Revenge of the Red Knight

The Imagination Station #4

by Marianne Hering, Paul McCusker

In this Imagination Station adventure, Patrick and Beth find themselves as guests in a beautiful castle in 15th-century England. Through a series of events, the steward of Lord Darkthorn's castle finds the cousins with three artifacts collected in their previous adventures: the stone, the cup, and the golden tablet. They are accused of being thieves and locked in jail. Beth escapes and discovers the identity of the real thief, leading to a jousting contest with a surprising outcome. Set during the War of the Roses in England, "Revenge of the Red Knight" will teach readers about the Crusades, the integrity of knights and the vows they took, and why men would choose to risk their lives to fight for Christianity.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Christian, Childrens, Fiction, Chapter Books, Middle Grade, Adventure

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 18, 2011

About the author

Marianne Hering is a prolific writer, having written hundreds of articles and a number of books for children and parents. For nine years she worked for several magazines in Focus on the Family’s periodicals department and became the editor of Clubhouse, a Focus on the Family children’s magazine with a circulation of more than 100,000.

As a book developer for Focus on the Family, she and coauthor / creative director Paul McCusker launched the Adventures in Odyssey book series The Imagination Station in 2010. Currently the series includes 19 books, with two more contracted for 2017 release. Paul bowed out of his role in 2015 to pursue other creative avenues. The combined sales are more than 450,000.

Currently Marianne is a freelance writer taking assignments. She and her husband live in Colorado with their twin sons.

Reviews

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Medieval adventure awaits through the Imagination Station!


Patrick and Beth take an adventure into Medieval times when they are in the midst of a series of adventures they are accused of being theives and cast into the dungeon! Will they escape and be able to safe the day?


I think this one was my favorite mostly because I really like books set in the time of knights and kings. These books are just fun, filled with great interwoven historical details, (though keep in mind that these books are aimed at beginning readers.


I love how these books are easy to read and understand without too many big words, perfect for the child who has just graduated from I-can-read books. The print is big and the adventure is high. Kids who like Adventures in Odyssey will like them even more!


Overall a great kid's read, not something I would typically read, but being a church library assistant I like knowing what the kids are reading. And I think that this series is a winner :)


No review required.

[Rebekah G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Instead of Whit's End, Beth and Patrick landed in a cave. They met a boy named James who is sending the letters to Mr. Whittaker. The letters tell them how to go different places in time.

It's a fun story because Beth and Patrick learn about England during the War of the Roses. The Red Knight is with the House of Lancaster. He and Sir Andrew are fighting over whether Beth, Patrick, James, and Albert go in the Tower.

[Jordyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow I'm really flying through these books and really enjoying them! Now to find out what happens next!

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fourth in a fun and adventurous historical fiction series of beginning Christian chapter books for children. It continues the journey of Patrick and Beth, cousins who begin the book in medieval England. We meet a knight, his squire, and several troubling characters who commit treason against Lord Darkthorn. I read this book’s 16 chapters aloud to my 5 yr old and 3 yr old, both of whom kept asking that we read another chapter. There are a few black and white illustrations throughout the book. We look forward to reading book five in this series!

[Julie Lorimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Patrick and Beth travel back in time trying to help a friend of Whit. they face lots of things along the way this is a great book and these books are easy to read and are so interesting i normally finish them in one day!!

[Amy James · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite lunch time activity. Watching my boys get enthusiastic about this read aloud brought me so much excitement. I can’t wait for many more hours spent huddled around the adventures of the imagination station.

“I give it one million stars” -Clark 5yo

[the_bookish_took · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the most exciting one yet!

[GheenGirls · Rating 5 out of 5]

Turtle just re-read this series at her own request. She said: great! Return to library.

[Hettie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this before giving to my Godson so that I could ask him questions as he reads it.
I love these books, they have a great ethos and are a fun read.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read with Micah during read aloud time. Too easy for a read-aloud. He could have read it solo without any trouble. But it was a fun, quick read.

[Paisley Switzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked it. I liked the twist. I like how it continues to the next book.

