The Valley of the Lost (Deltora Quest #7)

Reader reviewed by Dede

This book brings Dain back into from the last book and the beginning is a rescue attempt from Barda, Jasmine and Lief to rescue him from a pirate ship.  They meet an unlikely ally in a creature called a polypan and escape on a boat.  They end up floating into the land of Tora, meeting up with Dain again and come up against the Guardian of the Diamond in a Castle.  In pure Rumplestilskin fashion, the Guardian tells them that if they can guess his name (he has hidden clues around the castle) they can have the diamond, but if they can't they have to stay in the castle forever.  Some secrets about Dain are revealed in this book and what is supposed to be a big shock about the Guardian left me shocked that after all they had been through, the three bought into it.  There are tricks and turns in this book, but it seemed like I had read it all before somewhere.  It didn't hold my interest as much as some of the previous books.  If they retrieve the final gem they still have to try to find the King.