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The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen

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After revealing himself as the true Prince of Carthya, thought long-dead after his ship was attacked by pirates, Sage (now Jaron) has ascended the throne and is now King. He is still so young, though, and his regents aren’t sure they made the right decision to name him king without a steward first. After an assassination attempt, one of his regents moves to officially place a steward on the throne until they feel Jaron has learned enough about ruling to do it well.
Jaron doesn’t feel this is the right solution, and he’s frustrated that the regents aren’t paying more attention to the threat of war with Avenia. Jaron knows that Avenia – working with the pirates and the pirate king, Devlin – are responsible for the assassination attempt, and he knows that Avenia plans to invade Carthya. He’s determined to stop it before it starts, so he concocts a plan: in order to save his kingdom, he must flee his own country, going undercover once more as Sage, and infiltrate the pirates.
The Runaway King is the sequel to the story that began with The False Prince, and it’s the second book in a trilogy. The standout of these books is the voice. The world-building is pretty standard, and the plots – while fun – aren’t terribly original. But Sage/Jaron’s voice is phenomenal. He’s sassy and intelligent and snarky and a little arrogant but a lot unsure of himself, too. He loves deeply, while denying that love most of the time, and he acts before he thinks way too often. He’s such an interesting character and the perfect narrator for his story. 
This particular story is interesting enough, with plenty of action and derring-do and a nice, twisty plot (though not as twisty as the first). The inclusion of the pirates will definitely pump up the appeal, though it’s got plenty of appeal already. It’s a smaller story than that of the first book, and it’s certainly a much smaller story than that which will be told in the third volume (as the last chapter declares), but I don’t think it’s in danger of being a second-book slump. 
I will say that the way the main storyline is resolved is bit of a disappointment – it seems too easy, requiring a certain character to act in a way that is at odds with previous behavior. But the journey to that point – and the promise of the story to come – makes up for this slight shortcoming. The story moves so well and Jaron tells it in such an engaging way, it’s hard to stop telling yourself “Just one more chapter…”
Review copy provided by the publisher (via Kelly @ Midwinter!). The Runaway King will be available March 1.

Audio Review: The Freedom Maze by Delia Sherman

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I was quite surprised by how much I enjoyed The Freedom Maze. While I like historical fiction, I’m very picky about the time periods I choose, and neither of the time periods featured in The Freedom Maze (1860s and 1960s American South) are ones I normally seek out. But audiobook selection is limited and this one won the Nebula (Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Book), so I gave it a shot.

It’s very good. It’s a book in conversation with Edward Eager’s The Time Garden, which I have never read, so I won’t be able to comment on that aspect. But if you have read the book and my plot synopsis sounds very familiar, that’s why.

It’s 1960 and thirteen-year-old Sophie has been forced to spend the summer with her aunt and grandmother at the old family estate in Louisiana. It used to be a large plantation, home to a wealthy family and many slaves in the 1800s. It’s much reduced in the 20th century, but the old ideas still linger in the mind of Sophie’s grandmother and mother.

Sophie resents being there so much that she wishes she were somewhere else – a place where she has a family and friends who care about her, something she feels is missing in her current situation. This wish is overheard by a magical trickster being, who sends Sophie 100 years back on time to 1860, but leaves her right where she is physically.

No one recognizes Sophie when she shows up at the plantation 100 years in the past, and due to her tan and her frizzy hair, Sophie is mistaken for a slave. She’s assumed to be the pale daughter of the family’s white brother from New Orleans and his female slave, but a slave nonetheless. From there, the story takes Sophie to the big house as a house slave, then to the fields and the sugar house of the sugar plantation. Along the way, Sophie comes to care for the slaves she works with and comes to a greater understanding of the history behind the racial tensions she’s experienced in the 1960s.

More than that, though, her wish is fulfilled: she has friends and a family who risk their lives for her. And Sophie, in her turn, risks her life for theirs. She also does a good bit of growing up. This is historical fiction but also very much a coming of age story. In that way, it feels a bit retro. I think it’s definitely one my mother would have picked out for us to listen to on a long car trip.

