I don't always like comparing one book to another, but in this case it works. If you've enjoyed the Harry Potter books, and you're looking for another series that has magic, mystery and suspense, you need to try this book.

The plot starts out with a bang with Sewey (the man forced to adopt Bran after finding him in a bank vault) and Bran on the roof of the house trying to catch a thief. Instead they are attacked by some sort of creature that seems to want Bran. That starts Bran down the path to learning who is and who is mother was. The reader is brought along as he realizes what he thought is definitely not the truth and people are not who he thought they were. Bran learns that, in a city where it's out-lawed, he can do magic. I like how the magic was revealed - coming out when he needed it the most. Thankfully there were people to help him. But they didn't always give him all the answers or answers he wanted to hear. I did find some of this confusing because of the lack of details at this point. I think it was to make you relate to Bran - to feel what he did, but as a reader I needed a bit more .Plus there were a ton of details about the whole magically world, and I found myself lost now and again.

After the scene on the roof, the action builds nicely until a battle between Bran's past is fought. It is clear that this battle will solidly place Bran on one side or the other. It will help him learn the truth about him mother - the real truth and accept it. Nation did a nice job putting answers Bran needed within this final battle, it wasn't just a fight but one you needed to pay attention to if you wanted more of the story. That held my interest quite well! After this battle the book wraps up, but definitely sets up for further books in the series.

The book was enjoyable. I really liked Bran - a young man that could've been completely bitter about where his life was. Instead, as unexplained things start to happen to him, he jumps in and tries to come to terms with it. Not to say he's all fine and dandy with it. There is a scene where Bran runs away in the rain, that I found very understandable and real. This whole scene made me really feel for Bran and want to help him find answers and happiness. That is what will bring me back for future stories.

I do want to comment on a few other things in the story. The town Bran lives in has out-lawed all magic and gnomes - both accepted in the rest of the world. This was an interesting part of the plot because it made Bran's discovery even harder for him to accept - how could he have magic in a town that has laws against it?? The whole story line with the gnomes was interesting, but at times I wasn't sure why it was there. Maybe as the story progresses I'll learn. This was the same for the story-line of Rosie. As part of the family, she was more maid than anything, but she was Bran's only true friend in the house. I'm still not completely sure why it was included, but maybe it too will play a bigger role later on.

Final thought: Fun read and one to give to Harry Potter lovers that are looking for something new to read
Best stick-with-you image: When Sewey meets the gnome - you just need to read the book to know why!
Best for ages: 9ish-14 This one is more tween than teen

promised lots of action and suspense but poorly written

I think this is an addable book for our library collection. Although it is not as good as Harry Potter or Charlie Bone, I think the series will improve with time (or it could go the way of Eragon, I suppose.) I think he could use a better editor because quite often the first quotation mark to signify a character speaking is nonexistent. I think the better editor could have also addressed some of the other problems expressed in the SLJ and Kirkus reviews. ( )

Action, intrigue, magic and adventure – this one’s got it all! Fourteen year-old Bran was found inside a locked bank vault when he was six with no memory of his previous life. Now, there are strange creatures, mysterious black vans, a strange girl at a bookstore and the mystery of his parents to solve. Living in the city of Dunce with his obnoxious foster family, Bran is not your ordinary Duncelander. The author began writing this story when he was fourteen. Dissed by some reviewers for being influenced by Harry Potter, fans of that series may enjoy the first novel in Nation’s planned six novel series. Kirkus states the author “has a knack for crafting violent, quickly paced chases and fights” and to “look for better work down the line.” The second novel in the series The Specter Key was released in October 2010.--SJ Cournoyer

An excellent start to a series. In a lot of ways, it reminded me of Harry Potter, but at the same time, this story about a teenage mage is its own fantasy world. It's been a very long time since I read this book so I don't remember it too well, but I remember that I loved it and I cannot wait to read The Specter Key. ( )

This is a great first book it has magic, suspense, and may just have a little love well see how that goes in the next book. Bran's mother is killed when he is young kid and as her last act of love before being killed she teleports bran to a bank vault in the only place where magic is outlawed. Where his is taken in by a worker at the bank. Bran has no Idea who his parents are or that the were mages so when he starts to show magical abilities he has no clue what to do. Plus to top it all off someone is looking for him for what purpose though is unknown. ( )

