The Forests of Silence (Deltora Quest, #1) (Deltora Quest 1, #1) (Deltora Quest 1 S., #1)

by Emily Rodda

Deltora Quest is one of the hallmarks of my childhood. I eagerly read and reread each book in the series when the next one came out. When they were all out, I read and reread the series whenever it struck my fancy. Which, quite frankly, was a lot. It's hard not to love them though, they're just typical fantasy and fantasy is my one true genre - no matter what else I read, it's always fantasy I come back to.

Quest stories are the quintessence of classic fantasy. There's nothing like a hero with a quest against evil. In Deltora Quest, the hero is Lief - a sixteen year old boy who wants nothing more than to return peace and happiness to his kingdom. When he is offered the chance to fulfil a promise his father made, he jumps - leaping headfirst into danger to try to make a difference.

The Belt of Deltora is the only thing that can defeat the Shadow Lord who rules but it was broken many years ago, the seven gems scattered across the realm and guarded by only the most evil creations. Lief sets out to find the gems and reunite the belt so that the Prince of Del can claim his throne and push the evil of the Shadow Lord back into the Shadowlands and away from the kingdom. Lief begins his journey with the beggar Barda, an old friend of his parents but it's not long before they're also joined by Jasmine, the wild orphaned girl they meet at their first stop - and her companions Filli (a possum? mouse? type thing?) and Kree, a raven.

Each book follows the trio as they travel the land for the lost gems, weaving a tightly written narrative with lots of action and adventure. Along the way they meet new people both friends and enemies, have to confront their own hopes and fears and figure out and solve many riddles, puzzles and problems to complete their quest.

I loved the first book. The first half takes us back to the beginning - the history of Del, the friendship between Jarred and Endon and the unfolding of the Shadow Lord's plan to take over. When the King dies and Endon is crowned, Jarred warns him of his suspicions about putting the Belt of Deltora away to be guarded in a tower instead of wearing it and the danger he thinks the Chief Advisor (a man called Prandine) presents but Endon doesn't listen and instead, Jarred runs from the castle, swearing to always come to the aid of Endon if he calls. A bunch of years later - he does. I always really liked the rhyme about disturbing the bear to get into the castle and the fact Jarred and Endon had their own code to write secret messages. I adored the fact that Queen Sharn is the one who saves both Jarred and Endon from Prandine by using her wits and tricking him.

The second half takes place sixteen years later. The Shadow Lord has taken over and now rules the land. A crippled Jarred can no longer undertake the quest and so, it falls upon his son, Lief to fulfil the promise he made to Endon. Lief jumps at the chance to prove himself and so him and Barda pack up and head out to their first destination, the Forests of Silence. They find trouble straight away and it's only through the compassion, quick thinking and bravery of Jasmine that they are saved. She leads them to her 'nest' and agrees to lead them to the evilest part of the forest where the gem is most likely to be. There they find that a golden knight rules, killing anyone who tries to steal his treasure - the Lilies of Life. They defeat him and take his sword which contains the Topaz. When Jasmine accidentally touches it the ghost of her dead mother returns and tells her that she should leave her home and travel with Lief and Barda to help them in their quest and so Jasmine joins the journey.

Jasmine would have to be my favourite character. She is totally badass. She's a great strong female role model - she's brave, ruthless to her enemies, full of love for her friends and loves to champion an underdog. While I do love Lief and Barda, Jasmine is awesome. Lief can actually be regarded as rather soft compared to her which is an interesting dynamic and one you don't really see that much. He finds her brutal for stripping the Grey Guards that invade the forest - even though they are evil and would kill her in a heartbeat. It's an interesting dilemma. The truth is she's a survivor and will do what she needs to do in order to protect herself and her loved ones, distasteful or not.

And so ends the first book with the first gem returned to the Belt and our heroes united against the evil of the land.



5 stars.