AWorld Without Heroes by Brandon Mull is an epic fantasy novel for kids around 12 years and more. The story is different and this would probably appeal to most readers, especially those who have grown up on the Harry Potter saga. But the real strength of the book lies in the weird and interesting characters, a weirder magical world and a queer atmosphere.

Jason is a normal kid living a regular life until he falls into a strange magical world after falling down a Hippopotamus’ throat! There he unwillingly becomes part of a quest, although all he wants to do is return home.

Jason finds himself in the midst of all the trouble that is taking place in this magical land, where an evil emperor rules unopposed by disposing or dealing with his enemies in different ways. The themes of corrupt leadership and government, injustice and conflict between different races of people and creatures are dealt with in a way that would not make it seem too boring for tweens.

Each character in the book has been created with a lot of thought by the writers and even the secondary characters seem well-written. There are some who have the ability to detach their body parts and there are others with the gift of immortality due to a seed-like cyst on the back of their neck that, when planted in soil after they die, can make them be reborn as adults!

Like Jason, there are regular human folks too. Helping Jason is a young girl, Rachel, who is also stranded in this strange world. The different personalities and skills of these two complement each other and make them well-suited to fix things in this magical world without getting into serious trouble.

Seeds of Rebellion is the next book in the series and Brandon Mull makes sure that the ending of A World Without Heroes is a cliff-hanger, so that the readers feel compelled to read the next one.

Published in Dawn, Young World, March 3rd, 2018