Bran Hambric was found in a locked bank vault when he was 6. He had no memory of his previous life and, as law dictated, became the responsibility of the man who found him, Sewey Wilomas. Treated as unpaid servant by the Wilomass family, Bran slowly comes to realise that he is a mage and learns of his link to a magic curse created by his mother.
The last half of this book is fast-paced and exciting but it takes a while to get there with the first half concentrating a little too much on the Wilomas family. While these passages are very funny they don’t serve to advance the story. Suitable for readers aged 10 and up. ( )

Bran Hambric is a boy without a past. He was found inside a bank vault at the age of six and now lives with the Wilomas family, basically acting as their servant. They all live in the town of Dunce where no magic or gnomes are allowed. Bran is a unique boy with powers he doesn't understand and a past he'll soon have to face.

Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse's prologue begins in the past as Bran’s mother magically sends him away from a scene of death and violence. The story begins quick, with the promise of an action-filled tale. We’re uncertain as to who is good or bad and we gather that we’ll be figuring that out along the ride. Chapter one switches to the modern day where Bran Hambric is living with the Wilomas family. When a burglar tries to invade the Wilomas home, Bran and the eccentric Mr. Sewey Wilomas stake out a trap.

However, this encouraging opening quickly begins to wander. Until part II, at page 123, the interesting story is a bloated look at an angry family of unappealing and stereotyped characters. But, if readers can hang in there until page 123, Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse returns to its action-filled promise. There’s a good deal of foreshadowing and some new, and finally interesting, characters introduced. Bran begins to learn about himself and the story begins to follow a more traditional bildungsroman format. The premise is an interesting one, with a few well-done literary devices, like the use of the overheard conversation and repetitive language used to good effect. It would be remiss to ignore the obvious borrowings from Harry Potter, but perhaps this is not a fault of Mr. Nation so much as a characteristic of the next generation of writers who’ve devoured the series and encapsulated the masterful Rowling stylings in their own writing.

Still, there’s really way too much running around in Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse that leads to nowhere. An editor could have alleviated this with a sharp pen that cut much of the extraneous garble mucking the tale. The freshman effort of Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse shouldn’t take away from the possibility of Mr. Nation’s future odds. He has some good ideas (see more about his Twilight guy site below); he thought up a good story. With a few more writing lessons and an editor with a mightier pen, he’s certainly got the potential to offer a better sophomore effort, be it a Bran Hambric sequel or a new idea waiting to pop forth from this wunderkind.

Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse seems suited for strong readers who are willing to stay with a long-winded fantasy tale. Reluctant readers could lose focus and have difficulty with awkward wording and redundant content.

Please see my complete review of this title on Reading Rumpus. Thanks for reading! ( )

Perhaps I just wasn't young enough to appreciate this book, but I found myself really losing interest in it. I persisted as long as I could, but finally gave up at the end of chapter 15. Obviously the problem is mine since other people seem to have enjoyed it, but I just couldn't get into it. ( )

Nation has constructed an interesting and imaginative world in Bran Hambric. It’s Potter-esque lore of magic and mysticism is likely to enthrall the most reluctant of middle-grade and young adult aged readers.

Where it falls a bit short, however, is segueing into the audience of adult readers which I whole-heartedly recognize is not it’s purpose or goal. While the vivid imagery and creative characterizations make great strides in that direction the slower story-telling made it difficult to grab hold and really stay invested in the outcome. This is exemplified most in the heavy focus on the character of Sewey. A healthy amount of time was spent showcasing his curmudgeonly and grumpy nature — a point that was made several chapters in and would have sufficed. Moreover, what made this aspect more difficult to deal with was the fact that his constant presence didn’t do much to further the main plot. Ultimately I struggled with the fact that this focus was time that could have been spent developing far more critical characters.

In my humble opinion, a great place to focus some of that attention would have been in further developing Emry. Now, I caveat this by saying that the lack of true depth of focus on Emry may have been designed to keep the mystery of her involvement in the Farfield Curse alive….but, still there could have been more focus on her in a historical perspective so that the ultimate reveal at the end of the story was more powerful. The same holds true of characters involved in the Farfield aspect of the plot — more on Elspeth, Joris and other critical characters to the story of the Curse and it’s role in Bran’s life may have provided the reader more investment in the story earlier on.

