Overview
In a kingdom of merciless tyrants, Jebel Rum's family is honored as royalty because his father is the executioner. But Rashed Rum is near retirement. And when he goes, there will be a contest to determine his successor. It is a contest that thin, puny Jebel has no chance of winning.Humiliated and ashamed, Jebel sets out on a quest to the faraway home of a legendary fire god to beg for inhuman powers so that he can become the most lethal of men. He must take with him a slave, named Tel Hesani, to be sacrificed to the god. It will be a dark and brutal journey filled with lynch mobs, suicide cults, terrible monsters, and worse, monstrous men. But to Jebel, the risk is worth it.
To retrieve his honor . . .
To wield unimaginable power . . .
To become . . .
The thin executioner
Inspired by the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, international bestselling master of horror Darren Shan takes readers on a thrilling, fast-paced journey into a nightmarish world where compassion and kindness are the greatest crimes of all.
Synopsis
In a kingdom of merciless tyrants, Jebel Rum's family is honored as royalty because his father is the executioner. But Rashed Rum is near retirement. And when he goes, there will be a contest to determine his successor. It is a contest that thin, puny Jebel has no chance of winning.
Humiliated and ashamed, Jebel sets out on a quest to the faraway home of a legendary fire god to beg for inhuman powers so that he can become the most lethal of men. He must take with him a slave, named Tel Hesani, to be sacrificed to the god. It will be a dark and brutal journey filled with lynch mobs, suicide cults, terrible monsters, and worse, monstrous men. But to Jebel, the risk is worth it.
To retrieve his honor . . .
To wield unimaginable power . . .
To become . . .
The thin executioner
Inspired by theAdventures of Huckleberry Finn, international bestselling master of horror Darren Shan takes readers on a thrilling, fast-paced journey into a nightmarish world where compassion and kindness are the greatest crimes of all.
Publishers Weekly
Shan (the Cirque Du Freak series) delivers a fun if predictable stand-alone novel that loosely updates Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn while posing some interesting moral questions. Set in an alternate Arabia filled with multiple religions and gods, Jebel Rum is the youngest and scrawniest son of the executioner of the Um Aineh people. After he impulsively embarks on a quest to get the gifts of strength and invincibility from the god Sabbah Eid, Jebel finds himself on the road with the slave Tel Hesani, who must be sacrificed to complete the quest. Their adventures cause Jebel to question the nature of his indoctrinated religious beliefs, as well as the assumption that only the Um Aineh ways--built heavily on slavery and violence--are correct. Although Shan takes on imperialism and organized religion (the con artists are named Bush and Blair), the politics intertwine smoothly with the travelers' adventures and don't overwhelm the encounters with assorted threats. While the ending is never in doubt, Shan delivers an exciting adventure en route. Ages 15-up. (Aug.)
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
Shan (the Cirque Du Freak series) delivers a fun if predictable stand-alone novel that loosely updates Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn while posing some interesting moral questions. Set in an alternate Arabia filled with multiple religions and gods, Jebel Rum is the youngest and scrawniest son of the executioner of the Um Aineh people. After he impulsively embarks on a quest to get the gifts of strength and invincibility from the god Sabbah Eid, Jebel finds himself on the road with the slave Tel Hesani, who must be sacrificed to complete the quest. Their adventures cause Jebel to question the nature of his indoctrinated religious beliefs, as well as the assumption that only the Um Aineh ways--built heavily on slavery and violence--are correct. Although Shan takes on imperialism and organized religion (the con artists are named Bush and Blair), the politics intertwine smoothly with the travelers' adventures and don't overwhelm the encounters with assorted threats. While the ending is never in doubt, Shan delivers an exciting adventure en route. Ages 15-up. (Aug.)Children's Literature -
