The Demon King, by Cinda Williams Chima

A long time ago I read the Warrior Heir by Chima and enjoyed it. Because of my prejudice against series, I had a hard time picking up the rest, but recommended them to Trackgeek who devoured them faster than they could be published. When The Demon King came out, I was begged and begged to put it on hold at the library. I should have taken it as a hint and just bought it for him, but I was a little slow on the uptake.


The Demon King, by Cinda Williams Chima
Young Adult, 2009

from fantasticfiction.co.uk:
Times are hard in the mountain city of Fellsmarch. Reformed thief Han Alister will do almost anything to eke out a living for himself, his mother, and his sister Mari. Ironically, the only thing of value he has is something he can't sell. For as long as Han can remember, he's worn thick silver cuffs engraved with runes. They're clearly magicked-as he grows, they grow, and he's never been able to get them off.

While out hunting one day, Han and his Clan friend, Dancer catch three young wizards setting fire to the sacred mountain of Hanalea. After a confrontation, Han takes an amulet from Micah Bayar, son of the High Wizard, to ensure the boy won't use it against them. Han soon learns that the amulet has an evil history-it once belonged to the Demon King, the wizard who nearly destroyed the world a millennium ago. With a magical piece that powerful at stake, Han knows that the Bayars will stop at nothing to get it back.

Meanwhile, Raisa ana'Helena, Princess Heir of the Fells, has her own battles to fight. She's just returned to court after three years of relative freedom with her father's family at Demonai camp - riding, hunting, and working the famous Clan markets. Although Raisa will become eligible for marriage after her sixteenth name-day, she isn't looking forward to trading in her common sense and new skills for etiquette tutors and stuffy parties.

Raisa wants to be more than an ornament in a glittering cage. She aspires to be like Hanalea-the legendary warrior queen who killed the Demon King and saved the world. But it seems like her mother has other plans for her--plans that include a suitor who goes against everything the Queendom stands for.

Trackgeek: I enjoy Cinda Chima's books quite a bit and was excited to see what she could do outside of her original series. As for the Demon King- I found the basic plot construction to be well done and I enjoyed the world in which she placed her characters- it was interesting and involved and fun to read about. The only draw back was how long it took to go not far in the plot and then the book ends and you are left sitting there waiting until the end of September when the next book comes out. Raspberry and I constantly have this conversation about how authors seem to be bent on creating humongous plots that never seem to have any closure- or take 600 pages to get to the point where you think something is going to happen and then take 2 more 600 page books to actually finish the story. What happened to being able to get a good plot down and developed in 300 pages? Anyway, I definitely recommend the book for the teen audience and anyone who enjoys teen fantasy.
Graded a B+.