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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
Still held my attention, still a solid YA, but didn't leave me wanting more. I won't be finishing the series. Prince Jaron slips away from his kingdom before his kingdom slips away from him. He joins a band of pirates in a poorly thought out plan to singlehandedly assassinate the pirate king and whoever else might threaten Carthya with an Avenian war. Oh and he leaves his nerdy friend Tobias to impersonate him back at the castle. The thing that irked me most was the resolution: Jaron just replaces all the regents that don't agree with him with his inexperienced and unqualified buddies. I don't really care that Jaron has such a pure heart and really wants what's best for his kingdom, nepotism is still not a great look for a protagonist.
Loved this book! The False Prince left plenty of room for this sequel, but the ending of The Runaway King is a total cliffhanger!
Picking up shortly after The False Prince left off with Jaron’s return and coronation, it is time for the funeral of the royal family. Jaron slips out to the garden for time alone only to be attacked by two intruders, one of whom Jaron never expected. He is given a deadline – surrender to pirates in ten days or Carthya will be attacked. Encouraged by Gregor Breslin, captain of the guard, to go into hiding and allow a steward to rule until he is older, Jaron instead secretly leaves with Mott and Tobias for Farthenwood. From Farthenwood, Jaron sends Tobias back to the palace and leaves Mott behind, setting out to join the pirates to bring about their downfall from the inside.
Along the way, Jaron resumes life as the orphan Sage, meets Rulon Harlowe, a minor Carthyan nobleman, enters Avenia, joins a band of thieves, avoids detection by the Avenian king Vargan, and with the help of Erick,the band’s leader, is taken to the pirates where he becomes one of them. The pirate king Devlin is suspicious of Sage, but Sage’s troubles begin in earnest when someone from his past returns to the camp.
How will Jaron save himself, his friends, and ultimately his country? Who is really responsible for the death of his family and political turmoil in Carthya? And then there are the girls. How does he feel about Imogen and Princess Amarinda, and what do they really think of him?
Jaron is as reckless as ever, but he is also clever and fiercely loyal to his friends and his country. Both a convincing thief and a competent royal, he displays all the hubris one would expect from a royal, but he balances it with the humility learned through life on his own. The cast of characters, the unexpected twists and turns, and the mystery and adventure build on to The False Prince and will leave readers clamoring for the next book – and it can’t get here soon enough!
Picking up shortly after The False Prince left off with Jaron’s return and coronation, it is time for the funeral of the royal family. Jaron slips out to the garden for time alone only to be attacked by two intruders, one of whom Jaron never expected. He is given a deadline – surrender to pirates in ten days or Carthya will be attacked. Encouraged by Gregor Breslin, captain of the guard, to go into hiding and allow a steward to rule until he is older, Jaron instead secretly leaves with Mott and Tobias for Farthenwood. From Farthenwood, Jaron sends Tobias back to the palace and leaves Mott behind, setting out to join the pirates to bring about their downfall from the inside.
Along the way, Jaron resumes life as the orphan Sage, meets Rulon Harlowe, a minor Carthyan nobleman, enters Avenia, joins a band of thieves, avoids detection by the Avenian king Vargan, and with the help of Erick,the band’s leader, is taken to the pirates where he becomes one of them. The pirate king Devlin is suspicious of Sage, but Sage’s troubles begin in earnest when someone from his past returns to the camp.
How will Jaron save himself, his friends, and ultimately his country? Who is really responsible for the death of his family and political turmoil in Carthya? And then there are the girls. How does he feel about Imogen and Princess Amarinda, and what do they really think of him?
Jaron is as reckless as ever, but he is also clever and fiercely loyal to his friends and his country. Both a convincing thief and a competent royal, he displays all the hubris one would expect from a royal, but he balances it with the humility learned through life on his own. The cast of characters, the unexpected twists and turns, and the mystery and adventure build on to The False Prince and will leave readers clamoring for the next book – and it can’t get here soon enough!
