Caroline and Mordecai the Gand

A Fantasy Novella

By: Jeff Gunhus

Narrated by: Sarah L. Colton

Length: 4 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's Summary

Caroline loses her spark. It takes a great adventure for her to find it again.

Caroline loses her father in a car accident for which she feels responsible. Consumed by grief, she has a difficult time readjusting to a world that has changed so dramatically for her. On the anniversary of her father’s death, a strange window opens in the middle of the small lake behind her house. She climbs up an old oak to peer inside but falls out of the tree and discovers that the window also serves as a door into a different world.

Enter Mordecai the Gand, a mysterious traveler who befriends Caroline and promises to help her find a way back home since the window she fell through has disappeared. The two set out on a series of adventures that include visiting a tree village populated by a tribe known for eating travelers, running into a witch under a spell of her own making, hiding in a cave with a dragon encased in a wall of ice (prone to melting by campfire), all the while being pursued by a mysterious entity call the Creach which promises to devour Caroline and trap her in an eternity of despair.

As they navigate these adventures and this new world, Caroline slowly discovers that she is meant to help each of the characters she meets. As she battles internally whether to stay or return home to the sadness and grief waiting for her there, she must regain perspective and open her heart to the act of caring and to the joy of love itself. In the end, she must demonstrate great courage, loyalty, and caring as the plot unfolds, becoming the active hero of her own story.

©2021 Jeff Gunhus (P)2021 Jeff Gunhus

lovely and highly entertaining

relatable in every way, providing strength through survival of pain and an opportunity to seek joy

Entertaining with a powerful message

I chose to listen to this book after receiving a free audio copy. All opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased.

I have read all of the Jack Templar books by Jeff Gunhus and have always enjoyed his writing so I was looking forward to listening to this book. Just like the Jack Templar books, it is written for middle grade and/or young adult readers, but it’s a story that readers of all ages will like.

Caroline lost her father when she was 13 years old. They were very close and it was devastating, especially since she blamed herself for his death. When she ends up in another world and meets Mordecai the Gand, she goes on an emotional journey with him and learns some important lessons about loss, grief, and hope.

Caroline meets some quirky characters along the way. Mordecai is quirky enough but then there is the tribe that lives in the trees whose people like to eat travelers, the terrifying Creach, and a dragon that started out being frozen in ice…

The narrator, Sarah L. Colton, has a great voice for telling a story. Her timing and pace are also excellent. I hope to listen to more stories that she narrates.

If you’ve experience a recent loss, or even if you haven’t, Caroline and Mordecai the Gand is a book that is full of sadness and grief but is still an adventure that is fun at times and is full of hope. I am thankful that Jeff Gunhus decided to share this book that was originally meant as a private story for his children when he was diagnosed with stage 3 cancer.

Beautiful

Okay, who’s cutting onions? Caroline and Mordecai the Gand is a beautifully well written novella that explores the grieving process surrounding the loss of a parent or child. Caroline’s father never made it back from running to the store to replace the bag of marshmallows the family dog robbed by the camp fire. Months later, she’s still not handling it well, and while off walking in the woods near the house she falls through a window into another world. This world is full of monsters that feed on grief and sad memories, and Caroline and Mordecai spend most of the book trying to forget the sources of their grief forever, so as to avoid grief entirely, but along the way Caroline learns that grief has a purpose and forgetting everything to avoid a little pain isn’t worth it.

It’s a little bit Alice in Wonderland, a little bit The Shack, and a little bit The Ocean at the End of the Lane, but all working together toward the singular goal of easing the process of grieving a parent (or child.) As a mother, I hope I never have to explore these things with my daughter while she’s still young enough to benefit from getting it in middle-grade story form, but I’m very glad that this exists for everyone who is in the unfortunate position of needing it.

Obviously this book is written with children actually in this situation in mind, but I do think most children would benefit from exploring this theme before they might need it. I recommend this book for all kids who are facing this sort of close relative loss, all children who are otherwise ready to explore these themes or asking questions, and all older readers who enjoy short fantasies full of gut-wrenching emotion.

I was granted complimentary access to Caroline and Mordecai the Gand on Audible as part of my participation in a blog tour for this title with iRead Book Tours. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity! My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.

Entertaining adventure & thought provoking depth

I was intrigued by the cover and premise of CAROLINE AND MORDECAI THE GAND, and I was drawn to the book because of the author’s motivation to write it. I expected I’d enjoy it, but I didn’t expect to be absolutely delighted by it. This fully engaging story is entertaining, yes, but it’s thought provoking at a deep level, and by story’s end, I sat with tears that threatened, then spilled, from my eyes. Wow.

