Risked by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Risked by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Science Fiction, Adventure, Historical Fiction

Age - 10-13

Grade 6-8

350 pages, hardcover

c. 2013

     Risked, the 6^th book in The Missing Series, departs from the other books in that we now know what happened to Anastasia and Alexei Romanov, the missing children from history. However, when Haddix started writing the series in early 2007 there was still no conclusive evidence that they had been killed along with the rest of the family. New discoveries in the summer of 2007 and 2009 confirmed that they did die in 1918 with the rest of the family, but were buried in a different spot. However, this is a work of fiction which allows the author to imagine some intriguing possibilities.

            Very shortly after meeting Daniella, who is really Anastasia, Jonas, Katherine, and Chip are kidnapped by Gavin, who is really Alexei. Gavin is working for the original time kidnappers, Gary and Hodge, who have just escaped from time prison. Gavin thinks he is bringing them all into the future where he will be adopted by a family, as promised by Gary and Hodge. However they all land in Russia in 1918. While traveling to the future Jonas manages to tell the Elucidator, device from the future, to send then back to their correct time. He means the 21th century but the correct time for Anastasia and Alexei is 1918, the day before the entire Romanov family will be killed.

            After landing in 1918 Gavin and Daniella are captured by the Russian guards and returned to the house where the rest of the family is being kept as prisoners. Using the Elucidator Chip, Jonas and Katherine are able to become invisible. They begin to plan how they will rescue not only Daniella and Gavin but the entire family. The rescue plan is extremely complicated and made more challenging by the unexpected arrival of Gary and Hodge who still want to take all the children to the future as babies to be adopted by wealthy parents. During the following battles both Jonas and Gavin, who is a hemophilic, are wounded. Meanwhile, time travelers from the future are having a meeting about how to deal with the Romanov situation and protect time and history.

            Haddix does change some of the actual historic events in the end of the story so that some members of the Romanov family are saved as well as Jonas, Katherine and Chip. In the process of the rescue there is much heroic and self- sacrificing action as well as quick thinking. Haddix also includes many historical details in the story, such as the stuffed grizzly bear on the landing of the house and the diamonds the Romanov sisters sewed into their clothes, as well as the historical notes at the end of the book.

Caught by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Caught by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Science Fiction, Adventure

Age -10-13

Grade - 6-8

343 pages, hardcover

c. 2012

     “Jonah Skidmore was in science class when time stopped.” Thus begins Caught, the 5^th book in The Missing Series. Everyone, everywhere in the twenty first century is frozen in time except for time travelers. This is a complicated book, both in terms of the time travel concepts presented, and the development and interactions of the characters, both historic and fictional. Regarding time travel there are episodes where the future changes the past and the past meets the future. The historic character Mileva Einstein, Albert Einstein’s wife, is a fascinating person and her relationship with Katheryn and Jonah, but especially with Jonah is complex.

            Jonah and Katheryn find themselves suddenly and without warning or preparations in 1903. Their task is to return Einstein’s daughter, Lieserl to history. Additional challenges are involved due to the fact that Albert Einstein seems to know that time split in 1611 and he is thinking about that instead of what he should be thinking about in 1903. As JB communicates to Jonah and Katheryn, “He is not thinking about the right things. He could ruin everything.” Perhaps their biggest problem is that Mileva becomes aware of their presence, figures out they are time travelers and manages to capture their Elucidator. She then learns all about time travel, as well as her future and that of Albert, Lieserl and the two sons she will have in the future.

            At one point Jonah, Katherine, Emily, who is the modern Lieserl, Mileva, JB and another time agent are all trapped in a time hallow, a space outside of time. JB and the other agent are frozen and when Jonah and Kathryn frighten Mileva by running toward her she uses the Elucidator to freeze them as well. It is during this time that Mileva learns about time travel and the future by exploring the Elucidator. She sees much pain and suffering in her future. Eventually she realizes that she needs to trust Jonah and that together they can repair time, which is frozen. Mileva shows herself to be not only a brilliant scientist but a woman capable of great courage and self-sacrifice. Jonah comes to realize this and in the end, when he realizes she plans to stay in 1903 and go through all the suffering she saw in the time hallow, he offers her the Elucidator as a means to escape if she chooses. Many years pass before she chooses to use it. She is well aware of the potential damage she could cause to time so she does it in a way that is both wise and very loving. There will be no spoiler alert here but I do encourage you to read this thought provoking and inspiring book.

