In the first book of this series, Impossible Creatures, Christopher discovered a portal to the Archipelago — a hidden world where mythical creatures are real.
Now, in The Poisoned King, Christopher is back home when he’s rudely awakened by a miniature dragon munching on his face. It’s Jacques, the feisty little dragon, who wastes no time in bossily insisting that Christopher return to the Archipelago.
As Christopher dresses, Jacques delivers alarming news: the great dragons are dying. The powerful dragon Sarkany has summoned Christopher, trusting only him – as an outsider from the Otherlands – to uncover the truth of why. Though apprehensive, Christopher is also excited to return to the magical world.
Meanwhile, Princess Anya lives in the southern reaches of the Archipelago. Raised in a forested estate behind the royal castle, she shares a rare bond with the gaganas – fierce, mythical black feathered birds – and communicates with them through gestures. But her life is thrown into chaos when her grandfather, the King, is found dead in his bed. Her father is accused of murder and imprisoned in the castle dungeons. With her own safety at risk, Anya must act quickly.
Katherine Rundell once again unleashes her boundless imagination. The characters that populate the pages are imaginative and engaging, although Anya is a less compelling character at times, with her blind determination occasionally coming across as exaggerated. The pages are filled with wondrous creatures and high-stakes adventure as Christopher and Anya join forces to clear her father’s name and save the dragons.
Reviewed by Jane Stephens
Age Guide 8+
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Katherine Rundell grew up in London, Zimbabwe and Belgium. Her books for children include Rooftoppers, The Wolf Wilder, The Explorer, One Christmas Wish and The Good Thieves. She has also written a book for adults Why You Should Read Children’s Books, Even Though You Are So Old And Wise and Impossible Creatures.
Her work has been translated into 30 languages and has won, among others, the Costa Children’s Book Award, the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, the Blue Peter Book Award, the Boston Globe Horn Book Award in America, the Andersen Prize in Italy and Le Prix Sorcières in France.
In 2016 she wrote a play, ‘Life According to Saki’, which won the Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh award and transferred to New York.
She worked on a short film about a tortoise, ‘Henry’, for Oculus Rift, which went on to win an Emmy for Outstanding Original Interactive Programme. She has been selected as one of the Aarhus39 – 39 of the leading children’s writers from across Europe – and one of the Hay30 ‘writers and thinkers’.
In her spare time she is learning, extremely slowly, to fly a small aeroplane, and goes climbing across the rooftops old buildings, secretly, late at night.
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