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The Vengekeep Prophecies #1
The Vengekeep Prophecies: An Action-Packed Fantasy Tale of Thieves, Magic, and Friendship for Children
Forget what you know about prophecies—this epic middle-grade fantasy about a clumsy boy born into a family of thieves is fresh, fun, and anything but predictable! The first in an unforgettable trilogy, this Kirkus Reviews Best Children's Book of the Year takes everything you thought you knew about fantasy and spins it into pure magic. Jaxter Grimjinx is a born thief. At least, he's supposed to be. For generations, the Grimjinx clan has produced the swiftest, cleverest thieves in Vengekeep. The problem is, Jaxter is clumsy. So clumsy that in his first solo heist, he sets the Castellan's house on fire and lands his family in prison. Even Jaxter's talent for breaking magical locks can't get them out of this bind. Then a suspiciously convenient prophecy emerges, naming the Grimjinx clan as the soon-to-be heroes of Vengekeep. It's good enough to get his family out of jail, but when the doomsday prophecy starts to come true, Jaxter is pretty sure a life behind bars would be a better fate. Now, with the help of his new friend, Callie, Jaxter will have to face down flaming monsters, a bazaar of thieves, and a renegade sorcerer to become the hero he was truly born to be. Full of twists and turns, friendship and adventure, The Vengekeep Prophecies is a "rich fantasy that hits the ground running and never lets up" ( Publishers Weekly , starred review).
416 pages, Paperback
First published October 23, 2012
29 people are currently reading
3171 people want to read
About the author
Brian Farrey
7 books158 followersBrian Farrey writes whatever pops into his head. Sometimes, it's books for children. Sometimes, it's books for adults. Sometimes, it's screenplays. He's never quite sure what will come out next but it's been quite a ride finding out.
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February 5, 2018Even though I had one of those weird reading experiences where I read chunks of this book every few months, I thoroughly enjoyed it! It's a fun middle grade fantasy story with excellent characters and I hope I'm able to pick up the second book soon!
November 19, 2012
Let's talk lazy fantasy writing. It exists. It's out there. And when you find yourself reading some 30+ middle grade fantasies in a given year there are certain tropes and themes that appear so often they wear a rut in your frontal lobe. Most of them are innocuous enough, but there's one that really sets fire to my dander; prophecies. Ugh. I cannot STAND prophecies. Essentially they're just a way for the author to provide foreshadowing in as annoying a way as possible. Further points are detracted if the doggone prophecy rhymes. There are very few ways to upset the prophecy conundrum. You might be able to get away with one if you're as good as Harry Potter but I'm not surprising anyone when I say that most just sorta slap `em in there willy-nilly. Which is perhaps part of the reason Brian Farrey's The Vengekeep Prophecies is as much of a relief as it is. You want prophecies? Fine. Then let's come up with a concept that sort of turns the whole idea behind them on its head from a book that says with perfect simplicity, "Fate is a lazy man's excuse for avoiding curiosity." With great humor and dexterity Farrey creates a new fantasy world where magic is kept in check, only popping up once in a while to bite our heroes on the bum. Fast and funny, this is one of those rare 400-page novels where I wouldn't cut so much as a sentence or a paragraph if it meant making the story any shorter.
It's tough being the black sheep in a family OF black sheep, but such is the lot of Jaxter Grimjinx. It's certainly an honor to be next in a long line of thieves, con artists, forgers, fleet-fingered pilferers, etc. It's significantly less of an honor to be a clumsy klutz unable to pick even the simplest lock. But what he lacks in dexterity Jaxter more than makes up for with his love of herbs capable of undoing every protective magic they come across. Then it happens. In the village of Vengekeep it is customary to reveal once a year a tapestry that will predict the coming year. Produced hundreds of years ago by prophetic twins, Vengekeep relies on these prophecies. So imagine the horror of the townspeople when they discover that this year a horrific series of plagues and disasters will be visited upon them and their saviors will be those no good Grimjinxes. Of course they will be. The Grimjinxes found a way to fake the tapestry this year and they envision it as brilliant cover for their daring exploits. But that's all before the stories on the fake tapestry start coming true. Suddenly, it's up to the least reputable citizens in town to save everyone. And it's up to Jaxter to ultimately undo the damage his family has wrought.