Torn by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Torn by Margeret Peterson Haddix

Science Fiction, Adventure

Age - 10-13

Grade - 6-8

344 pages, hardcover

c. 2011

     Torn is the 4^th book in The Missing Series. The basic premise of the series is that important children from history have been kidnapped, by time travelers from the future, at the point right before they disappeared or died. The plan was to bring them into the future as babies to be adopted by wealthy parents. This has disrupted history and time so Jonas and Katherine have been working to return the missing children to their proper time in history and restore time. However, beginning in the last book and continuing in this one a new element has been added. The villain, Second Chance, is changing history to suit his own ideas and this has disrupted time so much that it is near collapsing. This would result in the end of all things, past, present and future. Due to what Second did in the last book, Sabotaged, time traveler J.B., and missing children Andrea, Brendan and Antonio are trapped in 1600.

                Jonas and Katherine find themselves on the deck of Henry Hudson’s ship the Discovery just before a mutiny takes place. The boy from history that they are trying to help, John Hudson, Henry Hudson’s son, is missing so J.B. instructs Jonas to impersonate him with the help of a special costume from the future. Katherine is instructed to use the Eucidator to become invisible. They realize, early on, that history has been dramatically changed. Henry Hudson has a map that he shouldn’t have, showing the Northwest Passage that now exists. Second Chance is responsible for all of this and unless Jonah and Katherine help him all time will end in 1611. Second’s plan is to send Jonah and Katherine back to their first moments on Hudson’s ship and to have them do things differently this time. Without precise instructions Jonah decides to try and save the sailor Wydowse from being murdered by Second. As John Hudson Jonah challenges Hudson’s authority and insists they leave the small shallop they have been put in during the mutiny and go to the winter cabin they had used last year. When they do this time is literally torn apart and there are now two separate versions of time. One version is the current one and the second is how things went the first time Jonah and Katherine were there. However, only Jonah and Katherine can see the two versions of time. Eventually they also see the traces of the sailors from original time before they came. When the sailors merge with their tracers time in 1611 is restored.

            Time outside of 1611 has been so damaged by the actions of Second that JB, Andrea, Brendan and Antonio, from the previous book, are still stuck in 1600. Only a heroic and self-sacrificing action by Jonah will enable them to escape.

The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen

The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen

adventure

ages 10-13

grades 5-8

231 pages - hardcover

c. 2013

            The Runaway King is the second book in The Ascendance Trilogy. The first book, The False Prince, was blog posted on May 5, 2019. This is one of my favorite trilogies due to the exciting plot action, including many plot twists, the depth and complexity of the characters and the clear contrast between those characters who exhibit moral qualities and those who do not.

            This book begins with Jaron restored to his throne as King of Carthya but with almost no support from his regents or the people. He is still viewed as the mischievous and undisciplined child that his parents sent away from the court. There is also an attempt on his life and the threat of war. For all these reasons the regents want to appoint a steward to rule until Jaron is older. He is only 15 at this time.

            Jaron, of course, finds this totally unacceptable even as he pretends to agree. Thus begins a fast paced adventure filled with much sword play, betrayals, disguises, pirates, daunting odds and several death-defying escape attempts. There is also self- sacrifice, great loyalty among friends, amazing determination and resourcefulness, and humor. Jaron, who is the narrator, has a quick wit and a love for sarcasm. This can be seen in the following quote. “All I could hope was that they gave me a chance to speak before they killed me. Although as I thought about it, it was usually only after I began speaking that most people felt like murdering me."

            Jaron has matured since the first book. He can still be sarcastic and deliberately annoy people but his motive in doing so now is to keep them from danger and harm. He still has traces of his old tendency to be flippant, arrogant and condescending at times but at his core he is courageous, self-sacrificing and determined to do the right things and promote justice for his people. He exhibits the characteristics of a true hero. Jaron has many reasons to hate Devlin, the pirate king. He tried to kill Jaron when his parents sent him away from court and was responsible for the most recent attempt on his life. However, when Jaron realizes how anger and hatred has consumed Devlin he makes a promise to himself not to become like him and resists the opportunity to kill him. “Except for his anger, he was completely empty. It was much of the same kind of anger that I had felt for far too long, and it horrified me…But if that choice meant I’d become anything like Devlin…I refused to become him.” Jaron also has the ability to see the potential good in people and to change some former enemies into loyal friends.

The supporting characters are also well drawn and many of them also exhibit strong moral qualities. Mott once worked for Connor but when he realized that Sage was really prince Jaron he risked his life for him more than once. Imogen and Tobias become loyal, self-sacrificing friends of Jaron and Master Harlowe is described as “the best possible master” by his servants. Harlowe is just, generous and forgiving with Jaron who at one point rescues his granddaughter and on another occasion comes with pirates to rob him.