The idea of combining two historical time periods is an interesting one. I’ve only ever seen it done elsewhere in Emily Whitman’s Wildwing, where it was fun but not as entertaining or consuming of a story. There’s actually quite a bit of time spent in the 1960s, more so than I initially thought, but I was fascinated by it. Sophie’s mother is a racist, a mindset inherited from her own mother, who is a near-clone of “Old Missy,” the matriarch of the plantation family in the 19th century. But other views her mother holds are more progressive: she’s divorced her husband and buckles at the idea that to be a proper Southern belle, she must be a homemaker and eschew employment. Due to the divorce, she needed to find a job, and she did so – and then discovered she really enjoyed the work. I appreciated the interplay of the two time periods. The 1960s are there for a reason, not just as a stand-in for the present.
A brief author interview at the end of the book describes how much research Sherman put in to her story (it took her many years to write it), and it shows. Setting and historical details are excellently drawn. I also feel that Sherman does a good job of making this Sophie’s story, as the protagonist, but also avoiding turning Sophie into a white savior of black people, which could have been very easy to do in this sort of setup.
This is an easy choice for historical fiction fans, especially since it covers two historical time periods. And for anyone who’s ever wondered what it would be like to live as a slave in the American South, this is a natural choice too – Sherman has done her homework. While it’s definitely a fantasy, what with the magical being and the time travel, that’s not the focus. Those aspects are simply the tools Sherman uses. 
And of course, I couldn’t recommend this without endorsing the narration, which is excellent. The narrator has a perfectly authentic Southern drawl and gives the white and the black characters accents without exaggeration. It’s a good thing this one earned the Nebula, because otherwise I doubt I would ever have bothered to read it; goodness knows that cover is not helping it any. But I’m glad it brought the book out of relative anonymity and is giving it a wider audience, something it certainly deserves.

Audiobook provided by the publisher.

Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale

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A new Shannon Hale book is always a treat. I’ve liked some more than others, but her writing is always so good. It’s clear that she takes a great amount of care in choosing just the right words for the right parts, and her characters are varied and multi-faceted. 

Princess Academy was a great story, a bit of a throwback to the middle grade books of my childhood, but not so old-fashioned that it seemed stale or preachy. Palace of Stone is a solid, if not quite stellar, follow-up with a story that remains true to Miri’s character.
Miri has traveled to Asland, the capital city of Danland, to study at the Queen’s Castle, the city’s preeminent university. She’s gone with several of her classmates from the Princess Academy, all designated Ladies of the Princess, though she is the only one studying at the college. Miri is, of course, thrilled, but all is not smooth sailing. Trouble is brewing in Asland, and there’s talk of revolution. Miri is torn between the “shoeless,” who feel disenfranchised and stomped upon by the king and his administration’s unfair policies, and the more “noble” of her acquaintances –  Katar, Britta, and Steffan – who are good people and may be harmed by what looks like an increasingly violent uprising.
It was nice to see Miri step out into a larger story. The amount of political maneuvering she must do – prodded by Katar and her newfound friend, Timon – is alarming, and she is sometimes so naive it’s painful. Although she trusts in her books, her teachers, and her own creative problem-solving, there are no easy answers. I felt the danger much more here than I did in the first installment. While there were fleeting moments of danger in Princess Academy, here there’s the possibility for real, unbridled violence, and Miri often seems like she’s drowning.
If I have a criticism about the plotline, it’s that it felt a little too pat. Without being too spoilery, I’ll say that the way the story ended made me feel like this book was written a bit younger than Princess Academy was, although it’s been several years since I read it. Perhaps everything is resolved a bit too neatly. Hale has created such a messy situation (which is to her credit) that the solution found almost beggars belief.
I did enjoy visiting with Miri’s classmates again, although they remain mostly in the background. Peder is there, still being a bit infuriating, but most of the romantic focus falls on Timon, Miri’s new friend whose twin goals are to incite rebellion and woo Miri. Every few chapters are interspersed with Miri’s letters home to Marda, which provide insight into Miri’s thought process and are a good counter to the third-person narration.
For fans of the first, this is a must-read. It’s a different story from Princess Academy, but Hale knows her protagonist through and through, so reading this was like visiting an old friend again. Though it’s not as strong as the first, it’s definitely recommended.

