Questors

A boy, a girl and an in-between from three very different worlds are suddenly lifted out of their usual lives and transported to a parallel London. They discover that they have been genetically engineered as heroic questors who can restore balance to their magical world system. They must bring back a quest object from each of their three worlds. Needless to say, they succeed in doing so and save the worlds just as the compression of the pages indicates that we are hastening together to a happy conclusion.

It must be very hard to write an original fantasy novel – the conventions can be so hackneyed. Lennon makes it quite obvious that she knows this: ‘They build those things out of clichés and stereotypes,’ comments one of the characters. She solves this problem with knowing, amusing uses of such stereotypes. Why is there a London in every world? Because Londoners have always thought they were the centre of the universe, and so, of course, they are. There are lots of good jokes for the intelligent reader, but this can also be read as a fast-moving fantasy yarn. The three-world setting and the three central characters are varied and well distinguished, and the plot is eventful. An enjoyable, unchallenging read for those who already like fantasy.