THE first in a new fantasy series for teens, touted as “the next Harry Potter”, Hoffman’s third work of fiction doesn’t disappoint.

A screenwriter and a former film censor, the author’s vision is inevitably cinematic and on an epic scale.

Beginning in a fortified and mazelike prison of sorts for young boys, the tale follows the exploits of one of its apparently brainwashed inmates, Thomas Cale, as he escapes the regime of the Lord Redeemers and their hell, damnation and extreme violence take on a belief system chillingly close to Christianity.

Little prepared for the life of freedom and reverence that awaits, Cale’s secretiveness, obstinance and unmatched ability to kill when required combine with his arrogance to overshadow his virtues and leave the reader thinking of a certain Anakin Skywalker – and his ultimate fate.

Well-paced and with great dialogue in places, specifically that between Cale and his mentor, this is an impressive work in itself but one that – admittedly by design – cries out for its sequels.

Dean Haigh