INCARCERON and SAPPHIQUE
by Catherine Fisher. Dial, $17.99.
Fans of Catherine Fisher’s Incarceron, which
racked up starred reviews earlier this year from just
about everywhere that reviews young adult fi ction,
didn’t have to wait long for the book’s sequel, which
sneaks in just at the year’s end (it’s offi cially out Dec.
28). Like Incarceron, Sapphique takes place both in
the sentient prison that gave the fi rst book its name
— a giant, ever-changing, seemingly boundless
place that bears some resemblance to the arenas of
Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games series in scope —
and in the Realm, a world held captive by a Protocol
that demands its residents hew to the rules of a
bygone era. Technology is banned, but technology
runs Incarceron.
In this complicated, often false world, two young people fi ght to free others from
the prison, and to restore honesty to their own lives: Claudia, daughter of the Warden
of Incarceron, who has ventured back into the prison, and Finn, who spent years in the
prison and may or may not be the Realm’s long-lost prince.
Inventive, smartly structured and already headed for a big screen near you, Fisher’s
novels use breathless plot to explore identity, compromise and the nature of reality —
big questions in a shiny, engrossing package. — Molly Templeton
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BUTTERFLY
by Sonya Hartnett. Candlewick, $16.99.
This YA/adult horror book masquerading as a coming-of-age story hits at the heart
of family and friendship. Thirteen-year-old Plum Coyle lives a self-centered life, just like
most people her age, and her point of view carries through most of the book, from the
painful opening scene to the pitch-perfect and Cat’s Eye-level alarming scenes with her
group of so-called friends. She badly needs an adult to talk to, but as it turns out, adults
have secrets of their own, some of which threaten her family and their tentative, isolated
fi laments of connection. Occasional wrong notes (each character turns omniscient at
odd times) and a claustrophobic, deliberately mysterious fi nal scene don’t mar the
overall feel of the horrors of adolescence and the threat of grown-up life. — Suzi Steff en
FINNIKIN OF THE ROCK
by Melina Marchetta. Candlewick, $18.99.
With the fantastic, heartbreaking Finnikin of
the Rock, Melina Marchetta makes a sharp turn
away from the realistic fi ction of her last novel,
the Printz Medal-winning Jellicoe Road. Some
things don’t change: Marchetta creates complex,
passionate, fl awed characters whose relationships
to one another tie into their strong sense of place
— in this case, the place is the imaginary land of
Lumatere, one of the smallest kingdoms in the
larger island world of Skuldenore. Ten years ago,
Lumatere was torn apart by betrayal and locked
away from the rest of the world by a blood curse.
Exiles live in camps throughout Skuldenore’s other
kingdoms — some in terrible conditions. Finnikin,
who as a child played with Lumatere’s young
prince, Balthazar, roams the land with his mentor,
Sir Topher, hoping for some sign of Balthazar, or of
his father, Lumatere’s captain of the guard. When
a dream sends him to a distant cloister, Finn meets a young woman, Evanjalin, who’s
quite clearly not what she seems. Silent, fi erce, smart and manipulative, Evanjalin has
her own agenda. How it lines up with and changes Finn’s hopes and dreams, and
how they both connect to the future of Lumatere, is carefully spun out in Marchetta’s
sometimes wrenching, sometimes romantic high fantasy, which has its footing fi rmly in
very real ideas about power, home, displacement and connection. — Molly Templeton
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MONSTERS OF MEN
by Patrick Ness. Candlewick, $18.99.
In this third book in the Chaos Walking trilogy, we’re
back with Todd and Viola, at last. Will they survive? Will
the Spackle rebel and get back at those who massacred
them? Will the Mayor reveal himself and his plans?
Because we know he has them. And guess what?
There’s a third point of view in this book, somewhat
like the extra complexity that enters Jonathan Stroud’s
Bartimaeus trilogy in its fi nal volume.
By the time they get to Monsters, readers have
already dealt with two tomes of perpetual present
tense, which turns annoyingly frantic with Ness’ neck-
breaking plot pace. The book shares with other fantasy
trilogies (most famously, Lord of the Rings) an issue
around endings — it has, to put it mildly, several — but
for young readers, the actual ending may be more
satisfying than it was for this adult, who rolled her eyes
at lost opportunities. — Suzi Steff en
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EUGENE WEEKLY DECEMBER 16, 2010 21