Scholastic Press
ISBN: 978-0545284158
Published: March 1, 2013
Hardcover, 352 pages
Ages 10 +
This is the second book in the
Ascendance trilogy and the sequel to The False Prince, (read our review) which
my daughter and I absolutely loved. Once again, we dove into this
book and couldn't put it down!
Jaron, newly crowned king of Carthya,
senses betrayal in his kingdom. When an attempt to assassinate him
occurs, he knows he cannot ignore the problems within his castle
walls and the impending rumors of a coming war. So he flees the
throne to take matters into his own hand, to confront the pirates and
to stop them and his neighbouring king from taking his land. Jaron
gets more than what he bargained for and he learns the hard way what
it means to be king.
Both my daughter and I adore the main
character, who is quite the character! He is smart and brave but also
stubborn. My daughter likes how his stubbornness ends up helping him.
I simply love the dialogue. It's witty, brilliant and funny too. The
plot zips along in an adventure that takes us through twists and
turns, keeping us in suspense. Fink is a new character introduced in
this book, and he charmed me and pulled on my heartstrings because he
is an orphan.
My daughter also mentioned to me that
she liked that it was realistic, in the sense that Jaron went through
a lot, including almost getting killed. Like in the first book there
is violence, with scenes of swordfighting, hitting and whipping. But
we did not find it gruesome, as it is also interspersed with funny
and noble moments. It's a medieval setting, and there are also scenes
of honorable actions.
Well, my daughter and I are counting this one as a favorite, and we can't wait for the last
installment of this fun trilogy. Recommended to lovers of
action-adventure tales, especially those young teens who are
reluctant readers.
Note: This book is rated V = Violence, mild for fight scenes with swords and knives. No gore.
Reviewed by Laura and Daughter
Disclosure: Thanks to Nikole Kritikos from Scholastic Canada for sending us this book for review. we were not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.
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