The Sand Dragon by Michael F. Stewart

Title: The Sand Dragon
Author: Michael F. Stewart
Release Date: April 2, 2010
Pages: 256 pages
Genre: Epic Fantasy

Best Book Quote: “In the Cretaceous period the area would have been a hunting ground for a lizard like this. But these appeared to be bones, real bones. “It’s not a fossil,” Kim suggested, and immediately shook the thought clear from her mind.”

Kim Axon, a gung-ho paleontologist, thinks that she has found the skeletal find of a lifetime but just as she is about to start her excavation, the skeleton is stolen. Kim immediately suspects that the mysterious Dr. Bythell, a scientist in league with the oil company, is the culprit. What the heck – this is her find! That’s how The Sand Dragon by Michael F. Stewart starts out and it keeps getting better.

Kim makes this find near Fort Mic, a place with a mysterious history. Although the area, close to where her father was killed, holds disturbing memories for Kim, she’s a determined young woman who refuses to let the male-dominated Canadian oil mining camp deter her from her mission. She’s steadfast in her goal to identify the mysterious skeleton accidentally excavated by one of the operators at the mining facility.

As Kim refuses to let up in her quest to recover the mysterious skeleton, she’s faced with hostile townsfolk and Native American tribe members who blame her family for an ugly history of indoctrination at a local school by government authorities. However, she perseveres and as she delves deeper into the mysterious skeleton, it’s obvious that all is not as it seems. When the townsfolk start to get sick and die, Kim realizes that more than scientific glory-grabbing is at stake – their survival is at risk.

Michael F. Stewart provides an excellent fantasy/horror story with great action and intrigue. Is the strange illness actually part of a conspiracy being perpetuated by the oil conglomerate? Is it an age-old curse come to life? Kim will need to use all of her talents in order to solve this puzzle and save her life.

Fortunately, she’s not alone in her quest. Her adventure puts her in contact with lots of different characters, all of whom are well defined and progress the plot forward. They’re skillfully woven into parallel story lines that keep you guessing as you try to figure out how and when they’ll eventually intersect with one another.

If you like a solid, fast-paced horror mystery that has some fantastical elements to it, read The Sand Dragon; Michael F. Stewart delivers a remarkable story.