Sunday, February 24, 2013

The Runaway King



The Runaway King (The Ascendance Trilogy, #2)

A kingdom teetering on the brink of destruction. A king gone missing. Who will survive? Find out in the highly anticipated sequel to Jennifer A. Nielsen's blockbuster THE FALSE PRINCE!

Just weeks after Jaron has taken the throne, an assassination attempt forces him into a deadly situation. Rumors of a coming war are winding their way between the castle walls, and Jaron feels the pressure quietly mounting within Carthya. Soon, it becomes clear that deserting the kingdom may be his only hope of saving it. But the further Jaron is forced to run from his identity, the more he wonders if it is possible to go too far. Will he ever be able to return home again? Or will he have to sacrifice his own life in order to save his kingdom?

The stunning second installment of The Ascendance Trilogy takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of treason and murder, thrills and peril, as they journey with the Runaway King!

This blurb doesn't tell nearly enough about everything that happens in book two of the Ascendance Trilogy. As I've just finished it, I'm still attempting to decide what's worth mentioning, and what isn't. What I think, bottom line, though, is that it's important to know that no matter what you think about anyone in THE FALSE PRINCE, you need to have an open mind in THE RUNAWAY KING. So many things are not what they seem in TRK!!! Things are constantly changing!

I'll be honest--I'm the first person to admit that when I finish a book I like things wrapped up in a pretty little bow and completely resolved. So, going into THE RUNAWAY KING, after having so much happen in THE FALSE PRINCE, I wanted to enjoy the fact that things had finally been fixed and Jaron (or is it Sage???) was the ruler of Carthya. (YAY) So when conflict arose (almost immediately), I was a little frustrated. I mean, really, Ms. Nielson? Could we not, I don't know, simply celebrate the arrival at the point the entire previous book worked so hard to get us to for at least a little while?

But, the further I got into the book, the more I enjoyed it. As in THE FALSE PRINCE, the chemistry between Jaron and Imogen was still obvious and alive. I'm not going to say much more about that except that the way he treated her at first made me want to scream; but he did something later proving he'd learned from that action, and that really redeemed him for me. Jaron learns a lot in this book, actually--especially how to see other people's feelings, and how to better share his own. And he continues to have such quick wit that I find myself laughing at his responses.

As I said, the blurb doesn't say enough about everything that goes down in TRK. Jaron Sage infiltrates the most unlikely group of people, and one person you'd never expect to come against him wants him dead. I wish I could say things were wrapped up in that perty little bow, but as usual, the moment things seemed wrapped up and resolved and I had that "yay to this ending" smile on my face, another issue arose. 

Which brings me to my conclusion: Why must I insist on reading books the second they come out? The final book in the Ascendance Trilogy is sure to be full of action--true, it'll probably be a year until reading it is a possibility, but I can't wait. 

6 comments:

  1. Sounds action-packed! I felt similarly when I started the fourth Cassandra Clare book about the Shadowhunters. It drove me nuts that Clary and Jace couldn't just be happy for two seconds. The worst thing was that the thing that messed it up from the start was negative self-worth thoughts for both of them, so it wasn't even a tangible problem. If the stress is external, I'm quicker to forgive the author for breaking up happily ever after, I think. I've heard great things about Jennifer Nielson's books. Thanks for the review!

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  2. Yes, I'd say every chapter had something "going down". :D I have not read any Cassandra Clare yet *hangs head* so I can't exactly sympathize with you, but I know what you mean. I felt like Viola in the scene from SHE'S THE MAN where Viola tells Channing Tatum's character (referring to herself, but she's dressed like her brother so he doesn't know it) "No man... if you wanna kiss her... You go right ahead and you kiss her! I mean, knock your self out! You just take her... then kiss her. Then kiss the crap out of her!" I wanted to scream that at Jaron about Imogen! LOL

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  3. That's funny that you say that you wanted him to have his moment with things being a bit milder, or for him to settle in a bit. And I was the opposite. I wanted some crazy action! It's weird cause I'm not usually like that. I loved how this one went!

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  4. I'm reading The Runaway King right now, and it's pretty good. Thanks for following me!

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    1. Hi Cleo! Nice meeting you! Looking forward to reading your reviews at Cleo's World!

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