Title: Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse
Author: Kaleb Nation
You'll like this if: You like gnomes, magic, Harry Potter, Twilight and the Twilight guy.

Early last year, I found a little website by the name of KalebNation.com. After browsing the site for a while (four hours, omg!), I decided it was high time I emailed its teen writer, Kaleb. Never in a million years did I think he would respond, but, to my surprise, he did!

Now, after multiple emails and Facebook conversations, I can honestly say Kaleb is one of the nicest bloggers out there. Within a couple of weeks from our first conversation, he told me about the novel he was writing and asked if I'd like to read the first few chapters. Needless to say, I've been hooked on Kaleb's main character, Bran, from the first. This novel is truly magical!

In a bustling metropolis where magic is outlawed, a six-year-old child is found inside a locked bank vault. A scrap of paper reveals his name: Bran Hambric. The child remembers nothing of his life before the vault. Only magic could have done this. But why would any mage risk breaking the law to place a child in a bank vault?

Eight years later the City of Dunce has forgotten about Bran. Even his foster parents don't seem to know he exists. But there are those who have been watching, biding their time, waiting to strike, people who know where Bran came from and why he was sent away. And they will do anything to get Bran back, dead or alive… - Sourcebooks

Bran Hambric: The Farefield Curse is not only wonderfully magical, but also brims with mystery and suspense. If you love Harry Potter and Twilight, this novel is for you.

Set against a world where computers and gnomes live in union, Bran Hambric: The Farefield Curse is a breath of fresh air in a vampire saturated industry. Kaleb Nation has skillfully crafted characters that struggle with the idea of good versus evil, while managing to maintain a bit of fun in the novel.


First and foremost, I love gnomes. I love their pointy hats. I love their small stature. I love their attitude. No surprise that I love Polland, the main gnome in Bran Hambric: The Farefield Curse.

One of the things I always loved about Harry Potter was the way it always managed to incorporate politics. Imagine my surprise to see Kaleb Nation do so seamlessly. Not an easy task, my friends. Not an easy task.

LOVE LOVE LOVE (did I mention, LOVE) that Bran has to struggle with the concept that his mother might have been evil. LOVE.

Love that Astara is a music junkie. I feel you, Astara. Truly, I do.

Really like the idea of Bran's necklace.



They all looked back, aghast: some of them fearful, some of them disbelieving. Astara rose to her feet slowly, surrounded on all sides by glass, like a river trapping her on an island.

Everyone was silent.

Bran glanced to his shoulder, where the glass had struck him and a thin line of blood was gathering down his arm. He wiped it away, and looked back to the men.

"I asked you," he said, "what sort of tricks do you have in mind?"


Personally, I found all of the Wilomas annoying. Extremely annoying. As in, I-want-to-lock-them-in-a-dungeon-and-forget-they-ever-existed annoying.

While I love Rosie, I'm not exactly sure why she was in the story. I almost wanted her to end up being evil towards the end.

SPOILER:

"Karl Yultz devised, with years of research, a powerful Drimra magic which would allow him to separate his spirit from his material body: to place it elsewhere, into a host, so that in keeping it preserved and separate, the body, while missing its soul, would not age or decay, until both were brought together again."

Does that sound familiar to anybody else? A horcrux perhaps? I'm pretty sure I read something pretty similar in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.


While I'm at it....

"His mind didn't even allow him to consider what he was doing. He held his ground, pushing against the force of the truck - and in front of him, he saw the metal bending and breaking inward, smashing and crumbling."

Hey Bran, perhaps you should become friends with Edward Cullen. It seems you both have a thing for stopping moving objects from hitting women you love.


Both of these parts in the story were semi-cringe worthy for me. And not because they were poorly written, but rather because both have become cliches. From here on out, authors can't rely on a damsel in distress to be the catalyst for their story. It is tired and trite.


Although there were a couple of things that irked me, in general, I really enjoyed this novel. If you are looking for something new and interesting, Bran Hambric: The Farefield Curse is a pretty safe bet. I can honestly say I look forward to reading more from the talented Kaleb Nation.

Rating for Bran Hambric: The Farefield Curse by Kaleb Nation : A-