★ 04/20/2015
In a delightful deconstruction of role-playing clichés, Anderson (Minion) gives D&D-style dungeon-delving the Harry Potter approach, creating a school where promising young heroes are taught the finer tricks of the traditional fantasy smash and grab. As an apprentice rogue with Thwodin’s Legion, Colm Candorly learns how to disarm traps, open locks, and survive in a hostile world, while befriending the rest of his training party: a stuttering mage, a nervous druid, and a female would-be barbarian. When the time comes to test their skills in an actual dungeon crawl, they’re pushed to their limits, even as the Legion is rocked by a betrayal. Anderson’s approach is both serious and tongue-in-cheek, balancing humor with life-and-death situations, such as when Colm’s class is regaled with the horrible fates of unfortunate dungeoneers: “Impaled, drowned, burned, impaled, cursed, exploded, slashed, imploded, frozen, poisoned, turned to stone, turned to ash, turned into a chicken,” starts the speech. It’s an exciting, engaging tale that brings new life to one of the most common manifestations of the genre. Ages 8–12. Agent: Quinlan Lee, Adams Literary. (June)
02/01/2015
Gr 4–7—Living with eight rambunctious sisters has primed Colm Candorly to be the perfect pickpocket: stealthy and quick. Not only that, missing a finger lets his hands slip easily into others' pockets. When one of his sisters becomes ill, Colm decides to use his talents to pick the pockets of the wealthy in the village square, amassing a pile of gold. The problem comes with explaining the gold to his stickler father. Colm's dad insists that he come clean to the magistrate in hopes that his son will be dealt a lenient punishment. Enter Colm's savior, Finn Argos, a smooth-talking rogue who whisks Colm off to a school where such talents are valued, a school for treasure-seeking dungeon raiders. There the real adventure begins. Colm is paired with a redheaded barbarian girl, a stuttering mage, and a timid druid to form the ideal dungeoneering party configuration. Trolls, goblins, and orcs pose the obvious danger for dungeoneers, but what hidden danger lurks behind the castle walls? Colm and his friends are engaging characters with distinct personalities. VERDICT Anderson's latest fantasy is an exciting examination of friendship, morality, and loyalty; readers will look forward to Colm's future exploits.—Tiffany Davis, Mount Saint Mary College, Newburgh, NY
2015-03-17
Even a school for rogues is, at its core, a school. "So you run a school for thieves…I mean, rogues," Colm Candorly asks, early in the novel. He's speaking to Finn Argos, who's missing two fingers and bears a scar across his face. "It's not a school," Finn tells him, more than once. But Finn lies. Learning to be a dungeoneer means endless lock-picking drills, reading the Rogue's Encyclopedia, and listening to recitations of rules. The rules turn out to be extremely useful, though, and even funny, like Rule 23: "Be the best there is at what you do and always aware that someone does it better." The dialogue in the book is often witty, especially when it comes from Finn. He has a long list of terms for meeting your maker, including "paid his debts" and "lost his wager." "Of course," he says, "anyone else—a warrior, a wizard, a ranger, you name it—they just die, plain and simple. But we rogues are much too clever for that." The problem is that for chapters at a time, the book is nothing but clever talk. Colm spends some of his time as an apprentice rogue escaping from deathtraps, fighting orcs, and being attacked by a giant scorpion; the battles and heists—when they finally come—are satisfying and occasionally shocking. Readers may well feel that the wait in between battles and heists feels a little too much like school. (Fantasy. 8-12)
