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The False Prince (Ascendance, #1)

Jennifer A. Nielsen

Why we're reading this: Discussed at January 21, 2013 OlyReads event, "Apocalypse Survivors Still Care About Books."…more
[close] Discussed at January 21, 2013 OlyReads event, "Apocalypse Survivors Still Care About Books."

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Sep 08, 2012 Sara rated it really liked it

Shelves: adventure-action, funny, read-in-2012, fantasy, young-adult-books, middle-school-perfect, summerbooktalk2013, unreliable-narrator

MAN, there was a lot of really excellent YA written this year. Toward the end of the year I have just been reading book after book filled with awesomeness.

I listened to this on audio, and I really loved the narrator they chose to play Sage. This is set in a pretty traditional kingdom-based fantasy world, and most of the audio books set in Britishy city-states have Britishy narrators. The narrator of The False Prince was just perfectly sassy and American and boyish, and brought the character to MAN, there was a lot of really excellent YA written this year. Toward the end of the year I have just been reading book after book filled with awesomeness.

I listened to this on audio, and I really loved the narrator they chose to play Sage. This is set in a pretty traditional kingdom-based fantasy world, and most of the audio books set in Britishy city-states have Britishy narrators. The narrator of The False Prince was just perfectly sassy and American and boyish, and brought the character to life in a way I'm not sure I'd have caught on to if I hadn't listened to it. So, that's the first well done thing here.

This is a twisty book, and is at its heart a novel of political intrigue and identity. I expected and guessed some of the twists and turns, but not all of them, and by the end I was thinking, "Hmmm...maybe this will be one of those book series where I actually read the next books in the series." As a librarian, I often read only the first book in a series so I have enough info to get a kid hooked -- but Nielson has created enough intrigue and set up a complicated enough situation for the second book that I might have to pick it up.

There were a few things that weren't perfect about The False Prince (which is why it's only four and not five stars) -- I am feeling like I don't have enough information about Imogen to really understand her and her relationship with Sage, and I felt like I never really got to know the other two boys vying to be Connor's prince -- but all in all that never really mattered. Because Sage is so awesome. He's so fully formed, and clever and likable and bold and vulnerable at the same time, that I just wanted to see what he would do next at every moment.

This is a PERFECT middle school book -- and actually could probably even go younger if you have younger readers -- there's really nothing in it that would keep upper elementary from reading (except maybe some of the more political plot points? A liiiittle bit of violence?). I want to book talk this this summer before summer reading visits!
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1 like · Like · see review

Oct 03, 2012 Scott marked it as to-read

Shelves: fantasy

Sep 13, 2021 Monica marked it as to-read · review of another edition

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