“Amanda” Has A Great New Adventure!

I’m excited to share my friend Darlene Foster’s great new addition to her series of “Amanda” books – because our Heroine is headed to Malta!

This terrific series of books take Amanda around the world for magical adventures – and gives readers rich insight into other cultures as well!

Welcome To Malta!

As I said, Foster’s “Amanda” adventures are designed to take readers to exotic places around the world, illuminating the unique aspects of each location.

Malta is an archipelago in the central Mediterranean Sea, sitting between Sicily and the North African coast.

I’ve never been to Malta, but this book makes me want to – let’s dive in and hear from the Author!

Here’s the plot for this new chapter in Amanda’s adventures:

Amanda receives a postcard from her best friend, Leah, and is surprised to learn that she is in Malta with her aunt. Reading between the lines, she senses Leah is in trouble. Desperate to help her, Amanda travels to Malta with her classmate Caleb and his parents.

Amanda is intrigued by this exotic island in the middle of the Mediterranean, full of colourful history, sun-drenched limestone fortresses, stunning beaches and fascinating birds. But…who is killing the protected birds? Who stole a priceless artifact from the museum? And why is Leah acting so strange? She couldn’t possibly be involved in these illegal activities, or could she?

Join Amanda and her friends as they visit ancient temples, an exciting falconry and the enchanting Popeye Village, as they try to get to the bottom of the mystery of the Sleeping Lady.

Foster gave me some insight into her series:

Can you tell us about Amanda?

“Amanda is a twelve-year-old girl from Calgary, Alberta. She is the only child of Evelyn and Don Ross, both accountants. She loves to read, is interested in history and enjoys cooking. Her parents work long hours so she likes trying different recipes for them, especially ones from places she has visited. She is inquisitive and kind and always wants to help people. This gets her in trouble sometimes. She loves animals but has no pets of her own. Once she travelled to visit her Aunt and Uncle in the United Arab Emirates, she was hooked. She never passes up a chance to travel to someplace new.” 

As most of you know, I am a huge foodie. So I love how Foster’s books include so much about local flavors. I asked her about that.

What is the purpose of including food in your stories?

“Traditional food is important to every culture. I like to have Amanda try the local food when she travels. Children need to know that people eat different food in other parts of the world and they should at least try it. It bothers me when travellers insist on eating food only familiar to them. Amanda likes to cook and try out recipes so she collects ideas as she travels and makes them for her parents. I remember a teacher showing us how to make chilli con carne at school as part of our studies of Mexico. I was so excited I made it for my parents who had never had it before. They became lifelong chilli fans! Also, I find eating is a good place for dialogue to happen. In real life, people tend to discuss things over a meal or a beverage.” 

An Excerpt From “Amanda In Malta: The Sleeping Lady”:

“Now what?” Amanda stared at the closed door. “How am I going to find Leah?” 

She felt a lump form in her throat. 

Caleb’s mom placed a hand on her shoulder. “Let’s find something to eat and think about it. I’m sure there is a reasonable explanation.” 

“Like maybe she’s been kidnapped or something,” said Caleb. 

His mom glared at him. “Caleb! That is not helping.” 

Mr. Sorensen looked at his phone. “You’re sure this is the right address?” 

“It’s the return address on the postcard, so I assumed it was where she was staying.” 

As they walked down the street to a café they had spotted on the way, Amanda turned to look at the house once more. Did a curtain move in an upstairs window? 

Fresh pastries that looked like turnovers were lined up in the window of the coffee shop. A sign below them indicated they were called pastizzi. 

Amanda suddenly felt hungry and pointed to the display. “I’ll have one of those.” 

Caleb chimed in, “I’ll have two of them.” 

Mr. Sorensen bought a plateful and brought them to an outdoor table. 

Amanda bit into the warm, fluffy pastry formed in a triangle and stuffed with ricotta cheese. “Yum, this is good!” She wiped her greasy hands on a napkin. 

A small boy scurried by their table, bumping into it. 

“Hey, watch where you’re going!” shouted Caleb as he grabbed his drink before it fell over. 

“Sorry.” The afro-headed child stopped himself by clutching Amanda’s hand. He gave a weak smile and strode off down the street. Before he turned the corner, he looked back and stared at Amanda with intense brown eyes and nodded. 

“Kids! They’re the same everywhere.” Caleb’s mom shook her head while mopping up tea with her napkin. 

Amanda slipped the piece of paper the boy had discreetly placed in her hand into her jeans pocket.

Bravo to Darlene Foster on the publication of her newest “Amanda” adventure!

You can buy Darlene’s latest book by clicking on these links:

Amazon Canada here

Amazon UK here 

Amazon US here

Barnes and Noble here

Chapters/Indigo here

I’ve shared these books before, and if you want to get a refresher on the other books in the series, just click on my link here;

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Let me know if there is someone in your life ready to dive in to Author Darlene Foster’s newest “Amanda” adventure!

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