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Book Information

The False Prince

The False Prince

Written by Jennifer A. Nielsen

Narrated by Charlie McWade

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Ratings:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars4.5/5 (280 ratings)

Length: 8 hours

Publisher:: Scholastic Audio
Released:: Apr 1, 2012
ISBN:: 9780545477222
Format:: Audiobook

Description

In a discontented kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword's point — he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage's rivals have their own agendas as well.

As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner's sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.

An extraordinary adventure filled with danger and action, lies and deadly truths that will have readers clinging to the edge of their seats.

And don't miss the highly anticipated fourth book in the series, The Captive Kingdom, coming October 2020!

The False Prince

Book Actions

Start Listening

Book Information

The False Prince

Written by Jennifer A. Nielsen

Narrated by Charlie McWade

Ratings:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars4.5/5 (280 ratings)

Length: 8 hours

Description

In a discontented kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king's long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner's motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword's point — he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage's rivals have their own agendas as well.

As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner's sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.

An extraordinary adventure filled with danger and action, lies and deadly truths that will have readers clinging to the edge of their seats.

And don't miss the highly anticipated fourth book in the series, The Captive Kingdom, coming October 2020!

Publisher:: Scholastic Audio
Released:: Apr 1, 2012
ISBN:: 9780545477222
Format:: Audiobook

About the author

Jennifer A. Nielsen

Jennifer Nielsen lives at the base of a very tall mountain in Northern Utah with her husband, three children, and a naughty puppy. She wishes to make it clear that most Yetis are not as threatening as the one in this book. Sadly, she cannot say the same for Centaurs. Visit www.jennielsen.com

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4.5

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

280 ratings / 92 reviews

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Rating: 3 out of 5 stars(3/5)

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The False Prince is a young adult or possibly middle grade fantasy novel that reminds me strongly of Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief. Sage is living in an orphanage when he’s taken along with three other boys by a nobleman named Connor. The royal family is dead and civil war is brewing, but Connor has a plan – find an impostor to play the role of the missing prince Jaron. Sage knows that if he isn’t chosen, Connor will have him killed.The False Prince was all right but not particularly great. Large parts of the book felt bare boned. For instance, take the world building. There’s little to no effort to build up a sense of place. The setting is entirely lacking in culture or history and felt simplistic. Character development felt similarly simplistic. The only character with a chance at depth was the lead, and I never grew attached to him.The plot of the book largely lies on a reveal that comes near the end. Unfortunately, I guessed the reveal ahead of time. I don’t think the reveal is significantly hard to guess if you’re familiar with the genre.While I was reading The False Prince, I was continually reminded by Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief. The plots of the two books are different, but there’s certain similarities in feel, perhaps due to both books having unreliable and cocky young thieves as their main characters. Overall, I’d say that Turner’s book is the better of the two due to superior prose. Despite this, if you were a fan of The Thief, you may want to look into The False Prince.The False Prince was not an amazing novel. I found it mediocre, but it was still a fairly pleasant way to pass some time.Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars(3/5)

The False Prince is a young adult or possibly middle grade fantasy novel that reminds me strongly of Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief. Sage is living in an orphanage when he’s taken along with three other boys by a nobleman named Connor. The royal family is dead and civil war is brewing, but Connor has a plan – find an impostor to play the role of the missing prince Jaron. Sage knows that if he isn’t chosen, Connor will have him killed.The False Prince was all right but not particularly great. Large parts of the book felt bare boned. For instance, take the world building. There’s little to no effort to build up a sense of place. The setting is entirely lacking in culture or history and felt simplistic. Character development felt similarly simplistic. The only character with a chance at depth was the lead, and I never grew attached to him.The plot of the book largely lies on a reveal that comes near the end. Unfortunately, I guessed the reveal ahead of time. I don’t think the reveal is significantly hard to guess if you’re familiar with the genre.While I was reading The False Prince, I was continually reminded by Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief. The plots of the two books are different, but there’s certain similarities in feel, perhaps due to both books having unreliable and cocky young thieves as their main characters. Overall, I’d say that Turner’s book is the better of the two due to superior prose. Despite this, if you were a fan of The Thief, you may want to look into The False Prince.The False Prince was not an amazing novel. I found it mediocre, but it was still a fairly pleasant way to pass some time.Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.

