Summary: Composed of three books, The False Prince, The Runaway King, and The Shadow Throne, the Ascendance trilogy follows the adventures of young Sage, a clever, orphan boy who lives on the streets of Carthya. The series begins when Bevin Conner, a mysterious stranger, hunts Sage and several other boys down, stealing them away to his estate. Why? To put into action a devious plan to steal the throne! Whether or not this plan succeeds, however, is up to Sage. As he moves through these three books, the reader is forced to repeatedly ask the question, will Sage's wit and cunning triumph in the end or is Carthya doomed?
Violence/Disturbing Images: High. Multiple sword fights, though not particularly gory, still enough to make one cringe. Book one: a character is murdered in cold blood and several other characters die from sword wounds. Sage is beaten and whipped badly, in an attempt to subject him to Conner's will; Book two: sword fights, attempts to kill other characters in duels, general roughness with punches, kicks, etc.; one character has his leg broken so he cannot escape; Book three: as this novel narrates a war, there is often mentioned soldiers being killed on the battlefield, strategies employed to wipe out armies, etc. Characters who become prisoners of war are beaten and whipped, and several are nearly hanged.
Sensuality/Nudity: Moderate; several different characters fall in love and there are plans made for betrothals and marriages; cheek kisses a few times in books one and two; one rather intense kissing scene in book three. (Caution recommended.)
Profanity: Several times the author mentions that characters curse or in a fit of anger let loose a string of obscenities, however the language itself is not recorded.
Morality: Having lived on the streets most of his life, Sage is accustomed to thievery. He also joins a pirate band in the second book to win over the support of the Avenian people. The main character seems to have rather weak moral character, however values such as honor, courage, friendship, and sacrifice are encouraged. In book one, the battle between truth and deceit is emphasized with truth winning out in the end.
An excellent trilogy with enough twists and turns to keep you constantly guessing. Heavy on the violence and romance especially in the second and third books, so read at your own discretion. The series starts out as written for a younger audience but as it progresses seems to expand to include an older one. Personally, I would advise younger readers to stick to The False Prince and bypass the other two. Otherwise, an amazingly well-crafted series of novels with seemingly unceasing action, adventure, and intrigue.
Overall Recommendation: 12+
God bless!
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