Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Fablehaven: Rise of the Evening Star


So, it's been a year since Kendra and Seth have lived at Fablehaven with their grandparents and discovered that their home is really a preserve for all types of magical creatures. School will be out in a week, and Kendra is looking forward to a bit of time off. Everything seems fine until a new boy named Case shows up. All of Kendra's friends think Case is hot, but the kiss of the fairies has left Kendra with the ability to see Case for what he really is...a hideous, deformed magical creature of some kind.
Kendra has to tell Seth. Who else would believe her? Before the two of them can decide what to do, Errol shows up. Errol claims to be a friend of their grandfather, and possesses enough information to make Kendra and Seth believe he is just that. But after Seth and Kendra help Errol provide the means to send Case packing, grandpa calls up and lets them know they've been fooled. And that it's time for them to come back to Fablehaven.
While the first installment of the series was dark, Rise of the Evening Star seems almost more so. When the kids arrive, grandma and grandpa are living with 3 specialist who are supposedly helping to bring down the society. Coulter, who has been grandpa's friend for years, specializes in magical relics. The massive Tanu is a potions specialist. And Vanessa is learned in weapons and magical creatures. Dale and Warren are still on the compound. And soon, it is clear, that there is a traitor among them.
Who can Kendra and Seth trust? Who really wants the best for Fablehaven. Why are the fairies so mean to Kendra? And what new horrors lurk in the woods?
Brandon Mull can write one heck of a scary story. The plot flies along as the kids get into adventure after adventure. These books are truly exciting, and I found myself seeking out quiet spots whenever I could get in a few chapters. It's going to be so hard to wait for the third installment, but in the meantime, I will pick up Mull's stand alone The Candy Shop War to tide me over.
Fans of Horowitz's Alex Rider should love Fablehaven. Fast paced with enough gore to satisfy any reader!

2 comments:

Patrick said...

I work with Brandon's sister Summer and I heard some interesting things about book three.

1. Kendra is developing a love interest.

2. The majority of the story is going to take place on other preserves. This makes sense since they have to find the other lost artifacts before the Society of the Evening Star does.

3. The book is going to introduce Dragons and I guess in book 4 they are going to visit a dragon preserve. I can't remember if she said they will visit the dragon preserve in book 3 or 4.

Also check out this Candy Shop War video on youtube. http://youtube.com/watch?v=xkOna6wCuiQ

Stasia D said...

Patrick: thanks for the inside scoop! I was hoping there would be some travel, and dragons are always a hit!