Giants Beware! by Jorge Aguirre and Rafael Rosado

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Giants Beware! is another home run for First Second. It’s got lively full-color art, an adventurous plot, and a dash of humor that all add up to a supremely entertaining read for the middle grade set.
Claudette has grown up hearing stories about her father, who lost his legs fighting a fearsome dragon (and survived). She’s also heard stories about how a threatening giant was chased from her town, and she’s very disturbed to learn that no one bothered to kill it – they just let it get away! Claudette decides to fix this mistake. She tricks her younger brother Gaston and her best friend Marie into pursuing the giant from the story, and the three encounter all sorts of danger and cause all sorts of mayhem on their adventure.
I liked how Aguirre played with gender roles. Gaston is your typical scaredy-cat (and also an accomplished pastry chef) while Claudette is the brave one, but neither character is a stereotype. Marie aspires to be a princess when she grows up, and Claudette respects her for it (“Wanting to be a princess is a weird career choice, but if anyone’s smart enough to pull it off, it’s you”). But that doesn’t make Marie a standard fairy tale princess. In fact, each of the supporting characters is given time to shine, since their unique talents help get them out of scrapes. And by the end of the story, all three kids have learned how to be braver, or less impulsive, or more honest. And their friendship has grown and matured, too.
Giants Beware is part of a growing trend of full-color adventure graphic novels, and I’m glad for it. It stands up well with Zita the Spacegirl, Bone, Earthling, Jellaby and the like. It’s its own unique story, too – the French feel makes it stand apart, and Claudette’s energy and bloodthirstiness aren’t matched by any other heroine I’ve read (that’s a good thing).
The art is so good, too. It’s full of terrific facial expressions that add character and make you laugh out loud. Each character is distinctive, even the ancillary ones. And it’s in full color, making the entire thing beautiful and just wonderful to pore over again and again. There’s no cliffhanger, but at least one of the characters hints at further adventures to come, meaning we can hopefully expect a sequel sometime soon.
There were a couple of things that struck me as odd. There were quite a few typos that nagged at me after a while. Unfortunately, these stand out more in a graphic novel than they do in a regular novel, there being fewer words to work with. And Gaston may be a poor choice of name for kids who are probably only familiar with it from Beauty and the Beast (although it is amusing to juxtapose the two characters).
But I’m nitpicking. This is such a fun read, and a great example of what the format can do. Highly recommended.
Book borrowed from the library.

The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy

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I’m really picky about the middle grade books I will read. They need to be smart, not talk down to the reader, and – perhaps above all else – funny. While the YA books I read and love can all be sorts of dark and depressing, I have found that I require humor in middle grade novels. The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom has it in spades, plus it’s smart and well-written, so it’s no surprise that I loved it.
The premise is pretty simple: we all know a lot about the princesses from our favorite fairy tales, but how much do we know about the princes? You know, those guys so vaguely-described that we just refer to them all collectively as “Prince Charming.” Healy’s book tells us the stories of four of these Princes Charming (note how the term is pluralized), and it should come as no surprise to you that they don’t all live happily ever with their princesses. Some of them don’t even live with their princesses, period.
The book begins by describing just what scrapes the princes have gotten into that have won them their princesses’ disfavor. These events get all the princes cast out of their homes in disparate kingdoms and, naturally, they eventually run into each other. That’s a good thing, too, since they soon discover that the bards of the various kingdoms have been kidnapped, and it’s up to them to rescue the bards (and their own kingdoms in the process). 
The standout feature here is, obviously, the humor. The princes are all goofballs of different varieties, and their characteristics are clearly exaggerated, but not so much that they become caricatures. The princesses, although they don’t occupy a starring role, are also easy to differentiate and run the gamut from nasty to, well, charming. All the characters have large personalities, and when they collide, it creates an explosion of adventure.
Healy has a lot of fun with traditional fairy tale tropes, poking fun at what we as readers blithely accept in a fairy tale, even though it’s patently ridiculous. He’s also full of some great puns. A certain professional review felt that the premise grew thin and the humor old, but I couldn’t disagree more. This is not a short book and I laughed my way through the entire thing – it’s so clever and fun. It’s a great read for kids who enjoy twisted or re-told fairy tales, particularly those told from “the other guy’s” point of view. It’s also a much-needed bit of levity in a fantasy field that is crowded with the dark and depressing.