When I think of the great conmen of fantasy literature I tend to draw a blank. I know they're out there in droves in the adult literary sphere, but on the children's side they're a touch harder to come by. Sure there was The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner and Fly by Night by Frances Hardinge but those were individuals. Whole families of shysters, tricksters, and con artists? That's an original notion that gives a person pause. And though admittedly there were times when the Grimjinx clan resembled nothing so much as a mildly moderated Addams Family (it's the feisty grandma that does it), in the end they're a nicely fleshed out family unit.
In fact, that's one of the nicest things about Farrey. No matter how small a character or how bit a part, he fleshes out even the most minor of supporting characters. And Jaxter, as the main character, is even more beautifully created. He could easily come off as some medieval Batman with his pouches standing in for a utility belt, or maybe a slightly grimier Sherlock Holmes with his ability to notice hundreds of details about a person in a single glance. Instead, there's a nice complexity to his character. He loves his family (who are admittedly very lovable) but he's torn. He's been raised to believe in this great grand heritage of cons and yet his heart really lies with research. He tries to tell himself otherwise and nearly succeeds until the moment much later at the end of the book where he says, "I was much better at fooling myself than I was at fooling everyone else." Best of all, I always appreciate those writers that create heroes with special skills or interests that help to save themselves or the ones they love in the end. Jaxter has those very skills tenfold and save people he does.
Funny book too, come to think of it. Lots of fantasies try to weave in a little humor here and there, but so few actually succeed in being funny. That's probably partly because humor is so subjective. What I find hilarious you might find gauche or gross. But I think it's fair to say that a good large swath of kids reading this book would find it honestly amusing. How can you not like a book (or characters) where wise warnings are purposefully waved off with a pointed, "Sorry, Son, what was that? I was too busy ignoring you." I also admit to loving the little Grimjinx words of wisdom that pepper the chapters. They're fairly spot on some of the time, putting a wry twist on lessons we've heard before but not in this particular light. "If you must steal from a wise man or a foolish one, steal from the wise. You'll leave him with something he'll value: a lessen." "Keep your enemies close, your friends closer, and let them fight it out." "Accusations are merely the envy of the unenlightened given form." Good stuff.
I ran a bookclub for kids until not too long ago and one thing those smart kiddos loathed was the dreaded number on the spine. For some of them, they couldn't properly enjoy a book if they felt it was just the first in a long series. And The Vengekeep Prophecies, truth be told, really is the first in what I believe to be a trilogy. That said, there is only one minor hint that there is more to come when you reach the story's end. By that point every dangling thread has been tied up, every loose plot point woven back into the story's whole. Then Jaxter's younger sister goes and hints that she'll tell him something in the future. Aside from that (a note that will undoubtedly go by many a young reader) this is a standalone first novel that fulfills its promises and yet leaves you wanting more. In other words, the best kind of fantasy there is. You can bet I'll be reading that sequel someday. Whenever it wants to appear.
For ages 9-12.
It's tough being the black sheep in a family OF black sheep, but such is the lot of Jaxter Grimjinx. It's certainly an honor to be next in a long line of thieves, con artists, forgers, fleet-fingered pilferers, etc. It's significantly less of an honor to be a clumsy klutz unable to pick even the simplest lock. But what he lacks in dexterity Jaxter more than makes up for with his love of herbs capable of undoing every protective magic they come across. Then it happens. In the village of Vengekeep it is customary to reveal once a year a tapestry that will predict the coming year. Produced hundreds of years ago by prophetic twins, Vengekeep relies on these prophecies. So imagine the horror of the townspeople when they discover that this year a horrific series of plagues and disasters will be visited upon them and their saviors will be those no good Grimjinxes. Of course they will be. The Grimjinxes found a way to fake the tapestry this year and they envision it as brilliant cover for their daring exploits. But that's all before the stories on the fake tapestry start coming true. Suddenly, it's up to the least reputable citizens in town to save everyone. And it's up to Jaxter to ultimately undo the damage his family has wrought.
When I think of the great conmen of fantasy literature I tend to draw a blank. I know they're out there in droves in the adult literary sphere, but on the children's side they're a touch harder to come by. Sure there was The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner and Fly by Night by Frances Hardinge but those were individuals. Whole families of shysters, tricksters, and con artists? That's an original notion that gives a person pause. And though admittedly there were times when the Grimjinx clan resembled nothing so much as a mildly moderated Addams Family (it's the feisty grandma that does it), in the end they're a nicely fleshed out family unit.
