Silas Oaktree and the Fox's Challenge

Silas Oaktree Series, Book 1

By: Nicholas Ballard

Narrated by: Christopher James Mayer

Nature is out of balance. Two years after moving his family to an oak in a Tennessee suburb, Silas Oaktree is a robin still trying to settle in.

Here are some things he has to deal with:

• A human friend with relationship problems who puts out cheap bird seed
• An invalid wife to take care of with eggs about to hatch
• An older brother addicted to illicit forest mushrooms and berries
• The council of forest animals swaying under political pressure
• A cunning fox plotting revenge

What starts with Momma Bear's cubs going missing turns into a mystery likely to throw the whole forest into chaos. Animal carcasses turn up, wasted and uneaten.

When a scrawled message written in blood singles out Silas, he is plunged into a contest of wills with a psychopath that threatens to push him to the brink. He has to put everything on the line if he is going to stop a threat coming out of the darkest heart of the forest.

Silas battles to support his growing family, struggles between hate and love for his junkie brother, helps a human hospice worker with his inability to let go, and rushes to end a deadly game with a serial killer before others get hurt. Springtime has never before been such a trying season as Silas is pushed to the limits of who he is as a bird and what he's willing to become to save his new home.

Silas is just one bird in a big world, but with friends, some unlikely allies, and steely determination, he might just be enough as he fights for his nest and the animals he loves.

©2014 Nicholas Ballard (P)2015 Nicholas Ballard

Decent book

If your looking for a filler, that doesn't take too much thought. This could be for you. Not quite a children's book, but close. The narrator was excellent! Christopher did a great job, using a wide range of vocals, and including animal voices in a non cheesy manner. I'd love to listen to another book read by this narrator.