The Shattered Castle, By Jennifer A. Nielsen (5th book in the Ascendance Series)

 

"King Jaron has outwitted the Prozarians and returned to the kingdom with only one secret in his pocket that not even his friends know about. He's hoping that secret will help him finally bring stability to Carthya. But a surprise attack on his own land --- his own castle ---reminds Jaron that nothing is easy. The Prozarian Monarch threatens to crumble Jaron's entire kingdom. And thats not the only thing in danger: With old enemies and new rumors circling around him, even Jarons realationship with Imogen is uncertain. The former False Prince will need his best tricks and many allies at his side to hold Carthya together"

"If you play a game with a cheater, you won't win by cheating. You only win by creating new rules. That's what I've got to do,"

"No one begins to obtain wisdom until they admit they lack knowledge,"

"Your body takes beatings and rises again and again. Your mind brushes away insults like they are harmless flies." She took my hand. "But your heart is different. It bruises deeply and is slow to heal."

"We cannot keep what we do not earn. What we have earned we cannot lose,"

Hoh boy, where do I begin? Oh yeah. . . IM SO CONFLICTED!! *Deep breath* ok, I'm ready. The plot yet again was pretty good. But Castor the main bad guy? HELP ME! He's so annoying! Which is meant for a bad guy but just wow. Wilta: I hated her from the beginning and I don't care if she died or not (I'll leave that to you to find out). Imogen in this was alot for my brain, knowing the ending from the Shadow Throne really makes you remember "It'll be fine, It'll be fine," Because (if you didn't know) in the end of the 3rd book he talks about what happened a year later and the 4th and 5th take place between that year so this book ended where the 3rd did. And in this, instead of mainly yelling at Jaron I'm like "Imogen, just say something! whats your plan?!" I loved the last chapter! in ways. It was a funny way to celebrate you-know-what and made me smile. Tobias was good, but didn't have enough scenes, and Amarinda wasn't really there that much. Fink never ceased to amaze me. Roden needed more reading time, along with Mott. The plot was good but there were more cons than I wished. I liked this book, but not as much as the trilogy, and not as much as I wished. It had its (few) moments, but for the most part, it was okay. I finished this book in a day, and when I did, I just stared and thought, "It is done, I finished the series," *very emotional* lol. The last two books weren't planned yet, but then Jennifer Nielsen decided to make them and they felt different then the first three, like when Disney made more StarWars but this wasn't that terrible (Thats a conversation for later). I would be devastated, yes, if these books were taken away, but not nearly as devastated as the others. I would still read them if I were you, but this is all my opinion. I know other readers will love this, and I just have to say "Lucky," I really wanted to love these like the others, but listen; my feelings and opinions for things come naturally, and I don't control them. I don't know which I like better, Captive Kingdom, or The Shattered Castle. They are both great (overstatement) but have far more cons than I hoped. Should you read the last two? I would say yes, because you might love them or join the conflict. I prefer the Trilogy, 100%.

I'd rate this a 5/10 and 12-Adults. It will keep you entertained and annoyed at the bad guys and make you yell "Jaron! Just say it!". It is not my top three Ascendance Series books but is rememberable.

Happy reading :D