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Braden Bell

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The Kindling (Middle School Magic Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Braden Bell (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.4 61 ratings

Book 1 of 3: Middle School Magic

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All thirteen-year-old Connor Dell wants to do is pass pre-algebra, play lacrosse, and possibly kiss Melanie Stephens, but when a run-in with the school bully ignites strange powers inside him, Connor's normal teenage life goes up in flames. Now he'll need his new powers to defeat the Darkness that's coming for him. Fast-paced and original, this book's guaranteed to keep you guessing!

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Thirteen-year-old Conner is a normal kid who loves lacrosse and dislikes prealgebra. One “dark and stormy night,” Conner, his twin, Lexa, and her friend Melanie (who Conner wants as a girlfriend) are studying at home. As Melanie opens the front door to wait for her mother, the three children see a man dressed in black in the street. All the lights go out and dogs begin barking—and then go suddenly silent. They see the same man near their school, but it’s not until after-school detention that they learn they’ve been chosen as future magi and that until their “kindling” (training) is complete, they’ll be the targets of a Dark force. Soon the teens become forces of Light and join the ongoing fight between Light and Darkness. In this fast-paced adventure, Bell keeps his well-developed characters grounded in the real world while still allowing them to have otherworldly experiences. Generous dialogue, just enough magic, and expressive use of both humor and fear combine to make this a potential favorite for the right kind of fantasy fan. Grades 6-9. --J. B. Petty

Review

I adore Braden's storytelling style! Smart, funny, and inventive, The Kindling will draw in even the most reluctant of young readers with inspiring characters and a story packed full of action and intrigue. Loved this one! --Rachel Renee Anderson, author of Minor Adjustments

The Kindling is an exciting blend of imaginative magic and intrigue. I found the different powers the children possess and how they are applied fascinating and that the characters had broad appeal. The story clips along at a lightning pace and the conclusion left me hoping for the next installment. --Michael Young, author of The Canticle Kingdom and The Last Archangel

The battle between light and dark, good and evil, has never been told like Braden Bell tells it, for his narrative sparkles with inventive images. The mental picture of dark forces running amok in Disney's Small World ride is priceless, and that's only one of the exciting situations that Conner, Lexa, and Melanie find themselves in after kindling. --Liz Adair, author of Cold River and The Mist of Quarry Harbor

The battle between light and dark, good and evil, has never been told like Braden Bell tells it, for his narrative sparkles with inventive images. The mental picture of dark forces running amok in Disney's Small World ride is priceless, and that's only one of the exciting situations that Conner, Lexa, and Melanie find themselves in after kindling. --Liz Adair, author of Cold River and The Mist of Quarry Harbor

The Kindling is an exciting blend of imaginative magic and intrigue. I found the different powers the children possess and how they are applied fascinating and that the characters had broad appeal. The story clips along at a lightning pace and the conclusion left me hoping for the next installment. --Michael Young, author of The Canticle Kingdom and The Last Archangel

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B008K9CVGE
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Cedar Fort, Inc (July 10, 2012)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 10, 2012
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1227 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 304 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #1,917,151 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #4,521 in Children's Sword & Sorcery Fantasy Books
- #5,359 in Children's Fantasy & Magic Adventure
- #35,751 in Children's Fantasy & Magic Books

Customer Reviews:
4.4 61 ratings

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Braden Bell

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Braden Bell (who writes Young Adult novels under the name Brandon Gray) holds a Ph.D. in educational theatre from New York University. He and his family live on a quiet, wooded lot in Tennessee, where he teaches middle school theatre and music. An experienced performer, Braden enjoys reading, gardening, and long summer afternoons writing in his hammock. To read about his YA novels, check out: amazon.com/author/brandongray

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4.4 out of 5

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Heidi Grange

A fantastic journey through light and dark.

Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2012

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Wow! I just finished this book and what a ride! I am very excited to share this book with my students in a couple of months, I think they'll love it. With plenty of action, interesting and diverse characters and great settings (the Sanctuary sounds like a place I'd love to visit when I'm stressed out), this book is sure to win lots of fans. The book is really, really intense at times, but nothing inappropriate for a middle grade audience, although I think plenty of young adults as well as adults will enjoy it as well.

The story centers on three seventh graders, Connor, his twin sister Lexa, and Lexa's best friend (and Connor's crush) Melanie. When strange things start happening, the three students are confused. They become even more confused and scared when it appears that the teachers are out to get them. A strange black stalker, teachers who seem to appear out of nowhere, and thoughts that seem to cause things to happen lead Connor, Lexa, and Melanie into an adventure of a lifetime as they learn to use the power of the Light. The fight between Light and Dark contines as it has for millenia and Connor, Lexa, and Melanie find themselves fighting for their lives.

