Gabrielle and the Rebels
Flatlands Press / 20 September 2024

Gabrielle and the Rebelsby Maureen UlrichPublished by Flatlands PressReview by Toby A. Welch  $21.99 ISBN 9781778296536 Lampman-based Maureen Ulrich, author of the much-loved Jessie Mac Hockey Series, has crafted a new series, Winds of Change. It is a fantastical coming of age story. What a wild ride readers are in for! I love the premise of Gabrielle and the Rebels, the first book in the Winds of Change series. Travel back to a time a few centuries ago, throw technology in the mix, and see what happens. From page one, this was a fun read. I found it categorized in many ways – fiction, urban fantasy, historical fantasy, and alternate history, among others – but for me the only important category is “must read.”   With such a unique storyline, I was intrigued as to how Ulrich came up with the idea for Gabrielle and the Rebels. This is what she had to say: “The concept of the book actually came from a popular Lloyd Alexander series called Westmark, which utilized alternative history/historical fantasy, colourful characters, and NO magic. Real life problems aren’t solved with a magical wand or ring, but through human interactions and technology. That’s my goal. This series has been on my desktop in various forms…