Sara James and The Mermaid Tale

By Amanda Rose

Sara James isn’t having your typical day. Pulled from her world of cheerleading camp and straight A’s by a brightly shining star, she now finds herself hurtling through time and dimension with the sparkly-winged fairy, Anjalie. Guided by her new friend, Sara arrives in Satchandia, a brilliantly-colored, tropical realm of startling beauty.

Sara and Anjalie must explore this watery-world in search of seven star-shaped jewels of extraordinary magic. Through her encounters with the characters of Satchandia, including a pod of flashing-tailed mermaids, a mystical Wizard, and a rugged forest boy, Sara is transformed from an average American girl into an adventurer of surprising bravery and skill.

This fun and uplifting read was written for eight to twelve-year olds - and for adults who love fairy tales, and always will.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jul 16, 2009
• ISBN: 9781467059541

Amanda Rose

Amanda Rose, (1988-Present), was born in Toronto Ontario, to Paul and Deborah Rose. She grew up in Kingston Ontario, and has lived in Southern Ontario all of her life. Amanda took an interest in reading and writing from a young age. In high school she began competing her short stories in contests, and at age 16 she wrote her first adventure novel, Fire Fury Freedom (2018). In her college years she continued to compete her stories, and two years in a row won first prize among many competing schools. In her early twenties she was featured in the Canadian Anthologies produced by the Poetry Institute of Canada, both for poetry and short stories. Many of Amanda's Short Stories and Poetry pieces are available in her Anthology, A Strange Dream: An Anthology of Short Stories and Poetry (2018). Amanda enjoys writing on a wide variety of topics, and in various styles. Her first publication, Manifesting on Purpose (2018) ties back to her roots in new age studies with the Law of Attraction. Her second Publication, Fire Fury Freedom (2018) is the pride and joy of a lifetime of writing for Amanda, exploring a Dystopian world in an action-adventure fantasy. It is Amanda's hope that her works of literature inspire thoughtful change, and spark the imagination.

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© 2009 Amanda Rose. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 11/29/2023

ISBN: 978-1-4389-7247-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4670-5954-1 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1     Home

Chapter 2     The Desert

Chapter 3     Anjalie

Chapter 4     Satchandia

Chapter 5     The First Star Jewel Ruby

Chapter 6     The Second Star Jewel Aquamarine

Chapter 7     The Third Star Jewel Topaz

Chapter 8     The Island

Chapter 9     The Fourth Star Jewel Emerald

Chapter 10   The Fifth Star Jewel Sapphire

Chapter 11   The Forest

Chapter 12   The Sixth Star Jewel Amethyst

Chapter 13   Alone

Chapter 14   The Seventh Star JewelFreedom

The Next Adventure of Sara James: The Forest

Acknowledgements

Mahalo to my wonderful friends: Aimee, Heather, Kimmy, Katina, Katie, Brigette and Rosie for helping to get A Mermaid Tale off the ground, and for believing in this long-awaited moment!

Thanks to my mom for feeding me a steady diet of fine literature as a child, and for always encouraging me to follow my heart.

For my nieces: Sadie, Maddiey, Roey, Tessa and Annika for inspiring the idea in the first place.

And for Bria.

CHAPTER ONE

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Home

S ara James believed her adventure with the Fairy never would have happened without Gabby. It wasn’t about Gabby directly, since the Fairy had never even met her. Anyway, the Fairy hadn’t appeared to Gabby, she’d appeared to Sara.

Yet, if she hadn’t known Gabby, she would not have agreed to go with the white-winged Fairy on her zany quest; such spontaneity was not in Sara’s nature.

Gabby was the one who had introduced Sara to adventure, to the thrill of not knowing what will happen next, to the exhilaration of playing outdoors for hours, and to climbing, running, and swimming. If it wasn’t for Gabby, Sara would have spent her childhood indoors where life was safe, and predictable; certainly, an adventurous quest in another dimension would not have been enticing.

