As the title notes, The Runaway King: Book 2 of the Ascendance Trilogy is the second book in the Ascendance series that features Sage, grown to take the throw under his rightful name, Jaron. (See here for my review of the first book, The False Prince.) Jaron is threatened within his kingdom of Carthya, by ambitious regents who seek to push him aside or use him as a puppet, and from the outside by King Vargan of Avenia, greedy to add Carthya to his rule.
Jaron suffers from extreme foot in mouth disease, incurable optimism, self confidence and unbelievable skills he honed for thievery, climbing, undoing chains and ropes, pick pocketing. The book opens with an assassination attempt that leaves Jaron an ultimatum: deliver himself to the pirates who already tried to kill him, or see his kingdom destroyed. Jaron knows the pirates work closely with King Vargan.
King Vargan offers to take a spring in exchange for peace, such a good deal, otherwise known as tribute or appeasement. Jaron’s father had made many such small-seeming concessions over his reign, leaving Vargan eager to take the rest. Jaron refuses the deal.
From that point on the book moves at light speed, with Jaron joining the pirates under an assumed name, intending to turn the pirates into his men, his allies. An audacious move, it nearly works.
Characters
Prince, then King Jaron, is both a cardboard creature and a person. He is most stereotyped when acting as a thief, the bold challenger, the escape artist. He is best developed when we see hints of his true nobility and kingship, as when he realizes that to give into Vargan once means giving him over all of Carthya, with timing the only question.
Love interest Imogen is a little more developed in The Runaway King than in The False Prince, but still a little weak. It’s not clear why she and Jaron fall for each other. Princess Amarinda is better drawn and an attractive character. Jaron’s other friends and sometime foes are interesting but secondary.
Thoughts About The Runaway King
The Ascendance series is fantasy without a trace of magic. You’ll find no wizards, no witches or sorcery. Books like this, set in semi-medieval kingdoms with fast paced action, depend on the characters and the interesting plots. Author Jennifer Nielsen does a good job with both, aligning the series to the older teen audience that enjoys plots and fun more than vampires and dystopian apocalypse.
I was restless and looking for something fun when I re-read my review for The False Prince and decided to check out the sequels from our local E library. I’m glad I did as this was perfect for the evening. Adults looking for a fast, enjoyable read that doesn’t challenge with a ton of mysterious magic or oddball names will enjoy this too.
4 Stars for adults, 5 for teens.
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