Wild Born by Brandon Mull

The Spirit Animals series takes place in the fantasy world of Erdas. There, once you turn eleven, you drink a special nectar. If you're lucky, you'll summon a spirit animal, which links the human and the creature summoned, granting unique powers to both of them. There, we find out about the stories of four young kids: Conor, Rollan, Abeke, and Meilin. They've all summoned one of the four Fallen, powerful beasts who had previously died in battle. At the same time, an ancient evil is awakening, and they are the only ones who can stop it from taking over all of Erdas. As legends become reality, these four kids will travel great lengths to unite and fight for the fate of the world.

I really enjoyed the world that Mull created. I thought that the idea of Erdas was very clever and that it made sense in my head. There was also a lot of action, which kept the book interesting. However, I would say that I don't think some of the dialogue that the characters would say was very realistic. In some cases, a certain character wouldn't have been so transparent, and the progression of emotions was a little too quick for me. One moment, someone would be feeling one thing, and the next moment, they'd be thinking something else. There were also a lot of different named characters, so it was a little difficult to identify them individually, especially if they were amongst other characters. I'd have to go back to where they first appeared to determine who they were. Overall, though, it was an engaging book and I'd recommend it to any hardcore fantasy readers looking for something different to try.

Reviewed by LK, Grade 8