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Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)

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This review can also be found on Reading Between Classes

Cover Impressions: The cover doesn't stand out as much as I would like. It is simple and clean and I do like the gold crown and lettering on a blue background.

The Gist: As an orphan running the streets of Carchar, Sage has learned to depend on his quick wits and quicker mouth to survive. When he finds himself one of four boys bought by a wealthy nobleman with a dastardly plan to gain control of the throne, Sage must use every trick at his disposal to outmaneuver the other boys and convince the kingdom that he is fit to rule.

Review: The False Prince is the first book in The Ascendance Trilogy, and when I finished this book I was incredibly thankful that there are more to come while, at the same time, lamenting that I did not have the next installment NOW. This novel manages to invoke the same sense of intrigue and danger that Game of Thrones does, but presents it in a manner that is appropriate for a young audience. At the end I found myself warring contradicting emotions as half of me wanted to finish quickly so that I could find out what happens while the other half wanted to slow down a savor each word.

The voice of Sage, hooked me from the very first page. He is clever, witty and self-deprecating. He interjects a wonderful sense humor into the most serious of situations and is able to manipulate the other characters into playing along in his grand master plan. His antics left me laughing, shaking my head or asking "why can you not keep your mouth shut!" (and sometimes all three) in the most wonderful of ways. Sage is the type of character that is impossible not to root for and I truly feel that he will appeal to both male and female readers, a feat that seems difficult to accomplish in most YA novels.

The plot unfurls slowly but steadily, with secrets and betrayals around every corner. There was not a single moment when I was bored or wishing for more action. This is one of those books in which seemingly insignificant details will later be revealed as integral to the plot. I adore novels where all the puzzle pieces seem to fall into place, creating a finished piece that is full of detail and leaves the reader reflecting on all of the moments that brought us to this place.

The False Prince is easily the best book I have read this year and I am especially excited because this is a book that I can hand both my male and female students knowing that they will return begging for the next in the series. This is a wonderful addition to any classroom library, kid's bookshelf or adult's to-be-read pile.

Teaching/Parental Notes:
Age: 12 and up
Gender: Both - Boys will LOVE this book!
Sex: None
Violence: Shooting with an arrow, swordplay, stabbing
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Abuse: None

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars(5/5)

This review can also be found on Reading Between Classes

Cover Impressions: The cover doesn't stand out as much as I would like. It is simple and clean and I do like the gold crown and lettering on a blue background.

The Gist: As an orphan running the streets of Carchar, Sage has learned to depend on his quick wits and quicker mouth to survive. When he finds himself one of four boys bought by a wealthy nobleman with a dastardly plan to gain control of the throne, Sage must use every trick at his disposal to outmaneuver the other boys and convince the kingdom that he is fit to rule.

Review: The False Prince is the first book in The Ascendance Trilogy, and when I finished this book I was incredibly thankful that there are more to come while, at the same time, lamenting that I did not have the next installment NOW. This novel manages to invoke the same sense of intrigue and danger that Game of Thrones does, but presents it in a manner that is appropriate for a young audience. At the end I found myself warring contradicting emotions as half of me wanted to finish quickly so that I could find out what happens while the other half wanted to slow down a savor each word.

The voice of Sage, hooked me from the very first page. He is clever, witty and self-deprecating. He interjects a wonderful sense humor into the most serious of situations and is able to manipulate the other characters into playing along in his grand master plan. His antics left me laughing, shaking my head or asking "why can you not keep your mouth shut!" (and sometimes all three) in the most wonderful of ways. Sage is the type of character that is impossible not to root for and I truly feel that he will appeal to both male and female readers, a feat that seems difficult to accomplish in most YA novels.

