Genre: MG Fantasy
Rating: A
For: Review and Supporting Local Authors
From: ARC sent by the publisher (Simon and Schuster) for review (Release date: March 15, 2011)
I was so excited to be on the list to somehow to get to this ARC for review. I really need to figure out how to get on the list for more of my local authors.
I found this book, which is quite a bit different from the Fablehaven series, to be really a lot of fun! It's about Jason, who slips from this world into the world of Lyrian where he ends up being drawn into a quest to find the syllables of a magic word. A word that said out loud to the evil emperor will instantly destroy him. He also hopes to find, along the way, a gateway for getting back home.
The people in this world have seen his kind before and call them Beyonders. In fact, Jason meets up with another Beyonder, Rachel, who joins the cause in the search of The Word. They meet all sorts of crazy characters as they go. People who can detach body parts yet stay alive, giant man-eating frogs, a blind crazy king, people who grow from the dirt. They see all sorts of crazy places like the spinning pub, the white lake, the eternal feast, and a really bad dungeon.
It's quite the adventure! And they learn that in this world, which appears to have no heroes, some can rise above the oppression of the emperor and become a hero anyway, despite all the odds.
Then, of course it ends just as things really get going. That's so we know, without a doubt, that there's much MUCH more left to come.
Bottom line: I really enjoyed it a lot. Sometimes I wanted a little more, I wanted a little edge to it, a little romance, but since this is after all, written for a bit of a younger audience, the edges are smooth. That's not to say there's not scary page turning parts, and that bad crazy things don't happen to our characters. Because they do. And be warned, some of it is pretty nasty. Still, it's all fairly tame, and I must be used to the edgy stuff now.
Launch party tomorrow! I'm excited! I'll let you know how it goes, and hopefully take successful pictures. Then, I'll have my daughter read this and let you know what she thinks of it.
Other Reviews:
My Love Affair With Books
Book Dads
Icey Books
The Story Girl
This trailer is actually pretty awesome if you're interested and enjoy trailers:
I can't hear you, I can't hear you!
ReplyDelete(Hands over ears!)
I did not read this review - I got the book yesterday at the Tucson Book Festival and I'm starting it soon. Brandon was an awesome speaker - probably one of the best at the Festival and definitely the best I saw. I even got a great photo op with him. He was thrilled that the Festival had permission to sell the books early and there were many excited fans buying them all out!!
Okay, I admit I saw your first sentence and that you had the trailer - but no more. I want to read the book and have no other influences. I was just glad to see that you still love him!
My phone has this really cool app on it that if I take a photo of the symbol on the back of the book I can see the book trailer right away. We tested it out yesterday and it was awesome! Brandon was proud!
Thanks for mentioning my sister's review! :)
ReplyDeleteI haven't read this one yet, but have heard people say that the author's Fablehaven series are better. I think I will give it a try.
Great review---I may pick this one up for my boy Sam to read during the read-a-thon. I usually try to purchase him 1 new book. He was a big fan of the Fablehaven series-
ReplyDelete*smiles*
Hey, just posted my review today :) Hopefully I'll see you at the event tonight!
ReplyDeleteI loved Fablehaven but had some problems with this one. Thanks for the complete review.
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