Urgle by Meaghan McIsaac

Taken from Waterstones.com:
"'When the next baby is dropped, I will leave to make room for him. He will take my place.' Abandoned at birth, the Brothers of the Ikkuma Pit know no mothers. They fend for themselves, each training their Little Brother to survive - until they grow into men and it's time for their Leaving Day. No boy knows what's beyond the forest. No Brother who left has ever come back. Until now..."

I wasn't sure what to think of Urgle. The title didn't immediately grab me and neither did the cover but when I read the blurb it sounded interesting and so I took the opportunity to give it a go. It turned out to be pretty good! It wasn't one of those books that I got hooked on but when I sat down to read it I enjoyed it. The pacing is good and the world building is quite good although I never felt like I got a proper feel for each place. I loved the idea of the story and the setting though and the place names are brilliant. There's just something really satisfying about saying "Ikkuma."

Urgle is a brilliant character. At no point is he the brilliant action hero you find in most books. He constantly lacks confidence or ability but he has something he wants to achieve and won't let anything stop him. Things don't always go smoothly (although the characters cope with their injuries vary well for the most part) and this all makes Urgle feel very human.

I'm not sure if this novel is a stand alone or part of a series. The way it finished could go either way although it indicates that there may be more to come. Part of me desperately hopes it is a stand alone novel as I'm getting a bit fed up with series as there are so many and it is so hard to keep track of them all, but I definitely would not be opposed to reading the sequel.

It was an enjoyable read that has distinct echoes of The Knife of Never Letting Go and so if you loved that then you should like Urgle. It's one of those rare books that will appeal to both boys and girls and is actually a great recommend for boys (for those who have read the usual Muchamore, Horowitz and Higson I'm starting to run out of ideas!). I didn't pick up on any issues with language or content and so would be reasonably confident recommending it to younger teenagers.

I give it 7/10.

Title: Urgle
Author: Meaghan McIsaac
Publisher: Anderson Press
Teenage Fiction