Wereworld, No 1
Curtis Jobling
Viking Juvenile
September 20, 2011/ ISBN 0670013307
Tween (ages 9-12) / Fantasy / Magic
Amazon
Reviewed
by Carmen Ferreiro
Drew is only a shepherd's son, or so he believes, until a hairy
beast kills his mother while he watches helpless and horrified as
he himself changes into a wolf. Pursued by his father - - who thinks
he is the murderer - - the boy hides in the wilderness.
A chance encounter with a forester some months later will bring
Drew back to civilization and into the 'paws' of the werelords-
- the shape-shifters that rule Lyssia - - and the tyrant king, the
werelion who is intent on killing him.
If he wants to survive, Drew must learn quickly how to control his
wolf part- - the part he never knew he had and that marks him as
the son of the late king.
Although the premise of the peasant boy with a destiny is hardly
original, I loved the world that Curtis Jobling (designer of the
TV show “Bob the Builder”) has created, a medieval like
society where humans are ruled by shape-shifters with superhuman
strength and self-healing powers. I found myself caught up in the
multiple adventures of the reluctant hero and his friends.
My main complaint is that the female characters are poorly developed.
They are the standard old-fashioned damsels in distress who need
to be rescued. Hopefully this will change in the next installment.
Wereworld
Shadow of the Hawk (Jan 5, 2012) AMAZON
Rage of Lions (Jun 19, 2012) AMAZON
Reviewer's
Note: Curtis Jobling is British illustrator/animator
of
"Bob the Builder"
TV show.
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