Seven Wherewithal Way – Across the Ice and into the Jungle by Samatha-Ellen Bound

Title: Seven Wherewithal Way – Across the Ice and into the Jungle

Author: Samatha-Ellen Bound

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Affirm Press

Published: 25^th October 2022

Format: Paperback

Pages: 400

Price: $17.99

Synopsis: One year ago, Celeste Barden went on the adventure of a lifetime. Now, the next one is about to begin.

Rebellion is brewing in the Realms, and Ferd is on a mission to discover who is behind it all. So when Wherewithal receives word of an attack in the Realm of Jungle, Celeste finally has her chance for another adventure. But when they go to investigate, the portal plummets them not into a tropical jungle but a freezing lake. Somehow, they’ve ended up in the treacherous Realm of Ice.

Worse still, another hagstone is under threat. The group is determined to find the hagstone before the enemy can, and Celeste is determined to prove that her past heroics were more than a one-off. But when a souvenir from her last adventure threatens the rescue mission, Celeste is left wondering if this time, she might be the reason they fail.

Return to the Realms of Seven Wherewithal Way in this magical and action-packed second instalment in Samantha-Ellen Bound’s epic portal fantasy series.

~*~

Celeste and her younger sister Esme are thrust into another Wherewithal adventure with Ferd, who tells the sisters about an attack in the Realm of the Jungle linked to a rebellion that is brewing throughout the realms. Yet the portal doesn’t take them to a jungle, bit to a freezing lake in the dangerous Realm of Ice, filled with snow monsters and creatures from Scandinavian and Swedish mythology, and a few other European traditions, or at least that’s how it felt – the world of cold myths, where the yeti-type creatures want to stop Celeste, Ferd and Esme (and Gran, who seems to be along for the ride this time, at least part of the time) from helping stop the rebellion and attack on the jungles where Olmec lives.

Much like the first book, the second book draws on all sorts of mythology, history, and fairy tales, as well as older beliefs to create a world through the portal where everything might seem ridiculous (Esme, I’m looking at you) but makes perfect sense to the reader, Ferd, and Celeste. I was hooked from the beginning and think this is shaping up to be a very promising series because the touch of chaos is what makes it fun and engaging, and I think is what will keep kids reading, because a little bit of chaos is a good thing and eventually, all the threads will come together as they should in a good fantasy series with the promise of more to come. The dots are connected cleverly – puzzles and mysteries are important in this series, and I think they keep getting better and better, and I love the way these come together throughout the book and finally, at the end.

It’s a cool portal fantasy story, and as someone who reads a lot of portal stories – in fantasy and time slip, I am always interested in the unique ways the travel occurs, and how the author deals with it if it is similar to something else. Travelling through a house is pretty cool – I can imagine readers looking to see if their houses are portals much like kids who read Narnia tried to find a world at the back of their wardrobes. In this series, it makes sense that the house is always the portal – it is what connects the worlds and realms, so is the anchor in this instance, whereas in Narnia, once you had used one method – the wardrobe – the next time you were to go, there would be a portal in a different place. Wherewithal is a wondrous place – one of danger as well, but with trusty Ferd with them, Celeste, Esme, and newcomer, Logan, are sure to find their way through a grand yet very important adventure.

Celeste and Esme’s sibling relationship is on show again – with Esme still a touch annoying, yet she does come through when she needs to, and I think this development means she’s going to become important – even if she complains that Celeste is the one dragging her into whatever is going on in Wherewithal. Like any good novel, we have a lull, a rest before the final battle – always important so our heroes don’t tire themselves out too much. Pan and Me Myself are still there, keeping the strong fairy tale and literary characters present, which adds another fun layer to the books. It’s fun if you know these stories from Shakespeare and the various myths and traditional stories Samantha uses. I knew some so I was able to appreciate where they come from, but the other fun thing is being able to go away and look them up and see that they do exist somewhere other than this series. I love it when authors do that. This book is definitely for older readers, aged ten and over, and I can’t wait to get back into the fun with the characters. The adventure might have its dark moments, but with this series I feel like we always know things are going to work out and that eventually, Ferd, Celeste and Esme will save all the realms and the day. I loved this book -it’s one that I hope I can revisit soon as well, and hope to read the books back-to-back at some stage to fully appreciate all the layers within the book.

Another great Australian novel!