YA Friday: Seeds of Rebellion by Brandon Mull

Title: Seeds of Rebellion
Author: Brandon Mull
Series: Beyonders #2
Genre: MG, YA, fantasy
Publisher: Aladdin, 2012
Source: Received from publisher
Read for: Review

**SPOILERS** for A World Without Heroes, book 1 of Beyonders, are imminent.

Jason Walker has returned to his own world in the midst of the conflict with Maldor, having discovered that the secret word he quested for in the first book was a fluke. Now he is desperate to get back to Lyrian. Meanwhile, Rachel is still in Lyrian, uncertain of Jason's fate, when she learns that she has a powerful gift -- a gift Maldor will do anything to seize.

I remember in the first book of the Beyonders series being stunned by how packed with adventure and excitement the book was. Seeds of Rebellion has possibly surpassed its predecessor. While I gave A World Without Heroes four stars on GoodReads, for some reason when I look back on it I remember having a mediocre experience. With Seeds of Rebellion, I was really impressed at how quickly the book engaged me and how much I enjoyed it.

The only thing that truly bothered me with Seeds of Rebellion was that for much of the first hundred pages or so, I really could not remember many of the characters from the first book. I remembered the general premise and many of the main plot points, but the characters were vague for me. I think this is partly because I read the book over a year ago, but more than this I think it is because both novels are packed with new characters. Both novels are somewhat episodic in nature, with the characters jumping from adventure to adventure and picking up many new friends (and enemies) along the way. While things slowly came back to me or were re-explained, I did feel that all of the information made the book harder to retain.

However, I did enjoy the characters and the adventurous plot. Although at times Jason seemed a little flat to me in this installment of the trilogy, I was very pleased with Rachel's increased powers and her growing importance in the story. For much of the first book, Rachel had to sit on the sidelines (although she did play a very important part in one section). In this book, Rachel is the genuine hero as she discovers her talents and the ways they can help the cause of defeating Maldor. I also enjoyed getting to know more of the diverse peoples and creatures of Lyrian.

I also really enjoyed the plot. The adventures were once again non-stop, making Seeds of Rebellion a very exciting read. It is clear that Brandon Mull has vast stores of imagination, because we go from adventure to adventure at such a rapid pace through all these different worlds and races. At times I wished that we could spend a bit more time with each one, but it was interesting to be exposed to so many different groups. I think my favorite adventure in Seeds of Rebellion was that involving the Forbidden Kingdom, a walled off piece of Lyrian from which no traveler can ever return, due to its infestation with the living dead. I love a good, creepy zombie story.

I also enjoyed Mull's writing. While the level tends to be about middle grade, this book feels more young adult to me due to the increased violence from other books by Mull (such as the Fablehaven books). One quote in particular stood out to me, enough that I wanted to share it -- I think the image is conveyed so poignantly.

Rachel had never envisioned such virtuosity with a weapon. It was like watching a concert pianist play an impossible piece of music, fingers flying to strike mind-boggling patterns of notes and to pound sprawling chords. No, it was more than that. It was like watching that pianist play an impossible piece with dynamite strapped to his back, rigged to detonate if he touched a wrong note.

Fairly awesome, in my opinion.

While there are certain aspects of Seeds of Rebellion that didn't work perfectly for me, I was very caught up in the excitement of the story. I am looking forward to the final book in the trilogy and the exciting conclusion that awaits.

3.75 stars

Warnings: Violence

And the winner is...

Well, today I drew names for the winner of the Fablehaven set. With Brandon Mull's new book, Beyonders:A World Without Heroes being released tomorrow, this person should have plenty of awesome fantasy to get through.

The winner is...

SARA
at
http://SMreine.com

Sara, please email me your mailing address within the next 24 hours to claim your prize. Oh, and by the way, when I was letting her know about her prize I saw that she has a book of her own coming out in a month! So head over to her website and check it out. Congratulations Sara!

Thanks to everyone else who entered the contest! :)

YA Friday: Beyonders: A World Without Heroes and Giveaway

When I received an email asking me to review the first book in local author Brandon Mull's new trilogy, Beyonders, I jumped all over it. I was reading the first book of the Fablehaven series at the time and enjoying it. I expected a mildly enjoyable fantasy adventure, but this book blew me away. I believe the words I used when I was talking to my husband last night were "sick awesome."

