Geek It! Literature Spotlight: Deltora Quest

Who doesn’t like a dystopian medieval setting with dragons, demons and magic..and oh, did we mention dragons? Deltora Quest is a three-series collection of thrilling fantasy books written by Australian author Emily Rodda.

Rodda had everything set in her head right from the start — an epic journey that sees Lief, Barda and Jasmine trying to find the lost gems of the Deltora Belt, and saving the land from the evil grips of the ShadowLord.

Their adventure is no easy task as the trio must form crucial allies; slay monsters; and tackle obstacles filled with twists, betrayal, word games, and mysteries in order to survive. This is where Emily Rodda’s art of storytelling comes.

Rodda’s narrative might seem ‘simplistic’ at a glance but as readers become immersed in this treacherous fantasy world, it won’t take long for readers to see how cleverly thought-out the world is. From the historical legends about Deltora’s royal family to each of the cities’ past to the characters’ motives and behaviours, Rodda’s vision is enriched with drama and action from start to finish, making the story sufficiently refreshing and satisfying for the adventurous mind.

Besides Rodda’s storytelling, Marc McBride’s illustrations should also be highly-commended as he perfectly illustrates the monsters with great detail in conjunction with Rodda’s descriptions. All monsters are distinctive in their own ways — in terms of appearance and behaviour-wise — and this enhances the extravagantly cryptic land of Deltora.

Although Deltora Quest had the potential to produce a fantastic live-action series that could have been in the same league as Merlin or Game of Thrones, Deltora Quest actually has its own anime series, believe it or not. The anime was very average but the fact that an anime was produced for an Australian book series, this is a feat that not many indie-like series could achieve.

Nevertheless, Deltora is a series that should definitely be on every child’s bookcase as it is a great example of literature that broadens readers’ imagination and creativity. Deltora will have you hooked on the edge of your seat, so if you haven’t encountered the series, it’s about time that you do. A must read for everyone — especially those who love dragons!