Sara’s friendship with Gabby was older than her memory. Sara James and Gabriella Cole were next door neighbors in a suburb in Northern Arizona. Their mothers, Margaret and Kelly, were also best friends.

They, like their daughters, were an unlikely duo. Margaret was an active member of her country club and was dedicated to her volunteer work with seniors. She wore her blonde hair in a short, fashionable bob. She loved stylish sweater sets. Kelly was a modern-day Flower Child. She had waist-length, strawberry-colored hair that swished over her back when she walked. She wore long, flowing skirts, halter tops, and dangly, silver earrings that glinted in the sunlight. She was much more likely to be seen at a rock concert than a country club.

Yet, the two women spent hours together every day. Kelly said destiny had brought them together. When she and Gabby’s father Luke moved into the white stucco next door to the James’s home, Kelly had really needed a friend. She knew no one in Northern Arizona; it had been Luke’s idea to move there.

When Kelly discovered that a couple their age lived next door, she was determined to become Margaret’s friend, even though they clearly had nothing in common. Against nearly impossible odds (Margaret didn’t need a new friend), she had succeeded. Kelly was extremely funny, and the usually serious Margaret was amazed how fun it was to laugh; laughing became their common ground.

And so, as infants, Sara and Gabby were placed side by side on quilts, with their tiny hands brushing one another’s arms and their drool dribbling into the same wet spot on the quilted blanket. Sara, with her wispy almost-white hair and clear-blue eyes, and Gabby, with her thick, red hair, ruddy freckles, and mischievous hazel eyes, were captured in photographs displayed around both houses.

When the girls turned nine, a couple of things happened. For one, Sara had a growth spurt and was suddenly a whole head taller than Gabby. She now had long, graceful arms and legs, and she began to excel in her dance classes. Gabby said that even though Sara was taller, Gabby was still much faster.

The other thing that happened was that Luke left them. On his twenty-eighth birthday, he took Kelly’s face into his large hands, and looking in her eyes, he said, "I’ll love you and Gabby forever. But I’ve realized that staying in one place is just not my thing."

The split was harder on Gabby than it was on Kelly, who had been feeling distant from Luke for a while. A year prior, Kelly had joined a group called Earth’s Children which Luke thought was a joke. The group met twice a month to eat organic foods, listen to music, and discuss books. They’d become like a family to Kelly and were a huge support to her when Luke disappeared into the dust created by his new Chevy pickup.

Gabby had only Sara for support when he took off.

Outsiders could never see how Sara and Gabby could possibly be so close. Sara was a beautiful ballerina with a closet full of pink. She brushed her long, blonde hair often and wore lip gloss. Gabby’s hair hung in a thick braid down her back, with escaped wisps surrounding her face like little rays of sun. She was pure tomboy. Her knees were often scabby and her cheeks rosy, from playing outdoors. You could not have paid her to wear pink.

When Gabby’s father left, she went through a year of complete rebellion. She practically failed school and refused to behave. The other ballerinas at Sara’s school said she was crazy for being Gabby’s friend. But Sara ignored them. Gabby was like a part of her, half of the whole.

Now that they were fourteen, Gabby told Sara that her friendship was the only reason she hadn’t jumped in front of a moving bus the year her father left. Luke used to play ball with her, take her hiking, and talk to her about things that mattered, like fishing and how to survive in the mountains. Her dad knew many things.

Now she only saw him during summer vacation for their yearly hiking adventure, and at Christmas when he took her skiing. Still, Gabby told Sara, now that she was a teenager, she realized that all the heartache had been worth it because she got to do the coolest things of any teenager they knew.

One winter’s afternoon in March, Gabby and Sara sat on chairs next to Sara’s pool. The pool was drained for the winter. It was sort of depressing that way, without any water.