In fact, that's one of the nicest things about Farrey. No matter how small a character or how bit a part, he fleshes out even the most minor of supporting characters. And Jaxter, as the main character, is even more beautifully created. He could easily come off as some medieval Batman with his pouches standing in for a utility belt, or maybe a slightly grimier Sherlock Holmes with his ability to notice hundreds of details about a person in a single glance. Instead, there's a nice complexity to his character. He loves his family (who are admittedly very lovable) but he's torn. He's been raised to believe in this great grand heritage of cons and yet his heart really lies with research. He tries to tell himself otherwise and nearly succeeds until the moment much later at the end of the book where he says, "I was much better at fooling myself than I was at fooling everyone else." Best of all, I always appreciate those writers that create heroes with special skills or interests that help to save themselves or the ones they love in the end. Jaxter has those very skills tenfold and save people he does.
Funny book too, come to think of it. Lots of fantasies try to weave in a little humor here and there, but so few actually succeed in being funny. That's probably partly because humor is so subjective. What I find hilarious you might find gauche or gross. But I think it's fair to say that a good large swath of kids reading this book would find it honestly amusing. How can you not like a book (or characters) where wise warnings are purposefully waved off with a pointed, "Sorry, Son, what was that? I was too busy ignoring you." I also admit to loving the little Grimjinx words of wisdom that pepper the chapters. They're fairly spot on some of the time, putting a wry twist on lessons we've heard before but not in this particular light. "If you must steal from a wise man or a foolish one, steal from the wise. You'll leave him with something he'll value: a lessen." "Keep your enemies close, your friends closer, and let them fight it out." "Accusations are merely the envy of the unenlightened given form." Good stuff.
I ran a bookclub for kids until not too long ago and one thing those smart kiddos loathed was the dreaded number on the spine. For some of them, they couldn't properly enjoy a book if they felt it was just the first in a long series. And The Vengekeep Prophecies, truth be told, really is the first in what I believe to be a trilogy. That said, there is only one minor hint that there is more to come when you reach the story's end. By that point every dangling thread has been tied up, every loose plot point woven back into the story's whole. Then Jaxter's younger sister goes and hints that she'll tell him something in the future. Aside from that (a note that will undoubtedly go by many a young reader) this is a standalone first novel that fulfills its promises and yet leaves you wanting more. In other words, the best kind of fantasy there is. You can bet I'll be reading that sequel someday. Whenever it wants to appear.
For ages 9-12.
December 1, 2012
Generations of klutzes run in my family. Grandma is infamous for throwing chicken grease into the furnace and causing an explosion that fried off her eyebrows, eyelashes, and bangs. I am not sure my infamy. Maybe when I set 16 boxes of cereal on fire preheating the oven as a teenager (mom quit storing them in there after that incident). Or maybe when I melted the microwave with a stove-top grease fire. Or maybe when I torched the bamboo steamer basket while making Chinese dumplings. In this book, Jaxter is a kindred spirit - a clod who is finding it difficult to follow the family business of thieving. When his first burglary attempt results in him burning down the house and getting caught... well, you can see why I'd be hooked. But it isn't just the great characters, fast pace, humor, unpredictable plot, and terrific world building that kept me tooling through this book, I also liked the themes of having courage, making friends and discovering what you love to do and pursuing it.
Jaxter Grimjinx comes from a family of famous thieves that spans generations. Da's a master burglar, while Ma's forgeries are second to none. His sister can pick a pocket unseen while Jaxter can break low-level spells using non-magic. When the family plots the big heist, things go "zoc" when the fake prophecy that Ma has weaved into a tapestry that tells Vengekeep its futures comes true bringing natural disasters and monsters bent on destroying the town. Only Jaxter can save them by finding the means to break the tapestry's enchantment.
The twist on prophecies was a whole lotta fun. Here a fake prophecy comes true and the Grimjinx family watches in horror as their heist backfires and an unpredictable and interesting quest ensues with Jaxter making friends with a strong-willed girl and a cowardly mage. The supporting characters are well-rounded and their motivations are clear. Every time I would have a question it was answered in this well-crafted story. The only loose end involves Jaxter's sister and even that question is asked, but the sister doesn't answer, suggesting a sequel.
