THE DRAGON AND THE STONE

A girl has many questions sparked by an inherited magical stone.

Twelve-year-old Lily McKinley lives with her mom, a hardworking nurse, and often takes responsibility for helping to care for her grandmother. Her life changes dramatically after she spots a dragon in the kitchen, eating chili out of the slow cooker. Soon after, Lily finds her recently deceased father’s precious stone, a pendant hanging from a silver chain, tucked away in her beloved copy of a book about King Arthur. She decides to wear it. More strange things begin to happen: Lily is cornered by school bully Adam and, without meaning to, summons Sir Lancelot, a knight in shining armor. The dragon, whose name is Cedric, reappears and whisks Lily off to the Realm, explaining that she is desperately needed. Through an unfortunate miscommunication, Adam is also transported into the Realm. Along their journey, they encounter wild terrain, ogres, and a regal unicorn along with many other creatures. While Lily despises Adam, she learns that they have a lot more in common than she knew, and the two eventually develop a friendship. Unexpected twists make Lily question what really happened to her dad and cause her to seek the truth about who he actually was. Main characters read as White; names indicate diversity in the supporting cast.

An appealing, imaginative adventure tale with classic fantasy elements.