Jason is a Beyonder - a person who has slipped into Lyrian from another world, in this case ours. He enters through the portal of a hippopotamus's mouth and finds a group of musicians cheerfully floating in a raft to their death. However, the suicidal musicians, known as the Giddy Nine, are just the beginning of the bizarre things Jason encounters in Lyrian. Soon Jason finds himself caught up in a quest to destroy the evil emperor Maldor, who has absolute control over the land. No one is willing to risk their safety or their comfort to improve life (thus, A World Without Heroes). However, Jason and Rachel, another Beyonder he finds along the way, are determined to fulfill their quest and save Lyrian from Maldor.

Beyonders is more intense than Fablehaven, or at least the Fablehaven book that I have read. There are many battle scenes that often relate in the death of characters. Creatures called displacers lead to especially gory moments, but I'll leave it to you to read the book to find out what displacers are. The book is definitely more violent than I was expecting, but we are talking more of the epic fantasy violence (think Harry Potter or Redwall). The world that Brandon Mull has created is a dark and dangerous place, full of manipulative men and dangerous creatures (my favorite? An army of giant, flesh-eating frogs).

It was very interesting to see that world developed. At the beginning of the book, I was confused at times. Jason is thrust into the world very quickly, within the first few pages, and the characters talk very matter-of-factly about their world without really explaining anything to Jason. At first, this really annoyed me. There were so many unfamiliar words and places and I felt lost in the book. However, in retrospect I think this was a great literary device. Mull caused me to feel just how Jason was feeling, surrounded by the unfamiliar. Slowly the confusing things were explained, but they weren't conveniently defined at the beginning of the story. Jason had to figure things out as he traveled and so did we. I was impressed with how thoroughly Brandon Mull fleshed out this world, complete with traditions, customs, and laws.

However, I also enjoyed the way modern experiences from our world influenced Jason's survival in Lyrian. A pitcher, he saves his skin more than once by hurling objects with high accuracy at high speeds. He also uses experiences from his life in a battle of wits with one of the most devious men in Lyrian.

One of the parts of the book I most enjoyed were the characters (ok, so that's usually what I most enjoy). I've found that occasionally in YA and MG books, the characters seem flat to me because the author is writing for a shorter book for a younger audience and doesn't flesh out the complexities of human nature. However, this book is full of contradictions. Jason himself has to overcome his conflicting desires to just go home or to sacrifice everything and become a hero for Lyrian. The character Ferrin is also an interesting character study. I won't say much about him, but I was struck with his apparent easy-going nature and his willingness to instantly dispatch anyone who opposed him when he was traveling with Jason and Rachel. And Maldor himself was a fantastic villain, as devious and manipulative as they come. His hold of power on the land of Lyrian is so perfectly executed and held, it is no surprise that no one attempts to oppose him. Instead of torturing and maiming his most determined opponents, he offers them a life in a paradise of rich food and addictive pleasures. They usually go willingly and never return. He is charismatic and persuasive - I think he is a good personification of the devil. Even as I was hating him for being so organized and good at evil, I relished the complexities of his character. The only character I would have liked more development with was Rachel. While she has a few shining moments, she is mainly in the background of this book. Lyrian is a misogynistic place where women are not supposed to speak out of turn or be independent, but I'm hoping that she gets more of a voice in the next books in the trilogy.

Overall, this was an awesome book. I am looking forward to the next installments of the trilogy, coming in spring 2012 and spring 2013. It is a fascinating adventure that I couldn't put down.

Readability - A little confusing at the beginning, like I explained earlier in the review, but everything comes together.
Plot - 4
Characters - 5
Writing - 3 - at times a little cheesy, but well done overall.
Personal response - 4
Overall - 4

I am also excited to announce that I will be holding a GIVEAWAY - my very first! Aladdin books has generously given me all five Fablehaven books to give away as a set to one lucky US resident. Here are the rules:

1. You must be a US resident.
2. You must be 13 years old or older.
3. You don't have to be a follower to enter - but if you like the blog I hope you will follow. ;)
4. To enter, comment with your email address by 11:59 PM MST on Sunday, March 13. I will draw a name out of a hat on Monday and email the winner.
5. Just one entry per person!

