Khali and the Orb of Xona - Mark Stibbe & Steve Brazier

On a faraway planet called Kel, twelve-year old Khali has just seen his dad disappear on a mission to investigate an energy source called the Arokah. Drawn by a strange light from a cave, his dad runs out of oxygen there and is left for dead. All Khali has left in the world is the birthday gift his dad gave him – a stone tablet with a puzzle on it. Now an orphan, he is sent away to board at a school called the Beacon, where there are many other children like him with special needs. Khali now longs to solve the puzzle on the tablet and return to Kel to look for his father. 

 

With the help of some unusual friends and aliens, Khali solves the enigma and embarks on a covert mission to the sister planet Oxona, drawn by the light of the orb that had mesmerised his dad. However, Khali and his friends live in a world where nothing is as it seems, and they are not alone. There are others who have become aware of the special powers conferred on him by the Arokah. They crave its life-enhancing and healing energy and they are watching the boy, following his every move. Will Khali find the orb before his enemies? And what will he find of his dad in the cave?

I’ve always enjoyed a good fantasy novel, and I like a mystery even more so the opening line of Khali and the Orb of Xona hooked me in right away!  ‘My father disappeared just after my twelfth birthday, while the two of us were visiting our sister planet Xona.’  

This is the latest novel from Mark Stibbe, and this time he’s writing for younger readers.  Xona is aimed at pre-teens upwards.  

 

The story rolls along energetically.  Khali, the 12-year-old ‘hero’ of the story lives on a future world with his scientist father after the death of his mother to a cancer-like illness.  Khali has ‘Rhuba’, a type of autism, but happily his home world is very Rhuba-inclusive.  

 

After being given a mysterious puzzle for his twelfth birthday, Khali’s dad sneaks him on board his Space Ranger and takes him to Xona, a nearby planet whose protective membrane has been breached by a volcanic eruption on the surface.  But what starts out as an exciting trip with his Dad on a research trip will have dramatic consequences both for himself and his father, and the future of his own world.

 

This is a really engaging read and it’s very cleverly written from Khali’s perspective as an autistic child.  I love the numbers, patterns – especially hexagons, and the details of how his view on his world works.  The descriptions of his developing friendships with others in ‘Class 24’, particularly talented pilot Meena who risks her entire future to do what she believes is right, and Loois – otherwise known as Thunder Butt for reasons which will make many a pre-teen reader snigger – are well written and believable, staying true to his autistic tendencies in terms of how he relates to people.  This novel has been highly praised by many with much more qualification to comment on autistic issues than I. There are many other areas this novel touches on: loss, inner strength, hard decisions, environmental issues, and trust.  But they are all wrapped up in what is first and foremost a rattling good yarn which is perfectly suited to the target age group – and plenty like me who are just a few years older!  I’m looking forward to the next in the series already.

 

9781912863457, Malcolm Down Publishing, Published April 2020 (UK).

For transparency, I was sent an advance copy of this book, but I was not required to write any specific or favourable review. All views herein are my own.