By Sylas

[Lily Bliss · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ★ - (really liked it)

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this latest book of the Imagination Station Series, Beth and Patrick have traveled through time again, but this time they have no idea what time period they are in when they get to their destination. The time machine has just picked a location and sent them there after their successful mission in China with the golden tablet. We finally get to learn who the mysterious Albert is. We also learn who the knight is and how he is able to follow them in the Imagination Station around through time. Will Beth and Patrick be able to save Albert? You'll have to read Revenge of the Red Knight to find out.

My daughter and I have been thoroughly enjoying reading this series together. These books would make a wonderful addition to any library for kids. The series is recommended for children ages 7 and up, but my 6 year old daughter has really been interested and begging for me to read just one more chapter every night we read. It has proven to be a delightful series filled with mystery, but also includes some history as well. So, if you're looking for a good series that will encourage your child to read, make sure to pick this one up! Look for book 5 in the series called: Showdown with a Shepherd where Beth and Patrick travel back in time to the Holy Land in the 10th century B.C.

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cousins Beth and Patrick are trying to help Mr. Whittaker reclaim several missing treasures from a treasure room in ancient England. They've been to Greenland, the time of Kublai Khan, and now they are in England in the 1400's. It's here that they meet Hugh, a man they soon realize is a villain. Will they be successful in restoring the historical treasures?

I think that it would have been very helpful for me to have read books 1-3 in the series before this one. But I didn't. Still I was able to enjoy it.

I did find that this one didn't have the nuggets of truth that some of the later ones I read do. In some ways, I think that the author was trying too hard to make the storyline work. But I can still see kids enjoying this one. I probably read this in about 30 minutes.

While this one wasn't my favorite of the Imagination Station series, I liked it.

I rented this book from the library to read as part of Tyndale's Summer Reading Program. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of Adventures in Odyssey, I survived, Magic Tree House, kids ages 7-9

Rating - 3 stars

[Tammy G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not realizing that Tyndale would so generously send me two books we were thrilled to also receive Revenge of the Red Knight. My eleven year old son picked this book up first and said, "COOL! Knights!!" He told me, "This book is about the knights, honor and keeping God in your life. I liked the part where the Tournament took place and Sir Andrew prayed and God heard him." If you're familiar with Adventures In Odyssey then you may remember the story of Whit and Dillon in Knight Travellers. Whit is accidentally knocked out and Dillon must fight the "bad" knight." Well, this is not that story but it sure ran along the same lines.
It action packed and filled with adventure. So much adventure that your preteen son may want the whole set of books to read . . . all summer!
We loved both of these books! And these make great reads for your child's summer reading fun!
Remember, as the back of the book says, "The key to adventure lies within your imagination!"


*These books was provided for review by Tyndale Publishing*

[Celena Janton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This 4th book in the Imagination Station series takes place during medieval England. Two kids, Beth and Patrick, end up on an adventure where they meet a good knight, a bad knight, and Lord Darkthorn, whose treasures have been stolen. This book is written at a 2nd grade reading level, but even I was captured with the story! Definitely a page turner with a surprise ending. My children and I have read all of the Imagination Station books in order up to Revenge of the Red Knight. You could read them alone, but the story is a continuing one and I highly recommend starting with the 1st in the series, Voyage With the Vikings. As a homeschooling mom, I use these as part of my history curriculum. Yes, historical fiction may be a bit unorthodox, but it grabs my children's interest, real-life characters are featured in these books, and the authors stick as close to possible to real life events as can be expected with 2nd graders historical fiction. This is my favorite series for this age level and I couldn't recommend it more highly!

[Brenten Gilbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

This installment of the Imagination Station saga begins with the cousins, well, not where they’re supposed to be. But in fact, it turns out to be exactly where they need to be. The find themselves in a perfect position to deliver the three artifacts from their previous adventures to Mr. Whittaker’s friend. Of course, things take an immediate turn for the worse when they are accused of being thieves and thrown in prison.

