BLOG TOUR • The Sand Knows (The Sand Warrior: 5 Worlds #1) by Mark Siegel

The Five Worlds are on the brink of extinction unless five ancient and mysterious beacons are lit. When war erupts, three unlikely heroes will discover there’s more to themselves—and more to their worlds—than meets the eye. . . .

• The clumsiest student at the Sand Dancer Academy, Oona Lee is a fighter with a destiny bigger than she could ever imagine.
• A boy from the poorest slums, An Tzu has a surprising gift and a knack for getting out of sticky situations.
• Star athlete Jax Amboy is beloved by an entire galaxy, but what good is that when he has no real friends?

When these three kids are forced to team up on an epic quest, it will take not one, not two, but 5 WORLDS to contain all the magic and adventure![/note]

myreview

[note note_color=”#BFD1D1″ text_color=”#ffffff”]I received this book for free from Random House for review consideration. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.[/note]

When the Five Worlds are on the brink of extinction, what are three young kids—a clumsy sand dancer, a kid from the poorest slums, and an all-star athlete—gonna do? Well, just about anything to save their beloved homes.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE SAND WARRIOR

The Five Worlds are on the brink of extinction.

The ancient beacons has not been lit in centuries. The Five Worlds are no longer flourishing societies. They are experiencing overheating—a drought that has turned Oasis of Idyllia on Moon Yatta into a desert, dead creatures like Ptuhuli birds, water riots on Toki, and plant people dying. The problems cannot be ignored any longer. This overheating has to be solved, and the only way is to light the five beacons, but not everybody believes that’s the way to save the five worlds.

There’s an ancient dance that summons sand figures.

Students from the Sand Dancer Academy are taught how to summon sand figures, called aniforms. The Academy is essentially trying to figure out the Chosen one, aka the Sand Warrior, who is the person that can light the Beacon. The story and history behind it has me wanting to see more of this dance form in action.

Characters band together to save their beloved homes.

The Toki are destroying Mon Domani in their attempt to rid of “evil.” Lives are at stake; homes are being destroyed. Everybody–the Sand dancers–have been rounded up by the Toki. It’s up to three kids to save their homes: Oona Lee, a clumsy student at the Sand Dancer Academy who doesn’t have a good hold on her sand aniforms; An Tzu, a kid from the slums who is struggling with something that could erase him forever; and Jaz Amboy, an all-star Starball athlete who has no friends. I loved how these characters didn’t hesitate to save their homes.

Vibrant art illustrates the world, people, and culture beautifully.

This is art that everybody should experience. It’s so vibrant; readers will get a good sense of this world that the author and illustrators created. I imagine the colors are out of this world (the advanced copy I received was mainly in black and white, and had few sample pages in color).

Who should read The Sand Warrior? Everybody. Fans of Amulet! Lovers of fantasy + kids graphic novels. Say yes to The Sand Warrior.

Should you read The Sand Warrior? Yes. See what this trio are willing to do for their world, the history behind the 5 Worlds and the Sand Dancers, the discussions of class, and so much more!