• A World Without Heroes

  • By: Brandon Mull
  • Narrated by: Jeremy Bobb
  • Length: 14 hrs and 1 min
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (2,488 ratings)

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A World Without Heroes  By  cover art

A World Without Heroes

By: Brandon Mull
Narrated by: Jeremy Bobb
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Editorial reviews

Brandon Mull, best known for his Fablehaven fantasy series, is back with A World Without Heroes, the first in a three-book series called The Beyonders. Mull creates an alternate world, Lyrian, which needs a hero to overturn an evil emperor. Enter Jason, an average 12-year-old Colorado kid, who falls through a hippo’s mouth and ends up in Lyrian and quickly becomes entangled in its intrigue and adventure. Rachel, a gutsy and clever homeschooler, who also unwittingly ends up in Lyrian, joins him in the quest. These two Beyonders (what Lyrians call people from Earth) attempt to find and piece together the syllables that form a secret word that can destroy the evil emperor when uttered in his presence.

Broadway actor and new narrator Jeremy Bobb shines with the varied and numerous characters. He seamlessly switches among the dozens of characters while keeping them distinct and recognizable in the dialogue-heavy scenes. However, Bobb’s performance is too low energy for the material. This flatness emphasizes some stilted writing and undermines the exciting action sequences.

In A World Without Heroes, Mull successfully creates a full, rich fantastical world. In keeping with the fantasy genre, he includes wizards and invents fun creatures, such as displacers, who can remove and reattach body parts. Though the writing is somewhat mediocre and his protagonists not fully developed, the novel is still entertaining. There are several interesting and shocking plot twists and turns that make this better than the average fantasy. Mull knows his audience and the action, humor, and fast pace are perfect for his readership. The content is age-appropriate and, with both male and female protagonists, adults can enjoy listening with their sons and daughters.

A World Without Heroes is a nice addition to the middle school fantasy genre. Mull fans and fantasy fans will love this new series. Listeners who latch onto Bobb’s character interpretation will anxiously await the next Beyonders installment. Julie MacDonald

Publisher's summary

Jason Walker has often wished his life could be a bit less predictable - until a routine day at the zoo ends with Jason suddenly transporting from the hippo tank to a place unlike anything he's ever seen. In the past, the people of Lyrian welcomed visitors from the Beyond, but attitudes have changed since the wizard emperor Maldor rose to power. The brave resistors who opposed the emperor have been bought off or broken, leaving a realm where fear and suspicion prevail.

In his search for a way home, Jason meets Rachel, who was also mysteriously drawn to Lyrian from our world. With the help of a few scattered rebels, Jason and Rachel become entangled in a quest to piece together the word of power that can destroy the emperor, and learn that their best hope to find a way home will be to save this world without heroes.

©2011 Brandon Mull (P)2011 Simon & Schuster

What listeners say about A World Without Heroes

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

More Please!

I've been a fan of Brandon Mull's Fablehaven series and after reading his first book of the Beyonders series I'm hooked again. If you are looking for a family friendly fantacy tale to get lost in, then you've found the perfect author. Audible- please add Fablehaven to your repertoire-your listeners won't regret it and neither will you.

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8 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely marvelous! MUST read all 3 books!

I enjoyed the first book VERY much, but the 2nd is where I began to fully and totally be spellbound and mesmerized by Brandon Mull. I read Brandon Sanderson's novels as fast as he can churn them out, but I think that THIS Brandon (Brandon Mull) takes 1st place in my book (for fantasy writers) for young-adult fantasy. There are still some amazing battles, blood, and gore, for those "fearing" that the Beyonders series is too PG. Trust me, please, for your OWN benefit. This series is absolutely TOP TIER!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Overall mesmerizing

Word play and descriptions are allowed to dance around in your head while you live through the story!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Awesome as expected!

I love Brandon Mull books, and though I usually dont enjoy audio readings, this performance was well done. I loved every moment.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Exciting new world!

I didn't read the reviews for the book or anything about the story before getting this book. The book just appealed to me. The main characters are teens but that didn't deter me from listening to the whole book. It is a well-written story and even though I'm an adult I thoroughly enjoyed it! No foul language, no naked scenes, just a good book. Hope you enjoy it!

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LOVE IT!!!!

What did you love best about A World Without Heroes?

I love this book and highly recommend the series to anyone who loves classic adventure fantasy.

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amazing book

it is a must read. Thrilling read each page a page turner. definitely read.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A really enjoyable young adult fiction

A really enjoyable young adult fiction. I really enjoyed this series and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys clean fiction.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great story, disappointing performance

I've been a fan of the Beyonders series ever since it came out, and I've read it dozens of times, so I was excited to hear the audiobook. I'm afraid I was rather disappointed by the performance. The odd and unexpected accents for some of the characters were very distracting and honestly sounded quite silly. I'm also perplexed by why it seemed that accents were necessary. For the character of Jasher, perhaps it was justified, since the book specifically states that he has one, but why in all the world was Ferrin Irish? None of the voices attempted worked for me, and I really would have preferred he not try. I also felt that often the wrong tone or inflection was used, particularly for dialogue, which made it even more distracting and irritating. That without the accents might have been passable, but with them it was unbearable. Of course, I had already formed my own idea of what all these characters sounded like, so maybe this is all personal preference. All in all it was a bit of a struggle to get through this one. Anyone who is interested in the story will find an absolutely worthwhile tale, but I might recommend reading it on your own first.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Love this book

I have loved everything I have listened to from Brandon Mull. I usually find books and movies very predictable, but not his books. His are truly unique.

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