Max and the Gatekeeper

By: James Todd Cochrane

Narrated by: Matt Weight

A war has been waging for centuries; a magical and technological battle between good and evil. This conflict will affect life everywhere, but not everyone is aware it exists. When 12-year-old Max Rigdon is sent to stay with his grandfather for the summer, he unwillingly enters the fight. The day Max steps off the bus he is marked with an evil curse and immediately becomes the target of evil men and creatures with designs on ruling the universe. Not only does this curse cause Max physical pain but it allows his enemies to track and find him.

He soon learns that the reason for this unwanted attention is because his grandfather is the keeper of a gateway; a powerful machine that makes travel to hundreds of strange unknown worlds possible. The enemy will do anything to gain possession of this power in their quest to control all worlds. With the help of his friend Cindy and others, Max must quickly learn the necessary skills to survive if he is to avoid the deadly trap that has been planned for him and his grandfather. A trap that has been decades in the making with Max as the missing piece. If successful it will change life as we know it.

©2007 James Todd Cochrane (P)2013 James Todd Cochrane

Summer at Grandpa's

Like many kids would be, Max is upset about being sent to his grandpa's house for summer. But things begin to change his life while he is still on the bus to go to his house.

This book captivated me from the beginning. It was fast paced and full of wonder. Max and his new friend Cindy learn that magic and other worlds aren't just a thing of science fiction. They get to learn what is wrong with the town Grandpa lives in and why the harassment from the town started on the bus for Max.

Don't start this book late in the afternoon. Otherwise, you'll end up like me, riveted to my spot wanting to know what happens to Max and Cindy and not seeking out the bed when you have work in the morning. This book was awesome.

An audio book is only as good as its narrator and he was amazing. His voiced lured me into the story in a way that made me not want to leave it.


This review copy audiobook was provided by the author/narrator/publisher free of charge.

Exciting middle grade fantasy!

This is an exciting fantasy book about a boy, Max, who begrudgingly goes to his grandfather's house for the summer only to realize that all is not what it seems. Max's grandfather Joe is actually the the Gatekeeper who guards a gate that is the door to infinite worlds and the different magic in each one. Joe wants to train Max to be his predecessor. There are also people in the town where Joe lives and all over who want access to the Gate and are willing to fight to get it. The whole town is under a curse of evil working against Joe. In this book Max along with his new friend Cindy learn about the Gate and what everyone is willing to do to gain access to it. They learn about magic and traveling between worlds.
This story is an interesting premise. It's full of non stop action and keeps the reader interested. Max, Cindy and Joe are likable characters. I enjoyed following their adventure. The only thing I didn't quite understand was why Cindy's family was the only family who hadn't yet been affected by the curse. I know that Joe's friend helped Cindy to hold it off once she learned of it but how did they dodge it until then.
I'm excited to see what Max and Cindy get up to the next time Max goes to visit Joe. I'm sure the next adventure through the Gate will be even more wild than this one.

I would like to thank the author/narrator/publisher for generously providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Not My Thing, But Kids Would Probably Like It

The narration was well done. The story is one of those, that as an adult, it just didn't grab me. Not enough happens in the beginning. Not enough is explained up front. Then, suddenly everything is happening. There's no lead up to using magic. Just "boom" and we're expected to believe that kids can suddenly do this.

I do think that some of my students would like this book. It's just not for me.

Good YA Book

This was a pretty good Young Adult/Children's book that I enjoyed despite it's obviously younger target audience. I think that pretty much anyone could enjoy it, but it will be great for kids. This might be a perfect pick for a long car ride or trip with kids.

The narrator did a good job with the book. I gave only 4 stars, but it was more like 4.5. There were just a few times where I thought he came off a little flat. Otherwise, he was a great narrator.

I requested and received a free copy of this audiobook from the author, publisher, or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review. I was NOT required to write a positive review and this reflects my honest opinion of the work.

Story good, narrator... not so much.

The story was well written and fun. It's a good young adult fantasy story.
The only way I could tolerate this narrator was to listen at X1.5. He was slow and was horrible at acting the characters. (The voices was telling best thing he did and that's not saying much) He did the opposite of what the character was supposed to be doing/saying throughout the entire book. If the character was supposed to be quite the narrator is loud. If the character is supposed to be happy he does the character angry. I was thinking through the book that the narrator thought he wasn't getting paid enough for this job and so he was just going to do the worst job possible.
If this narrator is on the next book in the series I will probably pass on it.