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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
My daughter's favorite - great read, secret identities, intrigue, royalty...
This book was amazing! I had a suspicion about the prince's identity but once everything was revealed in later chapters I couldn't contain my excitement. Sage is such a sly character who hides his true identity so well from the reader in the beginning that when he's revealed in the end I want to go back and look for the more subtle hints in the first 3/4 of the book. I feel bad that Tobias and Roden were sucked into the fear and anxiety of being chosen as prince but their true colors shine through in the end and they get what they deserve. I really loved Imogen and Sage's friendship. He's so kind to her and hopefully she's able to live a happy life with the gift Jaron grants her.
Overall a fantastic book!
Overall a fantastic book!
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Solid middle grade/YA with a fun premise and Percy Jackson-esque narrator. Don’t bother reading the rest of the series
It's stupid how well a narrator can lie to me. Like, I feel personally betrayed.
"The False Prince" is speckled with little holes that ultimately lead up to the greatest Reveal (yup, it's worthy of the capital "R") I have come across in ages. Most holes are small and imperceptible until Nielsen wants you to actually look at them, for example, the gap in time between Sage riding the horse and being found at the river, or the gap between him leaving his bedroom through the window and finding it locked when he returns, or the gap between him wandering into Conner's bedroom and returning to his own (that's all not in order, sorry). All of these gaps are brilliantly explained in the last few hundred pages but in that infuriating way that Sage has about him. He fills those gaps in the most nonchalant way possible by mentioning it in passing, as if saying, "What, you didn't see that coming?"
And other little things got me, too! Brief descriptions you could just skip over if you weren't looking for them. The one that comes to mind is when Sage automatically assigns himself to kneading bread in the kitchen. Sage would not assign himself work. He would have found a way to take a nap standing or snuck away or literally /anything/ to get out of work. But then there's a short dialogue, a brief description of Imogen's entrance, and a sentence- just a phrase, even- where he mentions that there was a block of knives right in front of him. If you caught that, it probably wouldn't be surprising to you to find Sage holding one in a crucial life-threatening moment.
And the character of Sage himself! Excuse my language, but holy crap, what a little shit! I love it! I loooove it. I cannot wait to see what kind of king he will be.
"The False Prince" is speckled with little holes that ultimately lead up to the greatest Reveal (yup, it's worthy of the capital "R") I have come across in ages. Most holes are small and imperceptible until Nielsen wants you to actually look at them, for example, the gap in time between Sage riding the horse and being found at the river, or the gap between him leaving his bedroom through the window and finding it locked when he returns, or the gap between him wandering into Conner's bedroom and returning to his own (that's all not in order, sorry). All of these gaps are brilliantly explained in the last few hundred pages but in that infuriating way that Sage has about him. He fills those gaps in the most nonchalant way possible by mentioning it in passing, as if saying, "What, you didn't see that coming?"
And other little things got me, too! Brief descriptions you could just skip over if you weren't looking for them. The one that comes to mind is when Sage automatically assigns himself to kneading bread in the kitchen. Sage would not assign himself work. He would have found a way to take a nap standing or snuck away or literally /anything/ to get out of work. But then there's a short dialogue, a brief description of Imogen's entrance, and a sentence- just a phrase, even- where he mentions that there was a block of knives right in front of him. If you caught that, it probably wouldn't be surprising to you to find Sage holding one in a crucial life-threatening moment.
And the character of Sage himself! Excuse my language, but holy crap, what a little shit! I love it! I loooove it. I cannot wait to see what kind of king he will be.
3 stars for a fun plot and story, -2 for bland characters with little/no depth.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
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
If there's one thing Ms. Nielsen does well, it's creating great plots and lifelike characters. Sage reminds me a bit of Percy Jackson (who I did not like) but he is more likeable than Percy.
Big plot twist. I did not see it coming, but I'm notoriously bad at seeing plot twists, so I can't speak for everyone when I say it was a huge surprise.
I'm usually not a fan of the whole reluctant king thing, but Nielsen pulled it off well.
Also, can I just say that Imogen is one of the best characters I've read in a while.
Big plot twist. I did not see it coming, but I'm notoriously bad at seeing plot twists, so I can't speak for everyone when I say it was a huge surprise.
I'm usually not a fan of the whole reluctant king thing, but Nielsen pulled it off well.
Also, can I just say that Imogen is one of the best characters I've read in a while.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
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:
Complicated
This is an excellent book. Very clean read and I would recommend it for tweens or teens who like fantasy fiction. It was interesting, had a fun twist, and kept myself and my 11 and 13 year old entertained. I'm finding the second book feels slower, but it is honestly not entirely necessary to even continue the series after the first. Also, my 11 year old assures me it gets better and hasn't been able to put book 3 down.