What's the Name of That Book??? discussion
This topic is about
The Serpents of Arakesh
SOLVED: Children's/YA
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(SOLVED) Children's trilogy, five children who go on a quest to another world [s]
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Hmmm, the friends' names are different in this book. But, some of the elements are the same: Adam, orphan, competition, fantasy The Serpents of Arakesh
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Yes, that is it! Thank you so, so much, I can't wait to read it again!
I have been looking for the title and author of a children's series for a while now and am having very little success. I think I read the books around 2000 or so when I was living in Scotland. There were definitely several books in the series - it might have been a trilogy. I'm also fairly certain the author was male.
From what I can remember, the first book begins with a main character aged thirteen or so and named Adam. The entire series is written from Adam's point of view in first person. I think he was an orphan and he was very unhappy in the home he was living in. His caretakers are abusive, though I don't think the book goes into a lot of detail on this. His luck changed when he was selected for some sort of competition but has to go through a final round. I think ten children were selected in total but only five children are chosen from this. I think the character setting up and judging this competition was just named the Professor.
*SPOILER WARNINGS*
Adam is one of the five children selected. I think he encounters problems with one of the other contestants who is named Richard and is very arrogant, though Richard is not selected. The other four were two boys and two girls. I think one of the girls was called Genevieve and one of the boys Jamie. The children go to another world, though I can't remember if it was literally another world or another world in the gaming sense. The children successfully complete some sort of quest there and then return back to their own world. I'm afraid I can't remember anything at all about what the quest involved, which doesn't help much!
The next books in the series continue with them journeying to this world. In one of the books (the second I believe), Genevieve (who has always been self-conscious about her looks) takes a beauty potion and does become very attractive. This leads to Jamie falling in love with her, though I think it is implied he was attracted to her before this. I think in the second book the characters have to return to this world to bring back a potion that will save the Professor's young daughter, Annie. I think giant serpents guard the ingredients they need for this potion (one of the serpents guards the beauty potion which Genevieve steals, though the others encourage her not to).
In the end the Professor and Annie become very fond of Adam and I think eventually invite him to live with them? I also think in the final book that Adam is revealed to be from the other world and possibly the son of someone very high-ranking. He may even have a twin brother who stayed in that world, but I am less certain about that. I'm positive it had a happy ending, which Adam choosing to stay with the Professor and Annie on Earth though I think he was planning to visit the other world frequently.
Does this sound familiar to anyone? Thank you very, very much for any help you can provide!