Good read! It was fun to see the characters progress in this installment. It took me awhile to get into, but I think that was more my issue than the books. I am excited to read this with my boys when they’re bigger!
This was my 2nd time reading this book and though I liked it, I found it wasn't as captivating. As I listened to the audiobook I couldn't help but find myself skipping sections of the book thinking "I don't want to listen to this idle chit-chat, lets get to the good stuff". Overall I still really enjoyed it. For an author who planned on only writing 1 book, I thought they did a great job of writing a sequel. I would give it a 3.5/5 stars overall.
adventurous
challenging
funny
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A little harder to get into than the first book but I’m still enjoying the series.
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Another one I have read multiple times. Excellent sequel and well worth my time! My only complaint is the cliffhanger ending. I don't like feeling obligated to read the next book. Nevertheless, I will, because I quite like this trilogy.
Following on the heels of the events of "The False Prince", the saga of Jaron continues.
In "The Runaway King", threats come from a neighboring country that could mean the end of Carthya, and Jaron, in that particularly stubborn style that he has, insists in running to ensure that, not only will he keep the throne, but that his nation is safe.
Now, to ensure that I don't add too many potential spoilers, I'll keep it brief. Jaron and I split on what exactly a King should do. A King must always put his nation first, and it seems more than likely that Jaron may not be willing to do this. This is simply a matter of opinion on my part.
Other than that minor issue, this was an absolutely stunning sequel, with twists, turns, and one of my favorite historical groups, Pirates! I look forward to reading "The Shadow Throne", for the final chapter of Jaron and his journey.
In "The Runaway King", threats come from a neighboring country that could mean the end of Carthya, and Jaron, in that particularly stubborn style that he has, insists in running to ensure that, not only will he keep the throne, but that his nation is safe.
Now, to ensure that I don't add too many potential spoilers, I'll keep it brief. Jaron and I split on what exactly a King should do.
Spoiler
Imogen, the servant girl from book one, plays a prominent role, as King Vargan of Avenia believes that Jaron will do anything to protect her. Putting all mentions of love aside,Other than that minor issue, this was an absolutely stunning sequel, with twists, turns, and one of my favorite historical groups, Pirates! I look forward to reading "The Shadow Throne", for the final chapter of Jaron and his journey.
Oh, I loved The False Prince, so imagine my glee when I was perusing the aisles of ARCS at ALA Mid-Winter, and this one popped into my vision! Hooray, I get to read it before it comes out!
I don't want to say too much about the plot, since I don't want to spoil it for people who haven't read the first one yet, but this book has just as much intrigue/action/excitement/secretiveness as the first one.
The only problem, in my opinion, is that it starts out SO SLOW. Once you get about halfway through the book (and the pirates show up!) things get much more exciting, but I can imagine a 5th grade boy tapping his toe on the ground and going, "C'mooooooon where are the piiiiiiiiiiiirates???" at the beginning. The political intrigue is a little bogging (bogging? is that a word), but once the action starts, this one holds up to its predecessor.
I gave the first book four stars, and this one three because I just didn't like it quite as much, but it's still an excellent entry into the series, and I'll probably read the third one :) Great great great for middle school.
I don't want to say too much about the plot, since I don't want to spoil it for people who haven't read the first one yet, but this book has just as much intrigue/action/excitement/secretiveness as the first one.
The only problem, in my opinion, is that it starts out SO SLOW. Once you get about halfway through the book (and the pirates show up!) things get much more exciting, but I can imagine a 5th grade boy tapping his toe on the ground and going, "C'mooooooon where are the piiiiiiiiiiiirates???" at the beginning. The political intrigue is a little bogging (bogging? is that a word), but once the action starts, this one holds up to its predecessor.
I gave the first book four stars, and this one three because I just didn't like it quite as much, but it's still an excellent entry into the series, and I'll probably read the third one :) Great great great for middle school.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes