Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Daniel X: Demons and Druids Audio
Fiction
For ages 12 and up
Unabridged audiobook (CD)
Hatchette Audio, 2010 ISBN: 978-1607882442
When Daniel was three years old his parents were killed and his house was burned down. By some miracle Daniel survived the attack and the only thing of value he has left that belonged to his parents is The List. The List is a list alien outlaws, the “most evil alien creatures ever to set foot on Earth.” Daniel’s parents were aliens from the planet Alpar Nok and they came to Earth to serve as Alien Hunters. They were working to eliminate all the alien outlaws on The List and then they were killed by The Prayer, number one on the list.
Daniel has taken his parent’s place and so far he has killed several of the nastiest aliens infesting Earth. Now he is in London looking for Phosphorius Beta, an alien from the fiery planet Cyndaris who has been around a long time and who is Number 3 on The List. Beta loves to burn things, including people, and Daniel is determined to stop him once and for all.
Daniel has many abilities that make his job easier. He can learn just about anything at a phenomenal rate, he can shapeshift, his is incredibly agile and strong, and he can create things out of nothing. In fact he has figured out how to create his four closest friends, all of whom died on Daniel’s home planet, and on occasion his parents turn up too. Daniel has no idea how he is able to do this, but he grateful that he has Willy, Joe, Emma, and Dana in his life, even if they are not real. They keep him company and help him on his missions.
Daniel soon learns that this mission is going to be tricky. For one thing he is having a hard time responding quickly when he is confronted by a bad alien. He freezes, and this is really not a good way to react when a very nasty being is planning on killing or eating you. Another problem is that Beta is a very dangerous and powerful entity. He is made out of “an exothermic and self-sustaining chemical reaction,” so he can create and command fire at will.
Daniel first encounters one of Beta’s minions, and he almost gets cooked. Then he meets Beta and that doesn’t go well either. In fact the mission is a shambles and Willy gets captured. Daniel finds out that Beta has a business and manages to sneak into his factory, transforming himself into a piece of metal to do so. He is transported to a dump and there he sees a Cyndarian spaceship which is being used to transport all kinds of plants and animals from Earth to Beta’s planet.
Unfortunately, before Daniel can do anything, Beta figures out that he is there and he traps Daniel and his friend Dana (who turns up unexpectedly) inside an old car. Daniel is going to have to use something big from his bag of tricks if he hopes to survive this encounter.
In this thrilling Daniel X adventure we see that Daniel has a weak spot, his friends, and that he has a lot to learn before he can expect to be able to take on aliens that are at the top of The List. Daniel explores using a skill that is relatively new to him and in the process he makes some rather unusual friends.
