Katherine Rundell's latest novel, The Neverfear, confirms the resemblance between her work and that of JK Rowling, not least now that she has secured a seven-figure deal for the movie rights to her Impossible Creatures series. The book is out now from Bloomsbury, priced at £16.99.
A hero in the Rowling mould
The hero, Christopher, is a lonely motherless boy without any obvious friends who joyfully embraces a world of half-weird, half-familiar creatures in the archipelago he enters through a portal in a river. The story features a Hagrid-like figure in the berserker Nighthand, who has a soft centre despite his huge bulk and fighting spirit, and a scholarly Nereid called Irian who shares her knowledge with her young charges.
The feisty young princess-heroine Anya, Christopher's friend, and the sinister embodiment of evil, Astor Morax, with his weird snake aspect, also call the world of Rowling to mind, as does the concept of mixed species. The review describes the book as the Harry Potter of today.
Classical motifs and comparisons
Part of the charm of Rowling's imaginative universe is the play with classical motifs, and the same applies here. The friends' mission is to rescue Irian, who has been taken hostage by a female agent of Astor Morax, and they must replay the labours of Hercules to get her back. Like Harry Potter, Christopher encounters the three-headed dog Cerberus, but he happens to have a gift for communing with other creatures.
Rundell's enthusiasts are legion and classy. Queen Camilla has authorised her book as a Christmas present to year 6 children, and Michael Morpurgo compares her to Tolkien. That comparison does not wash, though she is an academic with a stamping ground in the 17th century. The comparison that really comes to mind is with Rowling.
A better writer, less identifiable characters
Rundell is a better writer than Rowling in style rather than storytelling, but her characters are less instantly true and identifiable; much of the sentiment is asserted rather than felt. Yet the book offers children an escape from the online world into an archipelago of fabulous creatures and brave friends.
