Short chapters and frequent mild cliffhangers make this suitable for a middle-grade classroom read-aloud; but there’s little...
The English translation of a prizewinning 1962 Dutch historical adventure exhibits both old-school charms and flaws.
On the eve of his knighting, 16-year-old Tiuri abandons his vigil to answer an old man’s desperate plea. When the knight he seeks is murdered, Tiuri is charged with the delivery of a secret message determining the fate of kingdoms, and so begins a quest rich in chivalry, daring, and deadly peril. Brave, honorable, and earnest, Tiuri’s personality is matched by the straightforward prose, which meticulously chronicles every step of his journey in a meandering, episodic narrative. While encountering every make and manner of man (female characters barely exist in this world), Tiuri appears capable of judging the disposition of each at a glance, a feat made less remarkable when nearly everyone goes out of his or her way to be friendly and helpful, and the few villainous exceptions act with either inexplicable generosity or ludicrous incompetence. In stark contrast to current tropes, Tiuri’s mission at the end plays only a minor role in the greater conflict of nations, the outcome of which is never addressed. Tiuri himself returns home to pick up his life precisely where he left off, richer in experience but with his character fundamentally unaltered.
Short chapters and frequent mild cliffhangers make this suitable for a middle-grade classroom read-aloud; but there’s little here to captivate a 21st-century reader. (Historical adventure. 10-15)Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-545-81978-7
Page Count: 528
Publisher: David Fickling/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A spectacular return to a magical world.
Following the events of Impossible Creatures (2024), a devoted Guardian teams up with a brave princess to fight her power-hungry uncle and save the Archipelago’s dragons from a strange new threat.
Jacques the dragon summons Christopher Forrester back to the Archipelago from the human world: Dragons are dying, and no one knows why. Meanwhile, on the island of Dousha, Princess Anya’s grandfather, King Halam, has been murdered, and her father accused—though she knows he’s innocent. When Christopher and Anya take refuge on the islet of Glimt, the Berserker Nighthand helps them see how their twin missions to save the dragons and free Anya’s father are connected. They work together to create an antidote for the poison that’s killing the dragons and to keep Anya and her father safe from her murderous uncle. Meanwhile, Nighthand and Irian, the part-nereid ocean scholar, pursue their own important secret mission. Divided into three parts—“Castle,” “Dragons,” and “Revenge”—and containing elements of fairy tales, fantasy, and Shakespeare, this story continues the storyline established in the series opener, yet because it introduces new characters and obstacles, it could also stand alone. Dark-blond Anya (“five feet tall and all of it claws”) is a match for white-presenting Christopher, who, though he still misses Mal, finds that “it made a difference to have someone to move through the world with again. A friend changed the feel of the universe.” Mackenzie’s delicate, otherworldly art adorns the text.
A spectacular return to a magical world. (map, bestiary) (Fantasy. 10-15)Pub Date: Sept. 11, 2025
ISBN: 9780593809907
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
PROFILES
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...
Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.
Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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