Sapphique

Starred review from October 15, 2010

In this dark, brilliant sequel to Incarceron (2010), worlds within worlds collide to mutual destruction—or, maybe, rebirth. Finn has finally Escaped the sentient prison world with aid from the Warden's daughter, Claudia, but escape hardly means freedom. As they struggle to negotiate the poisonous intrigue of the Realm and unlock Incarceron's secrets, their allies still trapped Inside seek a rumored artifact of the legendary Sapphique. For Incarceron has gone insane and is determined to Escape itself... Breathtaking worldbuilding describes two very different dystopian dimensions with surreal splendor and cruel artifice. The price exacted upon even the humblest characters is portrayed unflinchingly; yet the selfishness, deception and treachery of every protagonist does not prevent them from being painfully sympathetic and real. Even as the steadily ratcheting certainty of impending catastrophe keeps the pages turning, the sheer richness of the evocative descriptions demands that every sentence be savored. No conventional tidy ending is offered; the bleak conclusion glimmers from only the faint hope gained by revealing the truth. Not for everyone; but for those who can appreciate the interplaying reflections of lies, myths and memory, a modern masterpiece. (Science fiction. YA)

(COPYRIGHT (2010) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

December 1, 2010

Gr 7 Up-Picking up after the surprising revelations of Incarceron (Dial, 2010), Fisher abruptly returns readers to the dystopian world and its living prison. Still trapped inside, Attia and Keiro are doing whatever they can to survive on their quest to find the Outside. Finn, meanwhile, has escaped and is now preparing to take his place on the Realm's throne. Not completely convinced, Claudia and Jared are attempting to groom Finn to take his place as Prince Giles. Things are almost on track when a Pretender makes a bid for the throne, threatening both Finn's and Claudia's lives. Amid the discordance in the Realm, Incarceron itself hunts for Sapphique's famed glove, an object that may help the prison gain a human body. Now, Attia, Keiro, and the Warden are attempting to keep the glove from Incarceron, while Finn, Jared, and Claudia are trying to hold the Realm together from the Outside. Fisher again crafts a dark, interesting foray into vivid imagery, danger, surprising twists, and intriguing revelations. This story is not quite as strong as Incarceron, but return readers will nonetheless enjoy it; new readers should, however, be steered back to the first volume. Readers will be left breathless hoping for another installment to explore the repercussions brought on by everything that happens in Sapphique's final chapters.-Jessica Miller, New Britain Public Library, CT

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 1, 2010
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Fisher concludes her high-intensity, mind-bending duology in this sequel to Incarceron (2010). In the two months since Finn has escaped Incarceron and assumed his role as Prince Giles, he has failed to adapt to courtly life. Finn is wracked with guilt over leaving Kiero and Attia behind, and his brooding, unpolished demeanor makes him an easy target for the conniving queen. With their attempts to change the Realm stalled, even Claudia has doubts about Finns real identity, which are worsened when another boy appears, claiming to be the true heir. In Incarceron, Kiero and Attia search for another way out, and when they run across the mad magician Rix, who may own the fabled Glove of Sapphique, they believe theyve found it. Meanwhile, Incarceron is maneuvering behind the scenes, and sapient Jared may factor into its all-seeing design. Fisher further explores themes of reality, illusion, and freedom without losing her intensely original world building and authentic characters. The bittersweet conclusion may frustrate readers expecting a traditional happy ending (or even just a more conclusive one), but it fits perfectlyalthough a glimmer of hope may be all the characters receive, its a real hope, and like the stars, it endures.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2011
Finn (Incarceron) must prove his identity against a well-schooled imposter. Meanwhile, Finn's prisonmates steal Sapphique's Glove, an artifact that, according to legend, connects the wearer with the mind of Incarceron. Like a master builder constructing a monumental edifice, Fisher lays and levels each narrative block with care, alternating events inside the steampunk-style prison with those in the lushly textured outside society.

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2011
Since he escaped at the end of Incarceron (rev. 1/10), Finn has reclaimed his place as Giles, the prince who as a child was kidnapped and imprisoned in the sentient prison Incarceron, but he finds court life as dangerous, in its own way, as captivity. Although he desperately wants to help his companions still inside, he must instead prove his identity against a well-schooled imposter claiming his birthright, or his life is forfeit. Meanwhile, those Finn left behind in Incarceron -- former dog-slave Attia, oath-brother Keiro -- haven't given up their dreams of freedom. They rob an old enchanter of Sapphique's Glove, an artifact that, according to legend, connects the wearer with the mind of Incarceron -- but Incarceron learns they have it and commands them to hand it over, promising them Escape. Can they trust the insane intelligence behind the prison? Like a master builder constructing a monumental edifice, Fisher lays and levels each narrative block with care, alternating events inside the steampunk-style prison with those in the lushly textured outside society that has chained itself to an unchanging seventeenth-century Era. Both inside and outside, characters struggle with the question of whom among their allies they can trust. As time runs out and various avenues of escape are cut off, the plot builds to an inexorable climax -- a fitting finial on Fisher's grand invention. ANITA L. BURKAM

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)