454 pages
"Jason Walker has often wished his life could be a bit less predictable - until a routine day at the zoo ends with Jason transporting from the hippo tank to a strange, imperiled world. Lyrian is full of dangers and challenges unlike any place Jason has ever known. The people live in fear of their malicious wizard emperor, Maldor. The brave resistors who once opposed Maldor have been bought off or broken, leaving a realm where fear and suspicion prevail.
In his search for a way home, Jason meets Rachel, who was also mysteriously drawn to Lyrian from our world. Jason and Rachel become entangled in a quest to piece together the word of power that can destroy the emperor, and learn that their best hope to find a way home will be to save this world without heroes." -Dust Jacket
I really like Brandon Mull both as a person and as an author. My daughter and I heard him read the first chapter of this book at our local library before it was published and his excitement about the story was contagious. (Apparently he's been working on this story since before Fablehaven.) It is a very different story than Fablehaven, yet some of the elements that made that series so popular are present in this series: a boy and girl as the main characters, an interesting story, magical creatures, and an evil wizard trying to rule the world. Jason and Rachel didn't come to life as quickly for me as Seth and Kendra did and at times it felt like Jason was acting well beyond his 13 years. Thinking about it though, the fact that Seth and Kendra are brother & sister makes the witty banter between them much easier than it would obviously be between two strangers who are thrown together. I had a small issue with some of the vocabulary (i.e. big words that aren't used a lot in every day language). I'm pretty sure my 11-year-old won't understand some of it. I'm also pretty sure she won't grab a dictionary and look them up.
Having said that, my criticisms are very few and far between. It's great that an author can write more than one interesting, fun, captivating world. I loved the Displacers and the Amar Kabal. They have some pretty cool character traits. I love the Blind King. I love the first chapter. It sucks you right in. I love that Jason acts older than he is. (Yes, both a criticism and something I enjoyed as an adult reader.) There are some great twists and turns in this book, including the ending, and a fight with billiard balls that's a hilarious example of the author's quirky sense of humor. The supporting characters are well-written and likable. One of the things that I absolutely love about Mull books is that they are 100% appropriate for kids. There is never any bad language and there is usually a moral or two thrown in there. I love the theme of heroes throughout this book and the message that accompanies it. I have yet to meet a Brandon Mull book that I haven't thoroughly enjoyed.
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