The sun was out, but the dry air was cool with the chill of winter. Gabby wore a yellow hooded sweatshirt and Sara wore a blue sweater that matched her eyes. Gabby’s hair was like bronzed fire in the sunlight. As she looked at Sara her hazel eyes were flecked with the gold that appeared only when she was excited.

"I’m over soccer," Gabby said.

"What are you talking about, Gabby? You’ve played soccer practically since you were born."

So what?

Well, we need to become more mature. We’ll be in high school next year, Sara said with a swish of her long pony tail (she liked doing that lately).

Exactly! Gabby rolled her eyes. And soccer is immature.

No it’s not, that’s just silly! Anyway, I worry about your energy level, Gabs. Where will you let it off?

Let what off? Gabby’s eyes glowed.

Your extra energy!

Gabby laughed wildly, as if proud of her extra energy. Well, while you’re at that stupid camp you’re going to --

"Cheer camp is not stupid," Sara insisted.

"Whatever. Anyway, while you’re there, Luke is taking me scuba diving in Belize."

Luke?

Yeah, I call my dad Luke, now. And we’re going scuba diving.

"But you don’t even know how to dive!"

Just because we live in this arid wasteland, Gabby gestured to Sara’s low backyard hedge and the desert beyond.

Behind the girls’ houses, hundreds of acres of undeveloped land extended into the horizon. Every evening, they watched the setting sun turn the sand-colored rocks into lavender waves of earth against the vibrant sky.

I love the desert, Sara said.

Well, I like the ocean. I feel hot all the time without water.

"You feel hot? It’s winter, Gabby. Maybe we should take you to the clinic."

I don’t need the clinic. I need to swim in a large body of water with a mask on. Imagine what it looks like, Sara.

I’ve only been to California and looked at the ocean from the shore. We didn’t swim. We’re not much of a water family, Sara sniffed.

Well, Luke and I are. Last year, when he took me snorkeling in Mexico, I was sure I’d died and gone to heaven. Swimming in the ocean is like flying.

Sounds great, Gabs. But I’ll stay on solid ground where I belong, thanks, Sara said, and smoothed her sweater with her fingertips, unaware of the spectacular ocean adventure that would soon disrupt her orderly world.

CHAPTER TWO

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The Desert

T he next weekend Gabby invited Sara on a three-day camping trip. Kelly had decided that not to be completely outdone by Luke, she would take the girls to Southern Utah over spring break. They would camp and hike to the famous natural-sandstone arches.

Gabby secretly told Sara that scuba diving would be much more exciting than the desert. Sara replied that Gabby had better appreciate her mother, because Kelly was cool, unlike Sara’s parents, who had never been Flower Children and wore things like golf shirts with cardigans.

Sara’s mom was hesitant to let her go camping, but, in the end, Kelly convinced her it would be a learning experience and Margaret finally gave in. Gabby pointed out that Sara’s mom was cooler than Sara gave her credit for or she wouldn’t have let Sara go camping. Sara agreed, reluctantly. Her mom had her moments.

Spring break was upon them before they knew it, and Kelly, Gabby and Sara were pulling away in a car packed full of camping gear and food. Margaret waved from the front yard. She looked nervous, as if unsure that she’d ever see them again.

At first, the drive was exciting, but after a few hours, Gabby became bored. Sara was content reading her book, but Gabby said she got carsick from reading. When they finally arrived in Moab, Utah, after several hours of driving, Gabby acted like a crazy person. She hooted out the window as they searched for their campsite.

I’ve been cooped up in this car for way too long, she yelled, sticking her bright head out the window as far as she could without taking off her seatbelt.

They drove up a road that wound through Slick Rock Canyon. Sara looked out the window in awe. The sandstone cliffs were like large dinosaurs, and they were everywhere.

Look at this place! Gabby shouted out the window. It’s like a jungle gym.

Sara didn’t think it looked like a jungle gym. It was all rock. But, it did seem like whoever had created this place had done so with a