The madeup words are a hoot along with the delicious humor. Rick Riordan is one of few fantasy writers who makes me laugh steady through his stories. I can add Farrey to that list. I also appreciated that Jaxter and Callie, his friend, are 12-years-old. Callie's wit, attitude, and search for independence and Jaxter's intelligence and search to find something he is good at are spot on. Too often I read a book with a 9-year-old who sounds like a teenager.
I'm not sure how Farrey manages to make a family of thieves so likeable and noble, but he does. The parents have morals and are more like Robin Hood taking from the rich and never the poor. When the townspeople need help, they are there to rescue them. When Jaxter struggles with his future, they give wise, loving advice. The entire family looks on the positive side of a situation no matter how grim. There are some great lines in this book, particularly when the parents don't like Jaxter's comments. Da says, "Sorry, Son, what was that? I was too busy ignoring you." And mom several paragraphs later, "Sorry Son, I missed that... Ignoring you can be a full-time job." Ooh, I'd love to use that on the kids at school. See what I mean? Delicious.
Great read aloud. Great story. "Bangers!" I just can't say enough good things about this novel. Read it!
Jaxter Grimjinx comes from a family of famous thieves that spans generations. Da's a master burglar, while Ma's forgeries are second to none. His sister can pick a pocket unseen while Jaxter can break low-level spells using non-magic. When the family plots the big heist, things go "zoc" when the fake prophecy that Ma has weaved into a tapestry that tells Vengekeep its futures comes true bringing natural disasters and monsters bent on destroying the town. Only Jaxter can save them by finding the means to break the tapestry's enchantment.
The twist on prophecies was a whole lotta fun. Here a fake prophecy comes true and the Grimjinx family watches in horror as their heist backfires and an unpredictable and interesting quest ensues with Jaxter making friends with a strong-willed girl and a cowardly mage. The supporting characters are well-rounded and their motivations are clear. Every time I would have a question it was answered in this well-crafted story. The only loose end involves Jaxter's sister and even that question is asked, but the sister doesn't answer, suggesting a sequel.
The madeup words are a hoot along with the delicious humor. Rick Riordan is one of few fantasy writers who makes me laugh steady through his stories. I can add Farrey to that list. I also appreciated that Jaxter and Callie, his friend, are 12-years-old. Callie's wit, attitude, and search for independence and Jaxter's intelligence and search to find something he is good at are spot on. Too often I read a book with a 9-year-old who sounds like a teenager.
I'm not sure how Farrey manages to make a family of thieves so likeable and noble, but he does. The parents have morals and are more like Robin Hood taking from the rich and never the poor. When the townspeople need help, they are there to rescue them. When Jaxter struggles with his future, they give wise, loving advice. The entire family looks on the positive side of a situation no matter how grim. There are some great lines in this book, particularly when the parents don't like Jaxter's comments. Da says, "Sorry, Son, what was that? I was too busy ignoring you." And mom several paragraphs later, "Sorry Son, I missed that... Ignoring you can be a full-time job." Ooh, I'd love to use that on the kids at school. See what I mean? Delicious.
Great read aloud. Great story. "Bangers!" I just can't say enough good things about this novel. Read it!
June 4, 2014
The Grimjinx family are unapologetic thieves. However, they get in over their heads when they accidentally do a forgery on fateskin and picture themselves as the town's saviors.
A story of Jaxter Grimjinx and his friend, Callie, who go on a journey to save their town...
Interesting to have the main boy character be a klutz and intellectual.
A story of Jaxter Grimjinx and his friend, Callie, who go on a journey to save their town...
Interesting to have the main boy character be a klutz and intellectual.
April 20, 2013
I thought this was a really fun MG. Also, something different from the YA mind numbing, bang my head against a wall books I'd been getting stuck reading.
abandoned
July 15, 2014Just. couldn't. do. it. To all of you who have been suffering through my Young Hoosier book award nominee reviews, I'm done for now.
May 7, 2021
The Vengekeep Prophecies is the first book in The Vengekeep Prophecies series written by Brian Farrey with illustrations by Brett Helquist. It centers on a loveable family of thieves – the Grimjinxes and their twelve-year-old son, Grimjinx, who is coming of age.
12-year-old Jaxter Grimjinx is anxious to prove himself at the family business – thievery. Jaxter's first attempt at burglary ends with a house fire and his family being jailed, but his parents have already put their biggest con into motion, having replaced the prophetic tapestry that predicts the year ahead for the city of Vengekeep with one that shows the Grimjinx family as heroes.
