Anni Moon & The Elemental Artifact: An Elemental Fantasy Adventure (The Anni Moon Series Book 1) by Melanie Abed is a whimsical adventure story that revolves around Anni Moon. Lexi, Anni's best friend, is kidnapped and that incident exposes Anni to a world of Funk, talking Bat-Rat creatures, Dragons and Elementals; things which she thought never existed in the world. Lexi is trapped in a floating island in the Elemental world. Anni's friendship and dedication to her friend make her want to rescue Lexi from the Elemental world. On her mission to save Lexi, she finds allies among the Elementals. Will Anni be able to save her friend?

The plot is entertaining and is filled with fantasy, adventure, strange creatures and all that children would love to read. Children will want to step into Anni's world as it is filled with dreams, innovative things and a lot of fun stuff. The Elemental world will pull readers in and the author does a great job by giving a detailed description of the place. Readers will fall in love with the characters and the portrayal of all the characters is effective. There are some funny moments in the book and the illustrations in the story give the characters a personality. Magic and mystery are two things that kids love to read about and this book gives them just that. Along with that, the story has fun, suspense, humor and adventure. The author's writing style is good and it is an excellent book to have in one's personal collection.

It had been three years since the mysterious disappearance of her guardian and, during that time, Anni had found comfort in knowing that she would always have her best friend, Lexi. Just like Anni, Lexi's guardian also disappeared and the girls only had each other now. Then one morning a talking bat-like rat delivered a message to Anni, followed by a series of strange events. So the girls set out on a quest to put together clues that they hoped might help them get some much needed answers. Along the way they were separated and Anni ended up on a plane, with no idea where her best friend was. One minute Anni is on a plane headed to New York and then, next minute, she is in a completely different place, a very strange place with very strange 'people'. After demanding answers, she is told that she is now on Zephyr; a floating island above London, occupied by Elementals. Anni cannot make sense of any of this, she does not know where she is or why and, more importantly, her best friend has been kidnapped and Annie is stuck on Zephyr. Unknown to both girls is the secret of their parentage and their place in the Elemental world.

Anni Moon & The Elemental Artifact by Melanie Abed takes you on a thrilling adventure through the world of the Elementals. I got to see an amazing story come to life with a plot that is so unique and yet very easily believable, and amazing characters that I connected with quite easily, and will remember for a very long time. The description of the world and life of the Elementals is really something very surreal, from how they are brought into the world to how their life is lived; it is all so magical and yet amazingly believable. The thrill of this story is taken to an even higher level with a flawless writing style and language that is both witty and very fitting for the plot. Anni Moon & The Elemental Artifact is a really incredible story and fans of the genre will have a dazzling reading experience with it.

Anni Moon and The Elemental Artifact, by Melanie Abed, offers middle grade readers an adventure, complete with engaging illustrations. When a strange flying creature greets Anni upon her awakening, Anni discovers her best friend and fellow orphan, Lexi, is missing. When she catches up with Lexi, a mystery begins to unfold. Anni and Lexi discover they are to be cast out from the school in which they've lived all their lives. Thus begin their adventures, complete with a "treasure hunt" for clues. Eventually, the two are separated, and Anni works with her new friends in a new dimension to find Lexi and save her. But what is Lexi, really? And what of the flying creature? And what is Anni to make of the circumstances surrounding her own birth when finally the details of them — or some portion of them — are revealed? All this comes together to create a moving adventure.

Melanie Abed utilizes a strong vocabulary, sure to challenge middle grade readers in a positive way, in the fantasy adventure of Anni Moon and the Elemental Artifact. With well-written prose, Abed creates a world complete with the rules of Elementals, a mystery world that exists somewhere above London, and interesting characters. I especially enjoyed the words created for the purpose of the story: skurfing, funk, LimBough, Fectus, and more. The overall story is a bit complicated, such that it will encourage young readers to read carefully to keep track of the many characters and the “rules” of the Elementals. Overall, children are sure to enjoy Anni Moon. I predict they will root for her through her many trials, and look forward to “part two.”