The Traitor Prince

by C. J. Redwine

Overview

A dark epic fantasy inspired by The Prince and the Pauper and the fairy tale The False Prince, from bestselling author C. J. Redwine. Perfect for fans of the Court of Thorns and Roses series and the Wrath and the Dawn duology, The Traitor Prince is a thrilling new standalone novel in the Ravenspire series.

Javan Najafai, crown prince of Akram, has spent the last ten years at an elite boarding school, far away from his kingdom. But his eagerly awaited return home is cut short when a mysterious impostor takes his place—and no one believes Javan is the true prince.

After barely escaping the impostor’s assassins, Javan is thrown into Maqbara, the kingdom’s most dangerous prison. The only way to gain an audience with the king—and reveal Javan’s identity—is to fight in Maqbara’s yearly tournament. But winning is much harder than acing competitions at school, and soon Javan finds himself beset not just by the terrifying creatures in the arena but also by a band of prisoners allied against him, and even by the warden herself.

The only person who can help him is Sajda, who has been enslaved by Maqbara’s warden since she was a child, and whose guarded demeanor and powerful right hook keep the prisoners in check. Working with Sajda might be the only way Javan can escape alive—but she has dangerous secrets.

Together, Javan and Sajda have to outwit the vicious warden, outfight deadly creatures, and outlast the murderous prisoners intent on killing Javan. If they fail, they’ll be trapped in Maqbara for good—and the secret Sajda’s been hiding will bury them both. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062652997
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	01/08/2019
Series:	Ravenspire Series , #3
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	151,911
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

C.J. Redwine is a New York Times bestselling author of speculative fiction, a diehard lover of going to the movies, and a believer in fairytales. She keeps a six-foot tall Loki figure in her office and will argue the merits of Batman vs. Superman with anyone she meets. She once accidentally punched herself in the face on a ride at Disneyland. She doesn’t recommend it.

Editorial Reviews

An action-packed narrative of monsters, violence, and political intrigue.” — School Library Journal

Praise for THE WISH GRANTER: “Satisfying fare for fantasy fans.” — Kirkus Reviews

Praise for THE WISH GRANTER: “A welcome feminist revision of the classic fairy tale.” — School Library Journal

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “With poison, fire, and deadly deeds, this tale is hard to put down and even harder to forget. I’ll never look at apples the same way again!” — Maria V. Snyder, New York Times bestselling author of the Study series

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “Magic, dragons, and royalty in hiding: The Shadow Queen hits all the right notes of an incredible epic fantasy.” — Jodi Meadows, author of the Orphan Queen duology

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “Filled with complex characters, imaginative and horrible consequences, and sharp twists — Booklist

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “An action-packed retelling of “Snow White”...Great fun” — School Library Journal

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “A fully imagined fairy tale landscape.” — Publishers Weekly

Praise for DELIVERANCE: “A sharp new epic” — Booklist

Praise for DECEPTION: “An engaging fantasy” — Booklist

Praise for DEFIANCE: “A well-paced, heart-wrenching tale of loyalty, courage, and love.” — Romantic Times

Praise for DEFIANCE: “C.J. Redwine’s DEFIANCE is a gritty, thrilling adventure sprinkled with moments of breathtaking tenderness. I read it in one sitting.” — Rae Carson, Morris Award finalist for and New York Times bestselling author of The Girl of Fire and Thorns

From the Publisher

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “Filled with complex characters, imaginative and horrible consequences, and sharp twists

Booklist

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “Magic, dragons, and royalty in hiding: The Shadow Queen hits all the right notes of an incredible epic fantasy.

Jodi Meadows

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “Filled with complex characters, imaginative and horrible consequences, and sharp twists

Booklist

Praise for DEFIANCE: “A well-paced, heart-wrenching tale of loyalty, courage, and love.

Romantic Times

Praise for THE SHADOW QUEEN: “With poison, fire, and deadly deeds, this tale is hard to put down and even harder to forget. I’ll never look at apples the same way again!

Maria V. Snyder

Praise for DEFIANCE: “C.J. Redwine’s DEFIANCE is a gritty, thrilling adventure sprinkled with moments of breathtaking tenderness. I read it in one sitting.

Rae Carson

Praise for DEFIANCE: “Spellbinding, romantic, and impossible to put down.

Julie Kagawa

11/01/2017
Gr 8 Up—The latest "Ravenspire" novel, inspired by The Prince and the Pauper, delivers an action-packed narrative of monsters, violence, and political intrigue. Javin, the prince of Akram, an Arabian Nights—style fantasy world, has spent the last 10 years at a military academy. His return home is disrupted when an illegitimate cousin, Rahim, impersonates him as part of a political coup. Earnest and naive Javin is thrown into the vicious Maqbara prison, where he must fight monsters in gladiatorial battles in hopes of winning an audience with his father, the king. The novel's strength lies in its fast-paced action sequences and inventive monsters. While Redwine introduces themes of systemic oppression through her portrayal of the dark elves, an enslaved and subjugated race in Akram, the novel's ironic refrain that "the only good elf is a dead elf" comes across as heavy-handed moralizing rather than a nuanced exploration of these ideas. Characterization generally takes a backseat to the action, and the romantic subplot that fills the second half of the book feels rushed and out of place between the many graphic scenes of violence. Redwine's fans will appreciate cameo appearances by characters from the other "Ravenspire" novels, but this installment stands alone as a dark fantasy for readers who love fight scenes and political plotting. VERDICT Purchase where the author's previous books are popular.—Molly Saunders, Homewood Public Library, AL

School Library Journal

2017-11-13
A prince replaced by a double must reclaim his identity.The crown prince of Akram, Javan Samad Najafai of the house of Kadar, has spent the past 10 years at Milisatria Academy fulfilling his mother's dying wish. In his absence, a rebellious faction of aristocrats is slowly poisoning the king, and they plan on taking advantage of his addled state by replacing Javan with Rahim, the illegitimate son of the king's cousin. Javan thwarts the attempts on his life only to have Rahim's father identify Rahim as the true prince. Javan narrowly escapes execution but is sentenced to the Maqbara, a prison where prisoners are forced into gladiatorial combat against all manners of creatures and monsters for the viewing and gambling pleasure of the aristocracy. Pious, honorable Javan is horrified by this miscarriage of justice and by what's happened to his kingdom. He sets out to win the tournament to gain an audience with the king and prove his identity. He gains a reluctant ally, then friend, in the warden's slave, a pale-skinned girl with a secret. As they struggle for their respective freedoms, their evolution from friends to more is romantic and compelling. The action scenes are inventive, as are narrative moments from Rahim's perspective. In a change from previous Ravenspire settings, Akram is Arab-coded (a sensitivity reader is thanked in the acknowledgements), but there are unobtrusive references to the other books.An exciting, entertaining series companion. (Fantasy. 12-adult)

Kirkus Reviews