The Serpent Slayer and the Scroll of Riddles

The Serpent Slayer and the Scroll of Riddles (New Growth Press/ February 14, 2022) is a time travel adventure with a twist.

Readers ages 9-13 will discover theological themes as they travel through God’s Word. By placing the characters, a brother and sister named Emmet and Nomi, into Bible events, authors Champ Thornton and Andrew David Naselli show the Bible is far from being a boring book full of instructions. Readers will discover life-changing truths they’ll never forget.

The following is an excerpt from The Serpent Slayer and the Scroll of Riddles:

*****

The Man spun around, red-faced. He looked right at the spot where Nomi and Emmet were hiding. And at that moment, as soon as they saw his face, Emmet knew everything had changed.

Tears filled the Man’s eyes.

“Who’s there? Where are you?” the Man asked.

Emmet stood up. He was scared but knew he had to say something. Do something. The right thing. “I’m here, sir. It’s me.” Immediately, Nomi stood to join him. He continued, “I’m Emmet, and this is my sister, Nomi.”

The Man relaxed his shoulders and lowered his axe. “Come out. I want to see you.”

Emmet and Nomi pushed aside the branches and stepped into a clearing. They stood face to face. Emmet had never seen anyone like him before.

In some ways he looked just like anyone else, but somehow more striking. Much more striking. The only way Emmet could describe it later was that when you looked at him, it was like turning to see a light bulb that had just been turned off. For the briefest moment, and only when you first looked, there was perhaps the faintest glow of light.

Whether the glow was fading or whether he was glimpsing the first hint of some greater light to come, the first beams of a distant dawn, Emmet could not tell.

“Why are you here?” asked the Man.

“We don’t really know,” said Nomi. “We are trying to solve a riddle about a dragon, and it has something to do with a snake.”

“The Snake you speak of,” said the Man. “I know not where it is, but I know exactly the kind of creature it is.”

Emmet narrowed his gaze. How does he know so much about the Snake? “What do you mean?”

The Man sighed deeply. “I cannot think of it without growing angry. That’s why I made this.” He held out his axe. “It’s a weapon to protect against that poisonous beast. And it is also a tool for gathering food.”

He looked at the children and then back at the axe. “I didn’t always need this. The Creator had provided all the food we needed. But now everything is different. He gestured toward the mountain behind them. “The Creator had told me to care for the Garden, to guard it. But the Snake found a way in and poisoned the one I love.”

Emmet looked at Nomi. Perhaps the Man could help us after all. This sounded like the poem, the riddle!

What is poison to the heart?
Find the answer. Make your start.

In his mind Emmet tried to put the pieces together. How does it all fit?

“I failed,” the Man was saying. “I wish I had not listened to his terrible words. I wish she had not listened. They have ruined everything!”

The Man paused and then said, “Come,” shifting the axe to his other hand. “We must find the Woman.”