Taiga

Praise for The Golden Needle:

2024 Washington State Book Award Finalist

2024 Eric Hoffer Grand Prize Short List

2024 Eric Hoffer Young Adult Honorable Mention

"A gritty adventure worthy of Indiana Jones, with a resilient heroine in an intriguing new fantasy world. The cliff-hanger ending will leave readers eager to access the next book in the series." -- The Washington State Book Award

"T. J. Carroll begins in medias res, and from the onset the book is action-packed. Sure to keep the attention of the young adult audience, it has everything that lovers of fantasy will enjoy: adventure epic in proportion, a likable protagonist, and high stakes. It is a nail-bitter that young readers are sure to love... The world building is intricate and the rules of the race hook the reader into an adventure that will keep our hearts racing alongside Dashi's every move." -- The BookLife Prize

"An exciting tale of magic and daring sewn with the message of familial importance and the art of being selfless. From the opening page to the last, we are swept up in the journey." -- The US Review of Books

"I found myself compulsively turning pages as I raced faster than Dashi to the end. And don't worry, the sequel is just as bingeable!" --Beyond the Bookends

"The story is winding, taking you to places you'd never expect. Carroll has built the world so cunningly. The taiga could be any forest - full of tall trees whose shadows could be hiding anything from terror to friend. The race itself is thrilling, and the temple at the end could be lifted directly from Indiana Jones with its booby-traps and danger at every corner. There's high tension, epic fight scenes, found family and desperation. Then a mystery flowing the whole way through which will be sure to floor the reader when it's revealed." -- Reedsy Discovery