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Rogue Knight (2014)

by Brandon Mull(Favorite Author)

4.36 of 5 Votes: 8

ISBN

1442497033 (ISBN13: 9781442497030)

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

publisher

Aladdin

series

Five Kingdoms

review 1: I feel bad but I'm still having trouble really getting into the Five Kingdom series. Maybe its because I started off critical after reading Sky Raiders so now I'm nit-picking everything. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't awful but it wasn't great either. The characters all hit one note for me; nothing made them stand apart from each other which was a problem I had while reading Sky Raiders too. It seemed like a lot of characters were introduced but then cast aside just so the main cast wouldn't be sacrificed within a major battle. That was kind of aggravating. Also if I have to read about Cole justifying why he travels with Mira to save Jenna one more time, I'll lose it. Hoping once again I will start to really get into this series with the next book. Third time's the charm ri... moreght?On a side note, after checking out so many reviews about Mull's series, I think its funny to see that those who really loved Beyonders don't seem to enjoy the Five Kingdoms series that much(myself included). Yet those who hated Beyonders love Five Kingdoms but we all seem to love Fablehaven. So here's to looking forward to Dragonwatch which will hopefully entice everyone just like before.
review 2: Just barely finished reading "The Rogue Knight" and as usual, Brandon Mull has lived up to my expectations--which are very high, since I've seen the awesomeness he can come up with--and, I would say, even surpassed them.In "Sky Raiders" we got to see the workings of Sambria, one of the Five Kingdoms in the Outskirts. Shortly after "The Rogue Knight" begins, Cole, Mira, Twitch, and Jace cross into Elloweer, one of the other kingdoms where magic functions differently than in Sambria. In Elloweer, shapers can create seemings--visual and auditory illusions that have no physical substance--and apply "changings" to living creatures, which actually alter the subject's physical form. Cole and company are looking for Mira's sister Honor, another of the High Shaper's daughters whose power has been stolen by her father.Along the way they run into the slaver who originally kidnapped Cole from Earth. In order to stay off the radar, the friends recruit the help of a skilled enchanter (that's what the Ellowine shapers are called) named Skye to disguise Mira and Cole--Mira so people won't recognize her as the High Shaper's daughter and Cole so the slaver's henchmen won't recognize him as an escaped slave.However, then the Rogue Knight comes into the picture. He robs the caravan Mira, Jace, Twitch, Cole, and Skye are traveling with and in the process, sees through Mira's disguise, recognizes her, and forces her to go with him. So the party is forced to split up: Jace and Twitch go after Mira while Cole and Skye head to an establishment where they hope to find Cole's friend Dalton, another of the kidnapped kids from Earth. They successfully rescue him and rejoin Jace and Twitch in time to confront the Rogue Knight and get Mira back. The rest of the book deals with how they find Honor, restore her power, and defeat a magical being that has been rampaging around Elloweer similar to what Carnag was doing in "Sky Raiders."One thing I really liked about "The Rogue Knight" was the magic of Elloweer and seeing Skye weave her illusions. That was very very cool. Also awesome was a part toward the end where Cole underwent a changing and got to be an animal for a while. It felt very realistic to me because the animal's natural instincts and urges were there underneath Cole's thoughts, and he had to make a conscious effort to control them. I like when magic has both its advantages and disadvantages, because real life is like that--oftentimes you have to take something bad along with the good.I also liked the witty dialogue. For example:Skye bit her lip. "Of all my contacts, I can think of only one person who has a chance of succeeding. She isn't a member of the Unseen, she won't be willing, and she's very unpleasant to work with." "Who?" Cole asked. Skye gave a defeated sigh. "My mother."One thing that I think Brandon Mull did better with this book than with "Sky Raiders" was the final confrontation with the out-of-control magic. The fight with Carnag in book 1 felt a little weird to me, but this "boss fight" flowed more naturally, I thought. Cole really stepped up and saved the day just in the nick of time, which was awesome. It also pleased me that things turned out all right with the Rogue Knight, and with Twitch and Minimus. Which reminds me. Another great thing about this book is the loyalty among friends we get to see between Cole, Mira, Twitch, and Jace. Even though what Cole wants most is to free his kidnapped and enslaved friends, he sticks by Mira because she's his friend too. And he's willing to do his darnedest to help his friends even though he's not accustomed to being in mortal danger and it scares him. I like books where the protagonists are people you can admire, because if the "hero" isn't a good person--or at least trying to be one--then how are you supposed to want him to prevail?All in all, a riveting second installment in the Five Kingdoms series. Brandon Mull, thank you for another brilliant novel, and I can't wait for book 3 to be released in the spring! less

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