The family quickly discovers, however, that the fake tapestry is actually enchanted, and every disaster it depicts is coming true, from lava men to winged skeletal creatures. Stuck in the role of town saviors, the Grimjinxes must destroy the tapestry before it destroys Vengekeep.
The Vengekeep Prophecies is written rather well. Farrey's rich fantasy hits the ground running and never lets up. Jaxter has an amazing talent for defeating magic with science, and a strong theme of the value of knowledge runs through the book. Farrey's story is gentle enough for sensitive children, yet the travails of the conniving Grimjinx clan will entertain a broad range of readers.
All in all, The Vengekeep Prophecies is written rather well and is a good and promising beginning to what would hopefully be a wonderful series, which I plan to continue in the very near future.
12-year-old Jaxter Grimjinx is anxious to prove himself at the family business – thievery. Jaxter's first attempt at burglary ends with a house fire and his family being jailed, but his parents have already put their biggest con into motion, having replaced the prophetic tapestry that predicts the year ahead for the city of Vengekeep with one that shows the Grimjinx family as heroes.
The family quickly discovers, however, that the fake tapestry is actually enchanted, and every disaster it depicts is coming true, from lava men to winged skeletal creatures. Stuck in the role of town saviors, the Grimjinxes must destroy the tapestry before it destroys Vengekeep.
The Vengekeep Prophecies is written rather well. Farrey's rich fantasy hits the ground running and never lets up. Jaxter has an amazing talent for defeating magic with science, and a strong theme of the value of knowledge runs through the book. Farrey's story is gentle enough for sensitive children, yet the travails of the conniving Grimjinx clan will entertain a broad range of readers.
All in all, The Vengekeep Prophecies is written rather well and is a good and promising beginning to what would hopefully be a wonderful series, which I plan to continue in the very near future.
March 14, 2017
Wow! What an exciting and excellent book. Fast paced and fun, but enchantingly written. The author certainly has a fantastic imagination and has crafted a marvelous literary setting for his story. Great characters, well developed with real charm and personality. The story itself was engaging and well told. It moves along quickly without ever feeling rushed. Lots of delicious details along the way. We picked this book up by chance in a library used book sale, but it has exceeded all expectations. Highly recommended for middle school, junior high, and high school readers and listeners, and a great read aloud book for parents with their children.
September 6, 2018
I loved this book.
The details of the little aphorisms at the start of each chapter, the twists and turns, the humor, and the underlying heartfelt-ness of the whole thing was masterful, in my opinion. It could easily have slipped into a run of "and then!" which can get tiring, but it managed to walk that line tightly and avoid the pitfall. Every character had a good reason for being included and went just deep enough to give the story weight.
This book was a delight to read, and I'll be looking for more work by Farrey.
The details of the little aphorisms at the start of each chapter, the twists and turns, the humor, and the underlying heartfelt-ness of the whole thing was masterful, in my opinion. It could easily have slipped into a run of "and then!" which can get tiring, but it managed to walk that line tightly and avoid the pitfall. Every character had a good reason for being included and went just deep enough to give the story weight.
This book was a delight to read, and I'll be looking for more work by Farrey.
March 25, 2022
I had a hard time getting into this, because I have a hard time liking characters who are bad guys (they are thieves) with no redeeming backstory. After 25% of the way through it got more and more interesting though, and I ended up enjoying it. I'll have my 9 year old read it and see what she thinks.
July 24, 2020
Epic xD
September 9, 2021
Jaxter wants to be as good a thief as the rest of his family, the infamous Grimjinxes, but when a fake tapestry his mother made ends up bringing real disasters to their town, he must use the skills he does have to travel the country and find a solution powerful enough to save his home. Farrey brings fans of magical adventures an addictive read, led by a loveable cast and intriguing lore, that families will be eager to slip off the shelves again and again. Will Jaxter find a way to save the very village that knows the thieving side of his family?
