The Fire King is a YA/middlegrade fantasy adventure and the second book in Paul Crilley’s The Invisible Order trilogy.WARNING: If you have not yet read the first Invisible Order novel, Rise of the Darklings, you should avoid this review like the plague. It’s way too awesome to sour with inescapable spoilers, in my opinion. Instead you can read my review of Rise of the Darklings here and go get yourself a copy. Then you can return.
I really, really loved Rise of the Darklings – the flavor of Victorian England mixed with a brand new mythology of faeries (most of which were creepy and deceptive) and an epic storyline featuring a smart, resourceful young 12-year-old girl named Emily Snow that really just wanted to make sure she and her brother could eat every night. Excellent plot, characters, etc., and a fantastic cliffhanger end that had The Fire King being one of my most anticipated books on my shelf.
And The Fire King met all my expectations!
I don’t want to give away too many details of the plot here, as any fan of Rise of the Darklings should already be invested enough in the characters and story not to need it. Just pick it up and read!
But, if you’d like it, to kind of sum up where we start – it’s right where we left off! Emily, her brother William, her friend Jack and the hilariously grumpy and tricky piskie Corrigan have landed in 1666 London with no way to get home.
Not to mention they are running into too many familiar, unfriendly faces, such as Jenny Greenteeth and Black Annis, as well as new enemies – and trying to keep their possession of Victorian England’s version of the always-sought-after key a secret!
Emily is convinced that the solution to their problem is to find Christopher Wren, past leader of the Invisible Order and try to find Merlin (all of which Merlin himself seemed to suggest she had already done in his past back in Rise of the Darklings) but her brother William is stubbornly insistent on following up on a lead about someone called the Raven King – a prophesied helper in the issue of fey.
Nobody seems to know what they’re talking about, and time is running out as the Fire King begins to burn London to the ground – and all those inhabiting it… Will they ever get home?
So, that’s a general sum-up of the initial plotline, without giving much away. But if you loved Rise of the Darklings, you’re going to love The Fire King too!
We have more adventure, surprisingly unexpected twists, a refreshing sense of real danger, scheming, and fear, and a legitimately epic tone in a story that weaves legends, myths, and wonderful humor into a story completely original.
I was sucked in from start to finish and actually finished it in one day! And I was at work! And it’s 400 pages! So, that says a lot. I mean, I don’t even know how I managed to do that.
But when a book like The Fire King is as fun, entertaining, fast-paced, well-plotted, smart and witty as this one is, plus has a wide variety of colorful, clever, fully-shaped characters that you are truly invested in, it’s easy to read fast! I also love how it can read by any age and be truly delightful!
Don’t even get me started on the last couple of sentences, either. I need to know when the third book is coming out!
You’ll know what I mean when you see it!
Go grab your copy of The Fire King and start reading! It’ll be more than worth your time!!!
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