REVIEW for Beyonders

Thank you goes out to Simon & Schuster for sending me this book.

TITLE:               Beyonders

AUTHOR:          Brandon Mull

GENRE:             Middle Grade YA

RATING:            4 Stars

For those who read this blog regularly, you know that I don't normally read this type of book, however, I was quite curious by the book, having heard quite a few things about it before reading it.

I felt myself "adopting" the main character in this book - Jason who is a cute 13 year old who is, surprisingly, NOT annoying!  His love of animals was another aspect of his "personality" that I really liked and something we share.

In association with this, Jason finds himself in a very different universe - in, of all things - a hippos mouth, in the land of Lyrian - which makes him a "Beyonders"....  or outsider.

What follows is an absolute world of magic, wizards and secrets.  Extremely well weaved together, the basic premise is very clever and entertaining.  I love how the author creates such a make believe world that is both good and bad, where things and events you could only imagine in your mind can become real.  I especially loved the luscious descriptions of the cool landscapes - making my mind work overtime, imagining what it all looks like.

Smart and fun, I actually found myself enjoying this very different kind of storytelling (for me at least).  Yes, to some, it might sound a bit like Harry Potter, but I think this author went a step further. 

It was fun to read!