Speaking of the curse it took us over 2/3 of the book to really get deeper into that part of the story. This was a shame since it was the best and most thought provoking part of the novel. It is here that Nation found his stride as he revealed secrets long held back and allowed the reader to see how character’s lives were truly intertwined. There were unexpected connections and surprising revelations that finally gave the reader that ‘can’t put it down’ page turner aspect they longed for. It is in the chapters where Bran is in Farfield that the most compelling and enjoyable parts of the story are provided. Furthermore, Nation did an excellent job of making the mystery mysterious, I did not find myself predicting what was going to happen. The foreshadowing was subtle and kept the doors open for events to happen any number of ways. I appreciated that I wasn’t lead through the story with my hand held the entire time.

Nation’s Bran Hambric series has enormous potential and despite what I personally found to be hurdles I can see the appeal of this book for it’s target audience. I would certainly recommend this first book to middle graders and younger skewing young adults. Further, given the writing and plotting of the last 1/3 of this book I too am interested to see if the next book in Bran’s story picks up where Nation found his stride in Farfield Curse. ( )

When he was six years old, a child was found in a locked bank vault in the city of Dunce. He's suffering from amnesia and only a small scrap of paper offers a clue: his name, Bran Hambric. His parents' whereabouts are unknown, and so according to Dunce law, whoever found him is responsible for his welfare. The task is entrusted to Sewey and Mabel Wilomas. But nobody, not even Bran, realizes how important the boy's survival is, and his connection to the titular Farfield Curse.

Reading Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse, the similarities of Harry Potter will occur. However, after the publication of the Potter series, such comparisons were inevitable. Literature throughout the ages has been littered with the archetype of the hero, a boy of extraordinary power and living in ordinary circumstances. Bran Hambric has another thing in common with Mr. Potter: A sharply written novel with an engaging characters, a twisting storyline, and equal dashes of humor and action.

Author Kaleb Nation started Bran Hambric when he was fourteen years old. He completed the novel in 2007. It all started with his imagining a boy and a banker waiting on a rooftop for a burglar to arrive. As Nation tells it, he wrote five hundred pages in six to nine months. The result is a novel meant for middle grades but enjoyable by all ages.

Starting in on Bran Hambric, once I was invested in the story, I didn't want to leave. You know a book is good when you'll torture yourself on an elliptical for another thirty minutes to read it! The characterization is great, from the curmudgeonly yet likable Sewey Wilomas (my favorite) his health-obsessed wife Mabel to the characters who aid Bran Hambric in his search for the truth - Adi and Astara. The book is filled with scenes of Bran's family life, Sewey's outlandish behavior, the mysterious world of gnomes, mages, and etc. This wait for more action, however, might bore younger readers. With so many wild incidents (odd occurences at a town fair, an unusual bookstore visit), older readers should be entertained nonetheless. The villain, Baslyn, is amiss for a good deal of the book, but his evil presence still fills the novel, making the confrontation of him and Bran thoroughly creepy, and worthwhile.

Nation has mentioned he has enough material written by five more sequels, and hopefully, Bran Hambric: The Farfield Curse leaves readers anticipating more, as Bran is a promising new character whose story has much left to tell. ( )

Let's review. A young boy is adopted by a family that doesn't really want him and presses him into servitude. As it happens, this boy with a mysterious background possesses a talent for magic. Suddenly, he finds himself drawn into a world of magical beings that he never knew existed, where he attempts to prevent an evil wizard from returning to power. Normally, I consciously stay away from comparing books like this. I thought it was important to point out in this case, because when you write a book with such obvious connections to a powerhouse like the Harry Potter series... well, you better make sure you bring your A game.

Does Kaleb Nation manage to pull it off? I think he manages quite handily. The Farfield Curse introduces the reader to a richly detailed world, very similar to our own, but more intriguing in its differences. Dunce is really a modern-day sort of Anytown; it probably sounds like your hometown. Yet there is an entire secret world hiding just below the surface, and I loved watching it come to light.

Bran himself is an engaging protagonist, with that underdog-but-upbeat air that will instantly have me rooting for a character. His search to uncover his own past as he seeks to safeguard his future kept me furiously turning pages. I would have liked to see a bit more emotional depth from Bran and his friends, but there's going to be a sequel, so I'm sure I'll get a chance. I think I may be judging the emotion a bit unfairly by comparing it to other series that have had several books to develop relationships.

I also want to give a brief mention to the cover art, which I LOVE. The Bran Hambric cover was created by Brandon Dorman, who also did the cover of Savvy. I think the cover does a fantastic job of conveying the excitement and mystery of this story, and the use of color is awesome. ( )