To begin the delights, readers are treated to audio book narrator Sarah L. Colton’s delightful accent. She is cast perfectly for such an otherworldly adventure, voicing the characters so that each is unique. She reflects the mood of the scenes and emotions of the characters to seamlessly complement the text so that narration and story go hand-in-hand. Her pacing is exactly right for listening at regular speed. Top notch performance and quality.

“If we remain open to life, hold it dear, and celebrate it, then it will forever be an adventure without limit in a new land.”

No narrator can nail a story like Colton if the story is lacking. CAROLINE AND MORDECAI THE GAND isn’t lacking in any way. It’s amazing that an audio book that comes in at less than four and a half hours in length can pack such a punch, but this one does. The author bookends the story with opening and ending notes to explain the heartbreaking reason for writing the book. Don’t we all want our children (and everyone else) to remember us at our best when we are gone? What a blessing that author Jeff Gunhus decided to share his message of hope and coping to the world instead of just his kids.

“Oh, that was long ago. They rarely eat travelers now.”

The framework of CAROLINE AND MORDECAI THE GAND is very interesting as it’s a story within a story within a story (within the story). Complex? Yes, but it’s delivered in bite-sized chunks so that readers can easily consume what’s happening. And oh! What’s happening! From the realities of bullying, guilt, and grief to the fantastical elements of magic, witches, and dragons (and cannibals, who can be reality or fantasy, right?), this book has something for everyone to enjoy. A suspenseful, tension-filled adventure on the surface, the allegorical side, coursing beneath, will have readers finding ah-ha moments as they see the parallels between all the seemingly different characters dealing with grief and how destructive and consuming it can be.

A quick mention about the characters – Gunhus’s descriptions are wonderfully evocative so that readers have clear snapshots of each person or creature (or CREACHure), even as they go through changes. This is a real nod to Gunhus's writing skills given the short length of the book. (Side note: as a LOTR fan, I couldn’t separate Mordecai the Gand from Gandolf the Grey. Not sure I am supposed to.)

With its captivating stories and subplots and painfully beautiful ending (here come the tears again), I highly recommend CAROLINE AND MORDECAI THE GAND to readers of all ages. I think it would be an excellent story as a read-aloud or read-along because it will foster important conversations. Well done, Jeff Gunhus.

Great

I listened to CAROLINE AND MORDECAI THE GAND by Jeff Gunhus on Audible as an audio book and it was a great read/listen. The narrator Sarah L. Colton did a great job with bringing the characters to life with her voice and the author did an amazing job crafting such an intricate story. Caroline was my favorite character and I loved how the author made her into a strong relatable female character that felt so real!

Entertaining adventure story

I’ll open this review by stating that I am not the target age for this story, nor am I a reader of the fantasy genre. Ever. It’s just not my thing. With that said, I became totally absorbed in this tale and connected with Caroline rather quickly. Don’t pass over the Author’s Note at the beginning of this book. It’s touching, gives the story added depth, and is what influenced a non-fantasy-reader (me) to read this story in the first place.

Caroline And Mordecai The Gand opens with a letter from Caroline written to her son. It describes certain events in her life, beginning shortly after her father died when she was 13 years old. Still grieving and feeling responsible for her father’s death, Caroline’s life changes with the opening of a magical window…

Audio Narration: Sarah L. Colton’s voice is soothing and pleasant.

Audio Production Quality: The production quality of this audiobook is clear with no distracting noises.

Overall Opinion: This is an entertaining, meaningful, and moving adventure story with themes of love, loss, grief, and healing. Recommended for anyone, young or old, who has experienced loss.

Dɪsᴄʟᴏsᴜʀᴇ: I ʀᴇᴄᴇɪᴠᴇᴅ ᴀ ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟɪᴍᴇɴᴛᴀʀʏ ᴄᴏᴘʏ ᴏғ ᴛʜɪs ʙᴏᴏᴋ. Mʏ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ ᴡᴀs ɴᴏᴛ ɪɴғʟᴜᴇɴᴄᴇᴅ.

This is a fantastical journey ALL should hear/read!

Caroline’s father died in a car accident. It’s all her fault, or so she thinks. Like so many who experience grief often feels.

One day Caroline discoverers a daunting world, with unusual beings and environment. She also meets an annoying yet lovable man, Modecai.

In this bizarrely, whimsical tale, Caroline has to make choices at several “bends”. She often feels helpless, as though she has no other choice. She is eventually forced to look deep within herself to find answers.

The author adds a note at the end which is truly inspiring. Did this really happen? You, the audience, must determine for your self if such a fantastical journey could really happen.

The characters were well defined and creative. The adventures felt exciting and entertaining.

The Narrator, Sarah L.Colton, did an outstanding performance in her narration.

This book is highly recommended for most ages, not just children.