After some investigation, they discover the real thief - as well as the answers to some of the mysteries they’ve been contemplating. But they still have to prove their innocence and, in the mean time, face off with the real thief in a peaceful jousting competition. And when they get home, it only means more mysteries.

Another quick read and enjoyable story for younger readers and fans of Magic Tree House or Secrets of Droon books who are looking for (or at least don't mind) a Christian twist.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great addition to the series (but it has a misleading title ...again!)

Very interesting series (& book!) for young elementary school readers. Deserves 4 stars for what it is, but there is no revenge from the red knight! That's been the most consistent complaint with this series - many books are misleadingly named! I'd knock it down a half star from 4 stars to 3.5 stars because of this if I had the option. The first 5 books (at least) of this series all belong to the same story-arc, so you definitely want to read them in order as they won't make much sense otherwise. This book does have a prologue that brings you up to speed in case you missed a previous book, but the previous books don't have that feature.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revenge of the Red Knight is another great book from the Focus on the Family organization. In this book, Beth, and Patrick travel to England during the 15th century as guests in a castle. They take with them the artifacts they retrieved from their earlier adventures and are accused by a steward of being thieves. They are locked up in jail and while there, Beth manages to escape. After she escapes, she finds out who the real thief is and the motive behind his actions. This was another great book in the Imagination Station series and it is full of historical facts about the crusades, knights, and sound Christian values that will captivate young readers.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have completely read all of these books out of order. I have been reading them as they come in from the library so for this book in particular I think it would have been better to read the previous book. But at the start of the book it has a prologue that talks about what happened before in the story. This book was not as fun for me but still a good story. Beth and Patrick are on an adventure where there are jousting contests and knights! As usual the two are right in the middle of the action.

I love this series and can't wait to read the rest!

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This time the cousins Patrick and Beth have gone straight from Ancient Mongolia to Old England around the time of the War of the Roses. I love how each of the Imagination Station books gives enough background in the prologue to make each book stand alone. This time the cousins learn about knighthood, how knights weren’t always chivalrous and noble, and then more about the on-going Imagination Station story. I love this series!!

[Zondra · Rating 4 out of 5]

My name is Andrew. I am 8. I like this book very much because there is a lot of action and it is not a long book. The protangonists are ordinary kids named Patrick and Beth. They are trying to find ancient treasures to give them to a guy named Sir Andrew. A man named Lord Darkthorn is angry and he will lock Albert, Sir Andrew's brother, in his tower if he doesn't get the treasure. In the end, Beth and Patrick save the day!

[Louise Pearson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great mystery story both girls and boys will enjoy, for it takes place in the era of knights, castles, and jousting. How did James and Patrick get free and why did they crawl behind hedges to get to the door of the castle? When the red knight lost the joust of peace, what did he do that was unfair? Who had been stealing the treasures?

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this I.S. adventure, cousins Beth and Patrick finally learn about why and who has sent them on all their adventures so far. Again, it reminds me of the Magic Tree house series in style. It is a good book that I think most 1st to 3rd-graders, maybe even 4th-graders, would enjoy.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Revenge of the Red Knight is a fun short story, but God really isn't present in it, other than as the recipient of prayers. It doesn't teach a moral or show Christian values. A fun book, but not particularly Christian.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Revenge of the Red Knight, Patrick and Beth get caught up in the middle of Lancasters and Yorks. They, also, run into the scoundrel Master Hugh, who makes an appearance in other Imagination Station books. This isn't one of my favorite stories of the series but still enjoyed it.
4 stars.

[Joy Strickland · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently read Revenge of the Red Knight (Imagination Station, #4) by Marianne Hering. This book wrapped up the story of the mysterious notes that had been appearing in the Imagination Station. We are excited to see what happens next with Hugh.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Simple writing, but entertaining in some ways.

[Beth Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read aloud to Emma and Will. Kids arresting up this series. I wish the writing were more mature, otherwise I find them very enjoyable books as well.

[Aaron Gannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sam says: I like all the parts especially when they got in the cave.

Amelia says: I like the part when they meet Albert and the whole chapter of the stocks.