May 8, 2013
This was loads of fun to read! It has been awhile since I've read a book with two kids who go on a journey by themselves to save their town with the grownups' approval. I can't think of another family to compare the Grimjinx family to other than the family of Dido created by Joan Aiken in Black Hearts in Battersea, with several sequels, written quite a long time ago. This is a family that blithely enjoys the family profession of theft. At least until that enjoyment gets them into big trouble. It is such a change to read of a family that can love and support their kids. If you read enough recent J and YA literature, you would come away with the impression that all kids manage to grow up in spite of absolutely horrendous environment. This book puts the lie to that image. The parents love each other and their kids, one of whom is a klutz at the family trade and the other one who won't talk. Those deficiencies don't bother the parents or the grandmother one bit. The quotes at the beginning of each chapter are hilarious. The storyline itself is excellent as well. It is also rather refreshing to read a book that doesn't scream that it is the first of endless sequels by essentially stoping in the middle of the story. Everything is nicely wrapped up by the story's end. Oh and in case you're getting the image of a book almost sappy in positive images, the spiderbats are enough to shake that image but fast! There are other nasties as well but those definitely are memorable!
This is probably too light a read to win any awards but I wish they would pick such a book for once. Not every book needs to be weighted down with themes and messages to kids. Oh, there are themes in this book. But they are definitely not the important part of the book. I'd say the most important message is that of inclusion and acceptance. This is a terribly important theme that has been in vogue lately but from the other end of the message. Now I agree that telling kids that bullying is wrong and that you should accept the different ones in your environment is an important message. However, I think that this story's casual acceptance of differences is perhaps a healthier approach to give kids. No one is denying that bullying is epidemic and has been accepted for far too long. I was badly bullied as a child myself and still bear the psychological scars. But reading a book approaching differences in a positive way is I argue, in many ways a more effective approach. A final comment: The Harry Potter like glasses on our completely un Harry Potter like main character, is a wonderful touch! To contradict my comment of a few sentences ago, I do hope we hear more from the Grimjinx family!
This is probably too light a read to win any awards but I wish they would pick such a book for once. Not every book needs to be weighted down with themes and messages to kids. Oh, there are themes in this book. But they are definitely not the important part of the book. I'd say the most important message is that of inclusion and acceptance. This is a terribly important theme that has been in vogue lately but from the other end of the message. Now I agree that telling kids that bullying is wrong and that you should accept the different ones in your environment is an important message. However, I think that this story's casual acceptance of differences is perhaps a healthier approach to give kids. No one is denying that bullying is epidemic and has been accepted for far too long. I was badly bullied as a child myself and still bear the psychological scars. But reading a book approaching differences in a positive way is I argue, in many ways a more effective approach. A final comment: The Harry Potter like glasses on our completely un Harry Potter like main character, is a wonderful touch! To contradict my comment of a few sentences ago, I do hope we hear more from the Grimjinx family!
March 3, 2013
This was an adorable middle-school book. Half the time, it turns out, the characters were lying their [insert body part here] off, but that's what was fun; trying to guess truth from lies. Because, of course, the family is a whole hoard of thieves.
Jaxter Grimjinx is the one failure of the Grimjinx clan. While the others are all awesome with sleight of hand, forgery, burglary, and lotsa other prowess, he's stuck with being good with plants. Yay. For the most current plan, they've switched out the annual prophecy tapestry with one very good forgery proclaiming horrors that only the Grimjinx can ward off. So naturally, they are very, very unpleasantly surprised when various prophecies start to come true. Figuring out that Mommy dearest accidentally wove the fake with fateskin, Jaxter is faced with the monumentous task of finding a lot of ingredients to make a super special potion that can destroy the false tapestry.
And although this is aimed a couple years too low for me to truly fangirl it, it was honestly one of the best reads I've had for laughs. From Jaxter's constant clumsiness to an ending that was wholly satisfactory, this was one quirky book that stole my attention (geddit? Thieves stealing? XD) and granted a couple hours of sheer brain candy.
Reminiscent of Nancy Yi Fan's books, the beginning of every chapter opened with a quote from the long-dead ancestor of Jaxter, the original, famously devious motha' thief of them all, conatining such amusing little tidbits like "Fear is just Bravery's older, wiser brother, leading the charge away from danger", this deserves the title of BEST CHILDREN'S BOOK OF 2012.
And yes, Brian Farrey, I'd love to become an honorary Grimjinx. :D
Jaxter Grimjinx is the one failure of the Grimjinx clan. While the others are all awesome with sleight of hand, forgery, burglary, and lotsa other prowess, he's stuck with being good with plants. Yay. For the most current plan, they've switched out the annual prophecy tapestry with one very good forgery proclaiming horrors that only the Grimjinx can ward off. So naturally, they are very, very unpleasantly surprised when various prophecies start to come true. Figuring out that Mommy dearest accidentally wove the fake with fateskin, Jaxter is faced with the monumentous task of finding a lot of ingredients to make a super special potion that can destroy the false tapestry.
