the ways Ryann finds answers on his quest against darkness.
Now in book #2, Ryann Watters and the Shield of Faith, Ryann, Terell and Liddy are back and sent on a second mission - for the Shield of Faith. It is back to Aeliana, but everything is not as it was. The passage of time, dragons, unicorns and evil. Ryann must renew his pursuit of the scriptures to find out what The Word says. Adventure reigns supreme in book #2 and I just love this series. It is a read aloud series for our family and is taking its place among the classics as far as I am concerned.
In book #1, Ryann Watters and the King's Sword, we meet Ryann and his best friends Terell and Liddy. Ryann is visited by Gabriel who gives him a special staff, ring and horn and tells him that he will need to find the King's Sword. He is taken to a world called Aeliana where the animals talk and humans are few. It has a very Narnia-esque feel and is captivating. The beauty of this book to me is the way Eric shows spiritual warfare in such a way that it is easy for kids to understand. Searching the scriptures for answers, praying for wisdom, leaning not unto his own understanding... these are the ways Ryann finds answers on his quest against darkness.
Now in book #2, Ryann Watters and the Shield of Faith, Ryann, Terell and Liddy are back and sent on a second mission - for the Shield of Faith. It is back to Aeliana, but everything is not as it was. The passage of time, dragons, unicorns and evil. Ryann must renew his pursuit of the scriptures to find out what The Word says. Adventure reigns supreme in book #2 and I just love this series. It is a read aloud series for our family and is taking its place among the classics as far as I am concerned.
July 17, 2011
The second volume in the Annals of Aeliana series deviated in some ways from the first. Firstly, the characters certainly act older, although their past immaturity shines through every once in a while. And, while the first was focused more on the search for the sword, and only hinted at the parallels between Earth and Aeliana, this one focused on Christ, as it were, coming to Aeliana. The search wasn't put forward as the main goal. Mr. Reinhold did a great job, though, portraying Christ as he would be seen in Aeliana. Still, that left most of the book to follow out a predicted (already told) storyline. Once it got there, there wasn't quite enough to keep the reader interested. Most would know what is going to happen. I would recommend this series mostly to non-believers or the newly saved.
April 1, 2011
The book was a pretty good anallogy of God. It is about a boy, Ryann, and his friends who go to a magical world, sent there by the angel Gabriel, and have to find the shield of faith. Throughout their journey, they learn life lessons and changed. Good adventure story, clean and decint.
July 18, 2012
Just as good as the first, if not better. Parallels the Gospel in "another world." Scripture throughout. Had to laugh, as this includes the main characters getting cell phones and learning texting "language."
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews