This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Tanya Kays for Readers' Favorite
Catherine Ann Russell’s The Chosen Path gives us a front-row seat to an emotional ride with the main character, Princess Journee. She unintentionally disrupts her kingdom’s traditions, and her only real way to fix things is by tackling a difficult trial to earn her royal title. Her situation gets even harder when the Queen kidnaps her baby goat, Ray, leaving Journee with no choice but to head out and rescue him. Once she arrives at a crossroads on the trail, she picks the grueling path over the easy one, leaving her companions behind to dive into the challenge completely alone. It’s a brutal climb up a freezing mountain that tests her physical limits, made even heavier by the symbolic armor she’s wearing that mirrors exactly how she feels on the inside. While her friends join with elven trackers to rescue the missing animal from the tundra, Journee must conquer her internal battles. Will she find the strength to survive the freezing peaks and complete her final story before everything falls apart?
The Chosen Path by Catherine Ann Russell is a children’s Christian novel, packed with fantasy adventure elements. This story completely won me over by trading a typical fantasy quest for a deeply spiritual journey. The gorgeous artwork by illustrator Candice Broersma really brings this magical world to life. Her imaginative illustrations do a fantastic job of capturing the mood and visual elements of Journee’s quest. My favorite part is how visually the story handles internal growth. Having Princess Journee’s shield change colors to track her spiritual transformation is such a clever idea for a younger audience. It makes concepts like forgiveness, perseverance, and hope very easy to look at and actually understand. I also loved how Russell keeps the pace moving fast while still giving the characters enough room to learn from their mistakes. The side characters, like the protective guides pulled straight from biblical wisdom, give the challenging trek a really warm, comforting feeling. It is very rare to find a middle-grade book that keeps the stakes high but still leaves you with such a gentle, positive message. Kids who love magical worlds with an actual point to them will definitely connect with the heart at the center of this story.
