Turner, Megan Whalen. King of Attolia

[Tess]

I have read to page 85 so far and have found this book to be wonderfully intriguing. I think it can stand alone, although it is making me want to reread both The Thief and The Queen of Attolia.

[BookWyrm]

I finished this one awhile ago. I loved it and was so happy because I really didn't like The Queen of Attolia, but now I might have to go back and reread both The Thief and The Queen of Attolia. After reading the third, I think I might end up liking the second a bit more.

I'm not so sure that this book will stand as a read alone. If anyone has read this, or is planning to, but hasn't read the first two yet, I'd love to hear what you think of it as a stand alone. There is a whole subtleness to how Gen acts that readers familiar with the first two books get that I'm not sure will come through to a reader introduced to King of Attolia first.

[DianeB]

Even though I read "The Thief" (and found it very enjoyable), I could not follow "The King of Attolia". I'm going to the library to find "The Queen of Attolia" and then get back to you.

[martha]

I LOVE THIS BOOK! I read it last fall when I picked up an advance copy at NEBA. I was one of those readers who waited anxiously for several years for this sequel to come out, and read it (then re-read the other 2) as soon as I got it home. Eugenides is among my most favorite 3-4 characters in fiction and I can't wait for another sequel (possibly with a child? and of course, a war) to be published. Having said that, I also think that this book does not stand alone. I did go back and re-read the others because there were so many subtile references to previous characters and events that I wanted to have everything clear in my mind when I re-read this book. (I very rarely read a book twice through in one sitting, but this series is the exception!) Bottom line: as much as I love this book, I can't really see it as the Newbery winner since it doesn't stand alone.

[Mari]

I agree that it doesn't really stand alone. This series really works best when read in order. Having said that, I loved it! Megan Whalen Turner writes with such subtlety. She's one of the authors I like to recommend to gifted kids/teens. Even though King of Attolia only has a lexile of 840, it's still a complex, intricate book that offers the reader much food for thought.