Review: Mark of the Thief

Book one of the Praetor War
By Jennifer A. Nielsen
Available now from Scholastic Press
Review copy
Read my Jennifer A. Nielsen tag

I loved the Ascendance trilogy, so I was eager to read MARK OF THE THIEF, the first book in Jennifer A. Nielsen's new Praetor War series.  The story follows Nicolas Calva, known as Nic, a young slave in the Roman Empire.  When his master discovers a cave full of Caesar's treasures, Nic is tasked with finding a bulla.  However, he ends up possessing the bulla himself, which leads him down the path of adventure and potentially being a pawn for either side of a brewing war.

MARK OF THE THIEF is a very easy read.  The action is fast and furious, and the cast is reasonably sized so that it is easy to remember who everyone is.  I do wish there were more female characters.  Aurelia, a mercenary, becomes Nic's ally, and one of his major motivations is reuniting with his sister.  However, both of the girls are great characters.  You do have to pay attention to the characters, because they change sides easily.

I think the combination of the Roman Empire and magic is very appealing.  There's some actual history about the subjugation of conquered people and class in Roman times in addition to a fantastical adventure that pits magic user against magic user.  Given the presences of gods and griffins, however, don't expect too much actual history.

I flew through this novel with much enjoyment, aside from one major flaw: I don't understand Nic.  He's a Gaul who was forced into hiding and then kidnapped into slavery.  When he gets a little power and can make choices for himself, he firmly opposes the man who wants to destroy the Roman Empire and works to preserve it with all he has.  Why does he care about Rome?  Why is he so loyal to the force that enslaved him?  Why doesn't he want to bring it crashing down or help his fellow slaves rebel or anything but be a good subject of the emperor?  I have no idea, and it bothers me every time I think about it.

MARK OF THE THIEF showcases Nielsen's addictive writing, which has much to entice adults as well as the target child audience.  She's got an ear for action and a flair with magic.  But this series just might fall apart if she can't make sense of why Nic does what he does with such determination on the page.

Review: The Shadow Throne

Book three of the Ascendance trilogy
By Jennifer A. Nielsen
Available now from Scholastic
Review copy
Read my review of The Runaway King

THE SHADOW THRONE brings Jennifer A. Nielsen's popular Ascendance trilogy to a close.  It is firmly in the upper middle grade category.  It's a bit to simple to be young adult, but the violence is too intense for lower middle grade.

Jaron can't avoid it any longer: his country is going to war.  He and his loved ones are all at risk of capture, torture, and death.  Jaron might have a head for clever plans and infiltration, but he's used to working on a small level.  A multi-front war is something else entirely.

I thought that it was a wonderful opportunity for Jaron to stretch himself and really show some new qualities.  I don't think that really happened, but as the story went on THE SHADOW THRONE fell into a groove and really moved along to the thrilling conclusion.  THE FALSE PRINCE remains my favorite book in the trilogy, but THE SHADOW THRONE is a truly fitting end.

It's hard to talk about the third book in a series without giving too much away!  I would say that THE SHADOW THRONE can stand on its own, but I can't see it being half as much fun without the first two books.  This is one of the best middle grade series of the past few years, and I highly recommend it.  The trilogy is full of delightful twists, intrigue, and action.  It also pairs quite well with Megan Whalen Turner's fabulous Queen's Thief series.

Review: The Runaway King

Book Two of the Ascendance Trilogy
By Jennifer A. Nielsen
Available now from Scholastic Press
Review copy

Warning: THE FALSE PRINCE has a bit of a twist, and I'll try to avoid it, but  be wary of reading this review if you haven't read the first book.

Jaron is now the king of Carthya.  War is imminent.  There are few people that he can trust - even fewer in positions of power.  He must marry Amarinda, but he neither knows nor loves her.  She's not very excited about it either considering the fact she cared for his deceased older brother.  When the pirates threaten Jaron, his regents decide he must go into hiding.  Jaron decides to go into hiding with the pirates themselves to take them apart from the inside.

THE RUNAWAY KING has more action than THE FALSE PRINCE.  THE FALSE PRINCE had quite the finale, but most of the book was a tense build-up to the climax.  The structure of THE RUNAWAY KING is entirely different.  Most of the familiar characters are back, though many of them are far less important than they were in the first book.  This, the middle book in the trilogy, is really Jaron's show.  He's making his bid for power and he'll only keep the crown if he can pull it off.  Also, it's his show because he's too dumb to trust his real friends.  (Luckily, they trust him.)

My favorite part of the novel was when Jaron fell in with an Avenian thieves' camp.  Jennifer A. Nielsen did a wonderful job of developing Carthya in the first book and she used the second book to give a glimpse of the Avenian perspective.  It's not very nuanced since this is a middle grade series, but I appreciated that not all of the Avenians were terrible, irredeemable people.

I think fans of THE FALSE PRINCE will be very satisfied with THE RUNAWAY KING and eager to read the third and final book in the Ascendance Trilogy.  Nielsen keeps the pages turning.  THE RUNAWAY KING is full of danger, Jaron staying alive through a combination of his cleverness and his more physical abilities.  And just when it seems like he'll be triumphant, things boil over.

Nielsen's classic style of fantasy appeals to me now just as much as it would have when I was younger.  The Ascendance trilogy is perfect for fans of Megan Whalen Turner (though it does skew a little younger).  It has derring-do, suspense, epic battles, and a touch of romance and friendship.  It's full of action, but it's action driven by the memorable characters.