The title character of this picaresque fantasy, Jebel Rum, is a thin weakling of a boy who aspires to succeed his father as executioner of Abu Aineh, a nation in the far south of the land Makhras. After the high lord, the executioner is the most powerful man, and Jebel, hopes to win the love of Debbat Alg, the beautiful daughter of the lord. The only way he can best his two stronger older brothers in the competition that will determine who will be executioner is to go on a quest, to petition Sabbah Eid for inhuman strength. Jebel and his slave, Tel Hesani, trek the meandering route through other nations, around and over mountains, across swamps, trying to fend off, among other hazards, murderous traders who kidnap and enslave him. They force him to plunder graves, an undertaking he dreads because it will rob him of his humanity. Multiple adventures follow, including imprisonment, attempts to convert him to another religion, near-starvation because he refuses to eat human flesh, and an encounter with a god of death with whom he bargains for his life. At his lowest point, he forsakes the quest, but Tel Hesani persuades him to continue. When he finally meets with Sabbah Eid, she tells him to use the power she gives him to make the world a better place, a command he must decipher. In the end, he does so in a way that may surprise but satisfy readers. The prolific author has written a fast-paced, if somewhat formulaic story, which he asserts is based on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, but whose characters and place-names are Jordanian. These make for an exotic yet not unfamiliar saga, which his fans will find alluring. Reviewer: Cynthia LevinsonVOYA -
When Rashed Rum, famed executioner of Wadi, announces retirement from his post of thirty years, he acknowledges his two sons J'Al and J'An without mentioning his younger son, Jebel Rum. Shamed by his father's display of praise for his brothers, Jebel is determined to prove to his father and the city that he is worthy of becoming the next executioner. He recklessly requests to become a quester by traveling to Tubaygat and petitioning the Sabbah Eid for inhuman strength and invincibility. Securing a slave to take as a sacrifice to the mythical god, Jebel sets out with Tel Hesani to capture his new destiny, but instead learns more about compassion, survival, and kindness than he ever imagined. Jebel faces death more than once, discovering that there are much crueler villains in the world than even his learned history has prepared him for. Shan creates a masterful, grueling story of survival and terror. Jebel's journey is both enthralling and horrifying. Some readers will want to put the book down in disgust over the graphic violence, only to be too curious to learn what comes next not to continue with Jebel's story. Main characters, as well as secondary characters, are well drawn so that the personalities just jump off the page. Readers will hate the villains, feel sorry for the innocent, and root for Tel Hesani and Jebel to complete their mission. This is a must-read for thrill seekers with a strong stomach looking for an action-packed adventure with a host of fantastical creatures. Reviewer: Laura PanterSchool Library Journal
Gr 7 Up—Shan's latest fantasy marks something of a departure from his gory, demon-infested "Demonata" and "Cirque du Freak" series (both Little, Brown). Based loosely on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, it takes readers on a hero's journey through a harsh world filled with ignorant, brutal people, competing pagan religions, and the occasional supernatural being. Like Huck, Jebel Rum undertakes a dangerous journey accompanied by a slave. And just like Finn, his long-held beliefs are challenged by his experience with the "lesser" man. He and his slave, Tel Hasani, also suffer at the hands of con men posing as royalty. But this story is merely a pale shadow of Twain's classic. Jebel Rum sets out not to free his slave but to sacrifice him at the altar of one of his gods in exchange for invincibility. His goal is to compete for the right to replace his father as his city's executioner. Shan's characterizations and dialogue are weak at best, and Jebel's conversion is predictable and artless. The overriding message is heavy-handed and unsatisfying. Despite all of that, readers who cut their teeth on "Cirque du Freak" and moved on to the "Demonata" will most likely gobble up this lengthier, slightly more cerebral novel. There is just enough brutality to keep the pages turning.—Anthony C. Doyle, Livingston High School, CAKirkus Reviews
When his father publicly shames him, Jebel Rum takes the brand of quester and seeks the blessing of the fire god to obtain strength and invincibility. Guided by his sacrificial slave, Tel Hasani, Jebel encounters a fanatical cult, grave robbers and secretive regimes along the way. When he finally encounters the god, Jebel must decide if his quest goal has changed in the course of his journey. Shan works to blend action with social education and occasionally misses both. Readers will find less gore than in previous novels--though the corporeal mortification scenes are intense and disturbing--which tamps down the former, and the exploration of justice, fairness, morality and religion are at times oversimplified. Hasani's annoyance with his spoiled charge is perfectly fitting, though, and Jebel's character development arcs nicely. Readers familiar with Huckleberry Finn may recognize parallels between Hasani and Jebel and Jim and Huck, a deliberate echo that is perhaps this book's greatest success. Heads roll at the start, but by the end, Shan reaches for the heartstrings. (Fantasy/horror. 10-14)