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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
adventurous
inspiring
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I have mixed feelings. I love the protagonist, but he had little to no character development in this installment, and to be honest, the romance between Imogen and Jaron is a bit dull. Seriously, Jaron had more chemistry with Mrs. Turbeldy than he does Imogen. I mean they like each other....why? That being said the "fight" scene between Jaron and Rodin made up for every other lackluster detail, and I'm not even joking. I'm a sucker for a good redemption arc, and the thought of Jaron purposefully chasing Rodin down to win him over to Carthya is literary gold. For that trope alone this book became my favorite installment.
3.5 stars.
The story was still decent, very enjoyable. But I had a hard time understanding the motives behind some of Jaron's decisions.. I mean why Rodent?!!
Also, the love triangle.... seriously! I still don't know where Jarson's strong emotional attachment to Imogen came from? Does she reminds him of his mother? I mean did I miss something?!!! Friendship, I get it.. but mutual feelings for each other... nope..
The story was still decent, very enjoyable. But I had a hard time understanding the motives behind some of Jaron's decisions.. I mean why Rodent?!!
Also, the love triangle.... seriously! I still don't know where Jarson's strong emotional attachment to Imogen came from? Does she reminds him of his mother? I mean did I miss something?!!! Friendship, I get it.. but mutual feelings for each other... nope..
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
I'm enjoying this series. It's light but not predictable. I think I liked the first one better but I'm still happy with this one and excited to read the next.
A series going downhill on a shallow slope
In THE FALSE PRINCE, the opening novel in THE ASCENDANCE TRILOGY, Jaron Eckbert was characterized as a raffish, picaresque, young rogue with an attitude and a comical mouth that often wrote cheques coming disastrously close to being dishonored. But for all that, he was both loving and lovable and there couldn’t possibly have been a reader who wasn’t rooting for him to set aside his disguise as an impoverished orphan, to adopt his true identity, and to claim the throne of Carthya as its rightful king. In THE RUNAWAY KING, as Jaron assumes that rightful identity and expects to be crowned the king, he now faces stern opposition - a council of regents unwilling to accept the coronation of such a youthful king. Indeed, he even has to survive an assassination attempt.
Unfortunately as the story unfolds, Jaron’s hopelessly optimistic and apparently unrealistic, unexpected, and often opposed decision-making ( for the affected adults around him and, I dare say, for an adult reader) become simply unreasonable and irritating. It seems even more grating when Nielsen allows the outcomes to get steadily luckier and to constantly justify Jaron’s decisions. As a predictable result, the story simply becomes less and less credible. On the plus side, there are outstanding moments of convincing and heart-warming personal growth, friendship, loyalty and emotion that preserve THE RUNAWAY KING’s status as a 3- or 4- star story for an adult reader. So it seems sensible to err on the higher side of that rating given that the intended audience is young adult.
Paul Weiss
In THE FALSE PRINCE, the opening novel in THE ASCENDANCE TRILOGY, Jaron Eckbert was characterized as a raffish, picaresque, young rogue with an attitude and a comical mouth that often wrote cheques coming disastrously close to being dishonored. But for all that, he was both loving and lovable and there couldn’t possibly have been a reader who wasn’t rooting for him to set aside his disguise as an impoverished orphan, to adopt his true identity, and to claim the throne of Carthya as its rightful king. In THE RUNAWAY KING, as Jaron assumes that rightful identity and expects to be crowned the king, he now faces stern opposition - a council of regents unwilling to accept the coronation of such a youthful king. Indeed, he even has to survive an assassination attempt.
Unfortunately as the story unfolds, Jaron’s hopelessly optimistic and apparently unrealistic, unexpected, and often opposed decision-making ( for the affected adults around him and, I dare say, for an adult reader) become simply unreasonable and irritating. It seems even more grating when Nielsen allows the outcomes to get steadily luckier and to constantly justify Jaron’s decisions. As a predictable result, the story simply becomes less and less credible. On the plus side, there are outstanding moments of convincing and heart-warming personal growth, friendship, loyalty and emotion that preserve THE RUNAWAY KING’s status as a 3- or 4- star story for an adult reader. So it seems sensible to err on the higher side of that rating given that the intended audience is young adult.
Paul Weiss
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-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
(listened to the audiobook)
Jaron is such a great protagonist.
smart, cunning and hilariously sassy but still human.
I love how much he cares for Imogen
Jaron is such a great protagonist.
smart, cunning and hilariously sassy but still human.
I love how much he cares for Imogen
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Probably more like 3.5 stars. I had a hard time with the slow moving middle portion.