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Fantasms by Len Bailey |
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FICTION_FANTASY_GENERAL | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Description/Notes |
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Danny Ray, the best dang rodeo cowboy in Oklahoma, returns to Elidor! nbsp; Princess Amber has been kidnapped, and King Krystal of Elidor will do anything to bring his beloved daughter safely home. But rescuing the princess from the grasp of the evil fantasms will be no easy task. It’s a tall order for even the most courageous of heroes. Enter Danny Ray, the best dang rodeo cowboy in Oklahoma—junior division, that is. nbsp; With the help of some very unusual characters—including Captain Quigglewigg, Prince Blue, Cherry, KarooKachoo, and T?k—Danny Ray sets off across the Checkered Sea ready for adventure. But to defeat the dreaded King of the Fantasms, Danny Ray must first do battle with the sneaky Commodore Mumblefub, not to mention the nasty Captain Giddyfickle and a whole army of bloodsucking whiners…. If his luck and determination hold out, Danny Ray just might save the day! “There’s more than enough adventure to capture the imagination of any young YA, and the ending is naturally uplifting. The characters are just as lively as their names.”—KLIATTnbsp; onFantasms Chapter One nbsp; Cowboys and Clowns nbsp; “You all right, cowboy?” said a light, musicalnbsp; nbsp; voice. nbsp; Danny Ray sat atop a cattle gate in his rodeo outfit: blue and white checkered shirt, black cowboy hat and matching leather chaps over his jeans. Even in the darkness of the hay shelter, his blue eyes shone brightly. nbsp; “Howdy, Caroline!” he said happily, his face immediately brightening up, his heart fluttering like a jar full of butterflies as he looked down into the face of an angel. Caroline Robertson’s shoulder-length hair was as yellow as the shiny sun, and her twinkling eyes matched the clear blue sky around that sun. Her fancy leather top sparkled with rhinestones. He took off his gloves and left them on the gate, climbing painfully down and respectfully taking off his hat. He tasted dusty grit between his teeth and said, “Well, I got thrown in the arena, but I’m all right!” nbsp; “You want a second opinion?” she asked, smirking. nbsp; “Hey, Caroline! Saw you at the opening ceremony riding with the flag—mighty fine you looked, too!” nbsp; “Thanks, Danny.” She smiled, noticing how he took in her glittering red cowboy hat, the only one of its kind at the rodeo. She raised her nose up in the air and turned her head sideways: Caroline Robertson was this year’s rodeo queen. Danny Ray sure liked her, except for that perky thing she did with her nose when she knew someone was looking at her. nbsp; “Hey! What d’ye say we go get a soda?” His head was swimming with the sweet scent of her perfume, overriding the rich, heady smell of alfalfa hay. nbsp; “Maybe some other time, Danny,” she said, hesitating, and placed her small white hand on his shoulder. A flush of red passed over her cheeks. nbsp; “She’s gonna get a soda with me,” butted in a new voice. Here came Billy Whitehorse walking up, grinning like a possum eating a sweet potato. “After I ride Commodore, that is. He was my draw.” nbsp; Danny Ray just shrugged. nbsp; “Real sorry you drew Tomahawk, Danny.” But Billy Whitehorse didn’t sound sorry. Instead, he spit on the ground and said, “Rode him last year and he slammed me into the panels pretty hard.” nbsp; Danny Ray didn’t say anything. nbsp; “Sure you’re all right, dairy boy?” Billy laughed. It was more of a joke than a question. Billy prided himself on living on a real ranch, with horses and bulls, while Danny Ray worked a dairy farm. And Billy loved rubbing it in. nbsp; “Say, dairy boy!” Billy said. “You should get them blotchy black-and-white chaps for sale in the front window of Jackson’s Rodeo Store—they’re made outta Holstein cowhide. Then you’d be a real cow boy—get it? Ha, ha! Perfect for a dairy milker boy like you! You’d look like one of them fire engine Dalmatian dogs! Never seen a dog ride a bull before! Ha, ha!” Billy snorted and Caroline tried not to smile at the ridiculous picture in her mind. nbsp; Danny Ray was feeling pretty low. He reached up, grabbed his gloves, and plopped them together. nbsp; Billy Whitehorse stopped smiling and stepped forward, his spurs jingling. The two boys were the same height, the front rim of Billy’s white hat rasping agains |
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