Mission to Shadow Sea (Future Hero #2) Remi Blackwood. 2023. 144 pages. [Source: Library]
First sentence: Jarell brushed his hand over the back of his head. It's got to be long enough now, right? he thought. At least his hair was finally more than stubble. On his last adventure to the kingdom of Ulfrika, the magical symbol had been burned away completely. He couldn't return until his hair was long enough to have a new symbol cut into it, but time was running out. He had to return to the ancient-future world of Ulfrika, find the remaining three iron animals, and stop the evil sorcerer Ikala before it was too late.
Premise/plot: Mission to Shadow Sea is the second book in the Future Hero fantasy series for young readers. Jarell--the future hero--travels via haircut and magic mirror to another world, Ulfrica. He has adventures (and sometimes misadventures) there. When he's not off risking it all and fighting against the odds, he lives in London, I believe.
My thoughts: I am not the target audience for this one. That doesn't mean I wouldn't recommend it. I would recommend, however, waiting until ALL the books in the series have been released. I imagine that this series would be at its absolute best if a reader--presumably young--sat down with a stack of books and fell absolutely in love with the series, the story, the characters, the adventure of it all.
The more detailed a fantasy world is, the more a reread is required in between books. Plus some fantasy books just require more investment. Fantasy can be hit or miss for me. And there usually isn't a reason why some fantasy novels I just am able to immerse myself into the world and escape...and others that just leave me puzzled and out of sorts. But I do think it's more of a me problem.
I remembered the real world, London, bits. I had a hazy memory of the fantasy world. (Probably it would be better if it was reversed.) Still, I don't have to personally love a series in order to recommend it to kids.
© 2023 Becky Laney of Young Readers
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