Magic Harbor: Dimension 8, Book Two (Keeper of the Watch 2) - Book Review

In the fictional world of science fantasy, Magic Harbor, Dimension 8 by Kristen L. Jackson grabs the reader from its preface and keeps the excitement going to the very end of the novel.  It’s installment 2 in the Keeper of the Watch Series but is also an excellent stand-alone novel. Chase and Alyx, eighteen-year-olds from different backgrounds join forces as keepers of the watch. Told by their alternate voices in short, concise chapters, they relate their adventures in another universe, a world where the lines between reality are blurred with fantasy.

The teens, called keepers of the watches, have been assigned by their ancestors the task of finding and destroying two hunters who seek to possess the watches. Both of the teens have special powers enhanced by the magical watches their ancestors entrusted to them. These watches enable the wearer to time-travel to parallel worlds according to specific rules. The back story of the watches from Book One is skillfully woven into the plot. Chase and Alyx time jump into Dune Harbor, a seaside village that was Chase’s original home. The town he remembered has radically changed. No one knows Chase, but he recognizes friends and neighbors who don’t know him, and quickly realizes that something drastic has changed. Two hunters are trying to identify the watchkeepers and destroy them and their watches. The hunters will stop at nothing.

Dune Harbor has become the source of all magical energy. Witches and warlocks, called magicals, are ruled by the Sovereign Warlock, whose goal is to rule the world through the watches. Townies, non-magical persons, prefer ignorance to the truth and appear as an "other-self," a different version or carbon copy of the same person.

The fast-paced action pits Chase and Alyx against the warlock and others whose allegiance to white or black magic is uncertain. Confronted by fierce wolf-like monsters and hybrid chimera, tension builds through their adventures enhanced by magic. The author’s ability to write striking images is evident in her descriptions: shadows of a thing with lips pulled back, dagger-like teeth, “saliva hanging from its jowls like shoestrings.” A chimera, “part fox, eagle, lion, and what else,” soars overhead. There are horror movie quality scenes throughout the plot. The tension and terror of fighting monsters are offset by the inclusion of a tiny puppy-like critter and a hint of romance between Chase and Alyx.

The conclusion includes a moral that a tiny piece of humanity is in all unique people, even the evil ones. When a person reaches his lowest point, hits bottom, when all seems hopeless, at a breaking point, that’s when he sees things most clearly.  Jackson renders her immersive world-building tale in clear, powerful, engaging prose. It’s a triumphant story about the importance of self-determination.

This young adult book will interest all readers, not just those attracted to science fiction and fantasy. The adventures of Chase and Alyx will be continued in forthcoming Book 3.