Cherie Mitchell is a New Zealand-based author and writer with several published books to her name including The Obsidian Realm, The Cinder Chronicles, The Life Thief, Dorothea’s Advice for the Lovelorn, The House at Sailor’s Bay, and Turquoise Girl.
She is the recipient of numerous writing awards and accolades, including a glass trophy for The House at Sailor’s Bay in the Litnet Small Towns, Big Stories Contest. She has attended numerous international writing conferences and she is poised to travel to London in March 2020 for the London Book Fair.


Fifteen-year-old Taylor is an only child who she does not make friends easily. She spends most of her time with her best friend Amy and the two girls are as close as sisters are - which only makes it worse when Taylor catches Amy and Matthew, Taylor’s crush, together in the library. Taylor tells Amy that she will never speak to her again and she means it.
Taylor retreats into herself, sure that she is destined for a lonely and friendless life. She begins to spend most of her time in her room with only her beloved books for company as she comes to grips with the fact she can never rely truly on anyone but herself.
Until Geodhun the mountain dragon appears, that is.
Taylor follows Geodhun through her wardrobe mirror and finds herself in the Obsidian Realm, a mystical land of great beauty and the beloved home of many mythical creatures. However, the creatures of the Realm are living in fear as the evil Fabula and her armies of bozdogs, helions, and maggarts slowly take over their world and plunge the land into darkness and sorrow.
With Geodhun’s guidance, Taylor sets off for the Outpost of Illusions to meet the wizard Mistost. During her journey, Taylor is encouraged by Geodhun to follow her heart and rely on her intuition. She learns about trust, strength, and bravery, especially after returning to her own world to make up her friendship with Amy. 
Taylor and Amy step back into the Obsidian Realm where the girls work together, with the help of the friends Taylor has already made in the Realm, to release the land from its enchantment.
After a series of adventures and challenges, all of which she manages to overcome, Taylor returns to her own world with a greater understanding of love, loss, relationships - and of the good and bad aspects of her own self.


The Obsidian Realm

The girls landed heavily on the hard ground, gasping from the cold shock of stepping through the mirror. Taylor lay where she had fallen for several seconds, struggling to get her breath back. The sky was grey and cloudy above her head and the air was frosty. She could hear Amy beside her, groaning softly. She rolled over onto her stomach and gazed around at the unfamiliar surroundings. The grass was dry and yellow, and bare patches of muddy earth showed through in places. Grey boulders, their edges jagged and sharp lay liberally across the landscape. A few twisted dead-looking trees stood clustered near where the girls had landed and on the other side lay a stagnant and unpleasant swamp bordered by thick growths of straggly plants. The entire place reeked of death and decay.


"Is this it Is this the Obsidian Realm It's not what I imagined it to be," Amy grumbled. She sat up and looked around, her breath making puffs in the air in front of her face.


Chapter 34