OWEN MINTER
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The Shrouded sword

The Shrouded Sword

Twelve-year old Ethan Moseby and his ten-year old sister, Jynx, are dreading spending Christmas break with Socrates Maupin, an estranged uncle who is as peculiar as his temperamental mansion.

Little do they know he’s actually the legendary wizard Merlin, living under an alias in present-day Deadmoor, Virginia.

There’s no internet access and not a single TV in the house. And what is causing the creepy occurrences within the old house? Ethan and Jynx are ready to leave.

But when Ethan hears a strange voice after discovering a maze on his uncle’s property, he knows he must stay to solve the voice’s cryptic message:

“Seek the light to reveal the shrouded treasure. For the sake of the trust.”

With the help of Jynx and a young local genius named Amos Sprunt, Ethan must crack riddles and ciphers to locate an enchanted painting leading to the shrouded treasure. A treasure hidden in the recesses of time. A treasure that—when reunited with three other concealed objects—could control the world’s fate with unstoppable magic.

But the kids aren’t alone on the hunt.

Along with their uncle, they battle blood-thirsty pirates of yore, and Morgause, a fairy witch with a riddle-loving goblin and a giant flame-spitting salamander on her side.

Can Ethan, Jynx and Amos, find the wit, strength, and bravery they need to reach the treasure—before it falls into the wrong hands?
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“Owen Minter brings great inventive energy to his richly detailed story. You’ll be surprised and delighted over and over again as you witness the forces of good and evil battle it out—heroes and goblins, wizards and demons—in both the present and the past. There is trickery, mystery, and humor throughout these pages. Get set for a rollicking ride!”
​
– Judy Goldman, author TOGETHER: A MEMOIR OF A MARRIAGE AND A MEDICAL MISHAP 

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"An adventuresome tween, his sister, a sidekick, riddles, a maze, pirates, time-travel----all of these add up to a book that will captivate the younger members of your quarantined family, and perhaps help the adults revive the tradition of the read-aloud. This is the first installment of a planned three-book series, and I’m looking forward to the next adventure already." [more]
Evince Magazine
Diane S. Adkins
Retired Director of the Pittsylvania County Library System.
“Get this book if you love middle grade adventure stories—creepy, magical houses, mazes, puzzles, time travel, an evil witch, humor, and friendship.”
Betsy Thorpe, Writer, Editor, Shaman, Rock Star

“The adventures not only include time travel and pirates,
but also portal hopping, a ‘forbidden room,’ multiple riddles,
and a cipher . . .”
​--- Kirkus Reviews

The Realm of Gramarye 

Characters

Dossier 1: Deadmoor, VA
  • Age 240
  • Town in Southwest Virginia
  • Famous theater and haunted hotel
  • Eccentric 
  • Creepy buildings
  • Near Gramarye House
Dossier 3. Ethan Moseby
  • Age 12
  • Loves video games
  • Sport: Sword fighting. Well, technically fencing
  • Brown hair, grey eyes
  • Best friend: Amos Sprunt
  • Full name: Ethan Edgar Moseby
  • Student at Brinkley Academy
  • Catch phrase: “That’s so choice.”
Dossier 5. Amos Sprunt​​
  • Age 12
  • Father is an undertaker
  • Sport: Absolutely none
  • Blond hair, blue eyes
  • Best friends: Ethan Moseby and any cookie
  • Full name: Amos Xavier Sprunt
  • Has to help librarians find books at Deadmoor Public Library
  • Catch phrase: “Amos Sprunt never just wings it.”
Dossier 2: Gramarye House
  • Age 240  
  • Mansion of Socrates Maupin
  • Needs paint
  • Looks haunted
  • Has a graveyard and overgrown maze
  • Mysterious happenings
Dossier 4. Jynx Moseby
    ​
  • Age 10
  • Loves fashion, baking
  • Sport: Bartitsu (Japanese wrestling)
  • Blond hair, brown eyes
  • Best friend: Badger, a black leopard
  • Full name: Jynelle Xyla Moseby
  • Hates her full name
  • Catch phrase: “I’m gonna give them a piece of my mind!”
Dossier 6. Socrates Maupin
  • Age unknown
  • Abstract artist 
  • One brown eye, one blue eye
  • Mysterious past
  • Ethan and Jynx’s uncle
  • Loves ravens
Gramarye
Dossier 7. Morgause
  • Age unknown
  • Fairy witch 
  • Pink eyes, black hair
  • Socrates Maupin’s nemesis
  • Locked in a castle
  • Loves black magic
​
Ethan Mosby
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Words


Riddles

​Riddle 1:
Breathing walls, crooked halls,
In shadow from the moon.
Phantom door and earthen floor,
My heart a dusty tomb,
For I protect ancient secrets here.
Like a dream, my branches green,
Conceal paths to treasures dear.
Made to stump, trick, and even stall,
Can you tell me what I am called?
​Riddle 2:
I fall slowly,
Then steal away.
I cradle the dead,
But get stronger, 
Just as I get broken.
Who am I?
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