Max Hamby and the Blood Diamond by Kathy Cyr

“You’re such a little moron, aren't you? They will hunt you down to the ends of the earth. It’s nothing personal, just business. It’s all about survival, dear boy."

Twelve-year-old Max Hamby lives a quiet life just outside of town in the small community of Pleasant Seas and that's just the way he likes it... until the day he crashes into an odd exhibit at the local museum.

Strange things begin to happen and even stranger people want Max all to themselves.

It begins with the disappearance of his mother and a mysterious text message that takes him to the edge of the Downs; a dark forest where no one dares to go.

He'll need to get past his eccentric neighbor first, but she has her own plan and reveals more than he ever thought possible.

These new discoveries take him to Merrihaven and a land filled with unbelievable creatures, magic and a longstanding battle for power. Someone has resurrected the Shadowstone to free the evil imprisoned inside. With the help of some unlikely allies, Max must summon the courage to find seven magical stones to save his mother before it's too late.

Max Hamby and the Blood Diamond is the first book in Kathy Cyr’s Max Hamby series; a middle grade fantasy series filled with humor, family, friendship, magic, witches, gnomes, dwarfs, trolls, goblins, shadowshifters and more.