Characters: Connor, Lexa, and Melanie are great characters, each true to his/her nature. Melanie hates lying but loves pre-algebra. Lexa has a powerful intuition and isn't afraid to say what she thinks. Connor exercises his strong spirit against bullies and tries to do the right thing regardless of the consequences. I also found the teachers to be a wonderful addition to the story. In too many stories, teachers are the enemies, but here we see teachers as human beings with strengths and weaknesses, reminds me of Harry Potter in that regard.

Setting: Most of the story takes place at Connor, Lexa's and Melanie's school, but I think my favorite scenes occurred while the kids were in a car, on the "It's a Small World" ride at Disney World (what a fight!), and in the Sanctuary. I did wish we got to spend more time at the Sanctuary, it would have been a nice breather as this book picks up pace quickly and doesn't slow down until the very end.

Plot: All I can say is wow. What a great story with twists and turns, hints and clues, but most of all, sheer courage. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a hard-to-put down, stay up till midnight kind of read.

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vals_hemi

A great family story

Reviewed in the United States on July 31, 2013

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Wow, I was so surprised on how action packed this story was, yet not containing the things you don't want your kids to read about, nothing inappropriate.

This is truly a family story.. and deal with real family issues that come about.

This is a wonderful contemporary fantasy story for tween and young teen readers (and as an adult I enjoyed it, as well). Mr. Bell has done a great job creating a unique magic system, realistic and comprehensive middle school characters, and a very fun, action-packed story.

There are plenty of summaries out there already, so I'll skip that part and just tell you what I really enjoyed: This book was solidly about good parenting so kudos to that! So much adventure in this story and I think most young teens would completely eat this up. So glad I found this and had a chance to read. Awesome job Mr. Bell for keeping it more or less real..and enjoyable.

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My Book A Day

Amazing Story

Reviewed in the United States on July 4, 2012

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Thirteen-year-olds, Conner and Lexa Dell and their friend Melanie Stephens thought that they were normal teenagers, then strange things started happening. Things like middle school bullies pants starting on fire in the middle of gym class and the lights flickering on and off when they are upset or excited. These things seemed a little strange, but then Conner, Lexa and Melanie started noticing other things. There was a huge storm one night and Lexa and Melanie saw a strange man dressed in black, but no one else seemed to and that man in black seemed to have killed all the dogs in the neighborhood...at exactly the same time. Then there are their teachers at school, one of them is always around, even for things like trips to the office for a band-aid or to the bathroom. Weird! Then one day, everything seems to go wrong, each of the three friends earn 7 demerits in one day and all receive detention, which makes their parents furious. None of the three want to attend detention, so they decide to make a run for it and ditch detention...really bad plan. As they are trying to ditch detention in two different places, the kids are attacked by more people dressed in black, luckily they are being pursued by their teachers and the teachers are able to protect them. But they quickly learn that they have "Kindled" they are Magi, able to use light to fight darkness, but they're only kids. How can they be normal kids and also Magi?

This book was amazing. I loved the engaging plot. I wanted to find out just what was going to happen next and the plot kept me guessing too. I enjoyed the characters, they seemed real to me, and I cared about what happened to them. I love this book, I think that this book will be an amazing book for kids to read, I can't wait to read more of this series!

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Jessica Lynn

Excellent Must Read Book for All Middle Schoolers!!!

Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2014

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I just loved this book, and not just because Braden Bell is a friend. Braden Bell is a middle school teacher at a small private school in the Nashville, TN area so he is very familiar with what middle-schoolers are into. The chapters are not long and the characters are very interesting and the plot keeps the book moving right along so the children don't have time to get bored. I most identify with Dr. Timberi in the the book because of his love of music and children. I can envision myself in his place. Conner, Lexa and Melanie should be very easy for the middle school crowd to relate to. All in all this is a very good book that I am trying very hard to review without giving away any spoilers. If you have any children in middle school grades 5 - 8 you should really get this book and the follow up novels for them to read. I think they would enjoy them.

Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2012

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Magic adventure story. Aimed at pre-teens. A couple of chapter segues were not well connected. Is this a first bookfor the author? Glad to see a writer put one out there; it's a mark of courage!

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The Kindling (Middle School Magic Book 1) Kindle Edition

Editorial Reviews

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Braden Bell

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