The plot unfurls slowly but steadily, with secrets and betrayals around every corner. There was not a single moment when I was bored or wishing for more action. This is one of those books in which seemingly insignificant details will later be revealed as integral to the plot. I adore novels where all the puzzle pieces seem to fall into place, creating a finished piece that is full of detail and leaves the reader reflecting on all of the moments that brought us to this place.

The False Prince is easily the best book I have read this year and I am especially excited because this is a book that I can hand both my male and female students knowing that they will return begging for the next in the series. This is a wonderful addition to any classroom library, kid's bookshelf or adult's to-be-read pile.

Teaching/Parental Notes:
Age: 12 and up
Gender: Both - Boys will LOVE this book!
Sex: None
Violence: Shooting with an arrow, swordplay, stabbing
Inappropriate Language: None
Substance Abuse: None

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Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

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I checked this book out from the library.

This book is a solid read with an interesting story line. The characters are complex and well-developed if not exactly the sort of people with whom you'd want to socialize. It is not spectacular for the latter reason.

I read this book with my two teen daughters and we are all on the fence about whether or not to read the next book in the series.

I give this book a B.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

I checked this book out from the library.

This book is a solid read with an interesting story line. The characters are complex and well-developed if not exactly the sort of people with whom you'd want to socialize. It is not spectacular for the latter reason.

I read this book with my two teen daughters and we are all on the fence about whether or not to read the next book in the series.

I give this book a B.

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Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

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What a wild ride!

It took me a few chapters to really get into the book, and I started to expect to be dissapointed, but I pushed through, and WOW! I'm so glad I did!

Sage is awesome. That sass tho! Seriously the best part of the book! I loved it! Such an amazing character! The plot was very good, with lots of unexpected twists and turns! I sorta saw it coming that Sage was the real prince, but I was still surprised when it happened! And even throughout the last chapter, I was on my toes trying to determine what would happen! Perfect blend of non-magical fantasy and mystery!

CONTENT NOTE: There really wasn't much content. There was some "by the gods" or "the devil take you", but that was pretty much it, and really, it was quite accurate for the time period. Also some non-graphic violence, aka, a character gets killed, threats of violence, etc.

Highly recommened! A fun and crazy ride throughout!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

What a wild ride!

It took me a few chapters to really get into the book, and I started to expect to be dissapointed, but I pushed through, and WOW! I'm so glad I did!

Sage is awesome. That sass tho! Seriously the best part of the book! I loved it! Such an amazing character! The plot was very good, with lots of unexpected twists and turns! I sorta saw it coming that Sage was the real prince, but I was still surprised when it happened! And even throughout the last chapter, I was on my toes trying to determine what would happen! Perfect blend of non-magical fantasy and mystery!

CONTENT NOTE: There really wasn't much content. There was some "by the gods" or "the devil take you", but that was pretty much it, and really, it was quite accurate for the time period. Also some non-graphic violence, aka, a character gets killed, threats of violence, etc.

Highly recommened! A fun and crazy ride throughout!

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Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

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Sage is taken from his orphanage by a royal advisor who has plans to "save" the kingdom by suddenly producing the long-lost and presumed dead prince. During a 2 week training, Sage proves himself clever and rebellious. It seems the 3 boys who are competing to be the "prince" are in a competition to survive. Compelling

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

Sage is taken from his orphanage by a royal advisor who has plans to "save" the kingdom by suddenly producing the long-lost and presumed dead prince. During a 2 week training, Sage proves himself clever and rebellious. It seems the 3 boys who are competing to be the "prince" are in a competition to survive. Compelling

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Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

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great book.couldnt put it down.the character sage is almost my mirror image.loved it!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars(4/5)

great book.couldnt put it down.the character sage is almost my mirror image.loved it!

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