And although this is aimed a couple years too low for me to truly fangirl it, it was honestly one of the best reads I've had for laughs. From Jaxter's constant clumsiness to an ending that was wholly satisfactory, this was one quirky book that stole my attention (geddit? Thieves stealing? XD) and granted a couple hours of sheer brain candy.
Reminiscent of Nancy Yi Fan's books, the beginning of every chapter opened with a quote from the long-dead ancestor of Jaxter, the original, famously devious motha' thief of them all, conatining such amusing little tidbits like "Fear is just Bravery's older, wiser brother, leading the charge away from danger", this deserves the title of BEST CHILDREN'S BOOK OF 2012.
And yes, Brian Farrey, I'd love to become an honorary Grimjinx. :D
February 6, 2013
I have an international student who always asks me "Is this book fun?" when interested in a title. I always think it's so funny, that she doesn't ask "Is this book good?" or "something like that. It's kind of interesting. There are lots of books I would consider "good" or "moving", but not necessarily "fun" This is one of those that that I would consider "fun" though. I had a good time reading it. I didn't really connect with the characters on a deep level. Farrey could have killed them all off, and I wouldn't have shed a tear, but I did have a "fun" time reading it. I'm afraid this series may be kind of like The Emerald Atlas or Wildwood for me. I really enjoyed the first one, but I can never find the time or desire to read the sequels, even though I'm pretty sure I would enjoy them. There are too many "new" books for me to read. This world needs more really good stand alone novels.
July 15, 2017
Jaxter is a member of the infamous Grimjinx clan. Everyone in Vengekeep knows they're thieves, but nobody can prove it. Pickpockets and heists. Forgeries and prophecies. Mages and mayhem. I adored the world-building, the lingo, the par-Goblin sayings, and Farrey's sly wit. I was both amused and entertained. The whole trilogy now resides on my home shelf, and I'm eager to dive into the second volume. Bangers!
April 9, 2013
The Vengekeep Prophecies is a wonderful hero/quest story full of magic starring a not so stellar thief. It is a whole lot of fun, quick paced, mysterious, and full of action and adventure. It is a bit predictable in places, at least for me, but that small flaw can be forgiven for how much pleasure and amusement comes from reading it. This is one that is sure to be a kid pleaser.
January 20, 2013
This is an action packed adventure which is highly entertaining. Youngsters and we adults who enjoy children's books will relish the originality of the scary fantasy elements and the humor of the story.
May 14, 2015
This story is rollicking fun! There's never a dull moment in the life of Jaxter Grimjinx who comes from a long line of thieving families. The entire Grimjinx family is charming and the characters that surround them are very real. A solid adventure.
September 27, 2012
A romp of a fantasy adventure! Clever and highly engaging.
Want to read
October 19, 2012 I just got this book today in the mail after winning it on Goodreads... Can't wait to dig in!
January 21, 2013
When can I read the next one?
January 26, 2015
The story: The Grimjinx family features a noted line of thieves, con men, and forgers. But their best forgery and smoothest con turns out to be a disaster for the family: a tapestry, woven by Allia Grimjinx herself, foretells a series of catastrophes that will befall their hometown. It also shows the Grimjinx family as the only ones who can keep the bad things from happening--and because of this, the family is proclaimed the saviors of Vengekeep. But imagine their horror when the series of grim prophecies actually begins to happen--and now it appears that Jaxter Grimjinx, the least-able thief and most laughable con-man of them all, is the only one who can save the day. The end of the world really MUST be at hand!
June Cleaver’s ratings: Language G (although they use a word that's clearly a swearword in the "language of thieves"); Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Substance use (alcohol) PG; Violence PG; GLBT content G; Magic & the occult PG-13; Adult Themes (entire family living a life of crime, and proud of it!) PG; Overall rating PG.
Liz's comments: I had a hard getting into the idea of a family not only celebrating its criminality, but also teaching its children to do so (as well as how to steal, run a con, and other activities in the family business), but once past that, this is an enjoyable quest story that grade 5-8 readers of fantasy will like. The second book in the series, THE SHADOWHAND COVENANT, is also now available.