Good luck! :)

FTC Disclosure: Book received from publisher

YA Friday: Fablehaven by Brandon Mull

I have decided to start a Weekly Thing on my blog (my first ever!). I have always considered this blog to be eclectic - I read so many different genres of books that I could never specialize in just one. While I enjoyed YA before I started blogging, I generally did not read it. However, since joining the blogosphere, I have come into contact with many fabulous YA bloggers that have recommended many fabulous YA books. I've been reading much more YA and middle grade books lately. While I still don't consider YA and middle grade to be my primary reading fare (YA is like a delicious dessert after a satisfying steak dinner of classics), I definitely want to spread the word about the great books I'm discovering. So henceforth, at least for a trial run, Fridays at The Story Girl are designated YA Friday and I will review my most recent YA reads.

So without further ado...

Fablehaven by Brandon Mull is about a brother and sister's visit to their grandparents mysterious home. Grandma and Grandpa have always been elusive, never coming to visit together or allowing family members to stay for long, and Kendra and Seth, their grandchildren, are nervous about spending several days alone with them. Soon, they discover that their grandparents' estate is actually Fablehaven, a reserve for mythical creatures. While fascinating, many of these creatures are dangerous. After a terrifying turn of events, responsibility falls to Kendra and Seth to save their grandparents, the reserve, and possibly even the world.

Fablehaven was recommended to me by a friend who had attended an author signing with an index card, because she didn't have enough money to purchase the books. When Brandon Mull saw her index card, he pulled a copy of Fablehaven off his stack and generously gave it to her, free of charge. :) She loves to say that he made a wise financial decision that day, because she bought the remaining four books in the series and recommends him to everyone she meets.

I was quite pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed Fablehaven. Because it is a middle grade book, I worried that it would be overly simplistic or cheesy. However, the plot was fascinating and kept me spellbound. I usually read when I work out, but I didn't with this book because it was my friend's signed copy. Therefore, I only had time to read little bits of it at night, and I always read more than I intended to read. The world Mull has created is unique, and he reveals it slowly, tantalizing the reader with glimpses that are often left unexplained for a few pages. At times, the more sinister mythical creatures totally freaked me out, which is something I love in a book. I would be reading late at night after work and freak myself out so much that I was scared to walk in the dark hall to my bedroom.

I also enjoyed the characters. Kendra and Seth, the main protagonists, are very different and have a very typical brother/sister relationship. They get on each others' nerves and enjoy getting the other in trouble. Kendra is too cautious, afraid to get involved in the magic of Fablehaven, and Seth is too impetuous, meddling far too much with the mythical creatures and making dangerous mistakes in the process. Both of them undergo some development as they are challenged and tested. Seth learns to be more careful and considerate, and Kendra is forced to face danger in order to save her family. I enjoyed this realistic portrayal of two young children becoming heroes.

The writing also vividly portrayed the magical world. I really like descriptive books. I like to be able to completely picture the scene before me, and Mull does a great job of painting a compelling portrait without weighing down the writing with lengthy descriptive passages, which would probably be fatal in a book aimed at middle grade readers. I loved the descriptions of the different varieties of fairies - from a furry blue one to one that looks Asian, there are dozens of varieties described. I also particularly enjoyed the description of Muriel Taggart, although it was anything but beautiful -

Her long, white hair was matted and had a sickly yellowish tint. One of her filmy eyes was terribly bloodshot. She was missing teeth, and there was blood on the knot she was chewing, apparently from her gums. Her pale arms, bare almost to the shoulder, were thin and wrinkled, with faint blue veins and a few purple scabs.

She makes an excellent witch.

My one complaint about the writing is that the dialogue was occasionally cheesy and seemed a bit forced. At times, when Kendra and Seth were learning something new about Fablehaven, the grandparents would just say something along the lines of "That's okay, we'll talk about it later." I think the story would have flowed better if the children could have had their questions answered when they were asked. Putting the explanation off was occasionally confusing, and just seemed a little awkward to me.

But in general, a very enjoyable read. I am planning on finishing the rest of the Fablehaven series at some point, although it may take me quite a while to get there! I would recommend this book to fantasy lovers or someone who just wants a quick, adventurous little escape.

Readability - Easy read.
Plot - 4
Characters - 4
Literary merit/Aesthetics - 3
Personal Response - 3
Overall: 3.5