The second book in the Chronicles of Castellane, “The Ragpicker King”, is a solid fantasy novel from Cassandra Clare. It will draw readers into the world of Castellane and absorb them in the dilemmas of multiple characters. Continuing readers of the series will be particularly delighted by the depth of the plot in this story and the way the relationships between characters are developed.
A word of warning. This is the second book in a trilogy, and it doesn’t completely stand alone. I hadn’t read the first volume, and although I found the story easy enough to pick up, the large cast and deep political background made it a little harder to pick up relationships and some of the details of what was going on. And because there is at least one more volume to follow, none of the prime plot strands are resolved here.
Even so, I thought this was a great book. Although it took me a bit longer than usual to get into it – which I attribute to not having the background from volume one – once it had its’ claws in me, this was a really absorbing novel which had me deeply involved in the political and personal maneuvering of the characters.
The story is not too hard to pick up. In Book One, a massacre threw the royal court into chaos, and the turmoil continues to echo through this volume. Prince Conor appears focused on negotiating a marriage that will help him to protect his country from invaders. But his Sword Catcher, his body double, has been drawn into investigating the traitors who caused the massacre.
Kel, the Sword Catcher, finds that the Ragpicker King – notorious ruler of the criminal underworld in Castellane – has valuable clues to a conspiracy that might overturn the monarchy. But getting those clues from him is a challenge in itself and draws Kel deeper into dark doings.
Meanwhile, their mutual friend Lin is caught between them. Prince Conor wants her to cure his father, who’s suffering from a strange magical malady. Kel wants her to help find the traitors. And Lin herself is facing the consequences of her claim to be the Ashkar Goddess reborn.
This is in many ways a story about trust: trusting yourself, trusting information, trusting your friends, making choices about who and when to trust. I quickly became absorbed in the dilemmas facing each character.
This is a complex novel, with lots of political layers, lots of character development, plenty of complicated relationships, and many different schemes from multiple people. I found it pretty easy to follow while reading, but there’s a lot, so this is a long and detailed book. I never found it slow or boring, though, or felt that any of it was unnecessary.
There’s not a lot of resolution here, which is perfectly reasonable for a middle book in a trilogy. However, it significantly advances the story and provides several revelations that are likely to surprise readers and make them consider a few things differently.
I really enjoyed this novel, enough that I’m going to go back and find the first in the series, and then wait eagerly for the finale to come. Highly recommended for fantasy fans, especially those who appreciate complex, layered plots, strong characters and believable relationships.
A selection of our Beauty and Lace Club Members are reading The Ragpicker King by Cassandra Clare. You can read their comments below, or add your own review.
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The Ragpicker King by Cassandra Clare – is Book 2 in The Chronicles of Castellane series ( TOR Pan MacMillan). The first book Sword Catcher apparently sets the scene – outlining the complex political relationships and historical background to the series, and undoubtedly a lot is missed when beginning with this the second book. The Ragpicker King is nevertheless a fascinating read, and many key elements of the political intrigue, history and rivalries in the kingdom of Castellane, can be pieced together.
The relationships between many of the characters in the book are closely intertwined, but the story mainly follows the points of view of Kel and Lin.
Kel is the Sword Catcher (or body guard)for the royal prince of Castellane, Conor Aurelian. Kel was taken as a young orphan boy to be the prince’s body double and is bound to protect him from all danger. He is fiercely protective of Prince Conor and loves him like a brother.
After a shocking massacre at the palace during which Prince Conor’s intended bride is murdered, Kel secretly hunts the culprits. To do so he teams up with the Ragpicker King, the head of Castellane’s criminal underworld.
Kel and Conor’s mutual friend is Lin. She
is Ashkar a race whose members are ostracized because of their ability to use magic. In addition, and unusually for a woman, Lin is a gifted physician/healer. Lin is also the granddaughter of Mariesh, the royal family’s councilor.
Lin is trying to learn as much of her people’s ancestral magic as she can, so that she can heal her best friend. However, in order to continue her research she has falsely proclaimed herself as her people’s returned Goddess. A claim that her people are bound to test! In the meantime Prince Conor has called upon Lin to use her healing powers on the king, who unbeknown to his people has been left in a zombie like state since the palace massacre…
Phew! There is a lot going on! But this book is very well written, the characters are well fleshed out and the intrigue quickly draws you in, so much so that even though it is quite long, it is hard to put down. I cant wait for the next book in the series to come out so I can once again immerse myself in the complex world of Castellane!!
As stated, this is the 2nd book and I would highly recommend reading the first to get a overall view of events and characters. It took me a good third of reading The Ragpicker King before I could grasp and fully understand the politics and the roles characters played.
In saying that, once I could, this was a novel I could not put down. The plot only thickens, the characters become more in depth and a few jaw dropping moments make this a fantastic read. My daughter has the first one so I will be getting hold of that.
Cassandra Clare has a gift and the third book is already on my wait list.
Love the colouring of the cover by the way
The Ragpicker King by Cassandra Clare .
The Ragpicker King is the second fantasy book in the series first being the Sword Catcher .
Whilst the Sword Catcher is about the same characters it is about setting the stage for the world of Casstellane.
The Ragpicker King is more intense, it leans harder into magic,loyalty and power .
The story begins with Kel the prince’s double navigating a Web of betrayal after a brutal massacre throws the court into upheaval.
Lin a healer with a dangerous secret must prove herself through mythical trails after she claims to be a reborn goddess.
The Ragpicker King a crime lord holding the key to a dark conspiracy in the city’s criminal underworld .
They all come together in this second fantasy book with deeper twists and turns and manipulation.
I would recommend for YA and Adults who like a little magic but more focused on people,power,politics and secrets .
Thankyou beauty and lace for the change to read this compelling fantasy novel.
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With this being Book Two in the series I feel that it might be a good idea to read Book One first as I struggled a lot to understand who was who and how each character was connected. Perhaps reading the First Book would help as its possible that Book One will set you up with all the knowledge needed to follow the story with more ease.
That being said I must be honest and say that my reading was interupted by two eye surgeries which didnt help as when I got back to the book I found I had to back track to refresh my memory.
I do want to get Book One and read that and then read Book Two all over again. I feel it would be very worth it. So take my advice and Dont read this one without reading Book One first, This is not a good book to read as a stand alone.
Thank you for this book reading opportunity.
This is the 2nd book in the series, it may be good to read the 1st book before reading this one but it’s not necessary. This is only my opinion, as I could read this as a stand alone book. Either way, as it’s a fantasy book, there’s lots to read and understand what was happening.
It took me a long while to get into the book and it was a slow read and re-read for me to understand who everyone was and their relationships. I also had to understand the lands and what was happening.
It was a challenging but enjoyable read and indeed a reading experience, which I would recommend to anyone. It was also good to read and discover Cassandra Clare’s writing style.