Juvenile Fiction
Hyperion
February 27, 2007
448
Before he knew about the Roses, 16-year-old Jack lived an unremarkable life in the small Ohio town of Trinity. Only the medicine he has to take daily and the thick scar above his heart set him apart from the other high schoolers. Then one day Jack skips his medicine. Suddenly, he is stronger, fiercer, and more confident than ever before. And it feels great - until he loses control of his own strength and nearly kills another player during soccer team tryouts.
Soon, Jack learns the startling truth about himself: he is Weirlind, part of an underground society of magical people who live among us. At their helm sits the feuding houses of the Red Rose and the White Rose, whose power is determined by playing The Game - a magical tournament in which each house sponsors a warrior to fight to the death. The winning house rules the Weir.
As if his bizarre heritage isn't enough, Jack finds out that he's not just another member of Weirlind - he's one of the last of the warriors - at a time when both houses are scouting for a player.
My Review:
My little brother and I read The Heir Chronicles when we were in middle school and high school and loved them! If you want to get into dividing books into gender genres it is definitely a boy’s book. It has a real appeal to them in aspects of sword-fights, soccer games, and loyal friendships. But it also appeals to girls, like me, who like the feisty heroines characters.
This is Chima’s first published work and I think it is great. It has inventive concepts and clear imagery and makes it an overall great read. The Warrior Heir is the first of the trio. It opens up to a pretty dramatic prologue and then we meet the beloved Jack. Jack is a super nice guy, who happens to have special secrets that could get him killed. Jack then embarks on a training program to fight enemy wizards, learn about his magical ancestry, and his own warrior powers.
This book is very much a traditional fantasy. The world of Weirlind is very much like medieval England with magic and enchantments. I loved learning about the mythology and history.
At first the plot was kinda slow but towards the end it picked up. The prologue was a little too long in my opinion.
Watch Out For: Violence, drinking, torturing, kissing, mild swearing, swordplay, and magic.