Annotation with spoilers: Jaxter Grimjinx comes from a long line of thieves (none of whom, in his immediate family, has ever been convicted of a crime, although they're heartily suspected), but in reality? Jaxter's not much of a thief. He understands the concepts behind running a good con, but strategy is different that actually carrying something out. He's not a good pickpocket or lock picker. What he IS good at is using books, and the information in them, to combat magic using non-magical substances like plants. So there would appear to be a place for him in the family business...just in case they happen to be burgling a house with an enchanted lock.
Which is exactly what happens when Da takes Jaxter out on his first solo burgling venture: they're going to hit the Castellan's house (he being the keeper of the castle, and a main political figure in town). Under the cover of a festival, they break into the house, and although it takes Jaxter 10 minutes to pick a father could have opened in five seconds, with the use of Jaxter's anti-magic lock-picking paste they finally get in and find the jewelled flute they're looking for. Everything's great--until Jaxter accidentally sets the bedroom on fire, and a warning shout trips a magical alarm. By the time they escape the burning house, the entire town is there to watch them being arrested.
However, Ma and Da have planned in advance for such an event. They've planted a tapestry in the archives, now mysteriously brought to light, predicting a series of terrible disasters that will befall the town of Vengekeep in the coming year. Conveniently, it also shows that a family bearing a star birthmark will be the ones to save the town. Surprise! The Grimkinxes are discovered to have the birthmark, and so, although people are still mad about the burglary gone wrong, the family is now seen as necessary to the town's survival, so they're not executed or exiled.
Congratulating themselves on a con well pulled, they are much taken aback when the first event prophesied on the tapestry actually happens: an invasion of lava men, which Jaxter overcomes only by destroying the town watertower and quenching them. Wait--how could this be? When studied under a magnifying glass, the tapestry turns out to have been woven of fateskein, a kind of magical yarn that causes whatever's been prophesied to come to pass. Because of its obvious drawback qualities, the yarn illegal to own, sell, or make--but somehow, Ma bought some at the GrayWillow thieves' market, and no one's going to believe it was an accident, even if she admitted having done the forgery in the first place.
Clearly, it's up to the Grimjinxes to destroy the tapesty before the events shown on it destroy the town--but not surprisingly, the magical yarn is damage impervious. As Jaxter and his friend Callie do research in the town mage's empty home (the old mage died, and the new mage, Talian--Callie's cousin--is mysteriously detained along the way back to town), they comes to realize that the recipe for the only acid that can destroy the fateskein tapestry requires ingredients that just can't be gotten in town. They're going to have to go on a quest for them, and they're going to have to complete it within three weeks, which is when the scariest prophecy--the one featuring flying skeleton beasts--is set to unfold. Their departure is complicated by the arrival of the High Laird's soldiers, who are here to cordon off the cursed town and make sure no ones leaves (thereby spreading the curse to other locations). Jaxter and Callie have to sneak out through the forgotten underground tunnels, which lands them in a lake crawling with spark-leeches, where they lose all their supplies. And that's just the beginning of the adventures!
Callie points out that Jaxter should be able to make some money by selling his potion (the one that unlocks doors that are sealed by magic) at the thieves' market. While at the market, they meet Edilman Jaxter, a former friend of his parents (close enough, in fact, that Ma and Da named their son after him), although they don't stay in touch now. Edilman first takes them to an Aviard nest-village (Aviards are a bird-human hybrid), where he thinks he can con his way into some money that will help him leave the country, and help the kids fund their trip around the Five Provinces to find the ingredients they need for the potion. However, Edilman's con doesn't go as planned, and they have a narrow escape from town. At this point, Edilman proposes to take them to see the Dowager Duchess of Soranna, whom he claims will probably have all those things growing in her gardens. The kids aren't really in a position to decline, although they're alarmed to discover a brand on Edilman's wrist, which indicates he's been convicted and sentenced to death by the High Laird, although has somehow managed to avoid that punishment just yet.
Edilman conducts them to the estate of the Dowager Duchess, where he poses as a headmaster of an academy with the two kids as his star pupils. At dinner, a series of questions leads Jaxter into a conversation with the Duchess, whom it turns out is interested in exactly the same things as he is--plants, their uses, their possibilities, and the sort of general mysteries of the universe. It's not long before Jaxter begins to wish that he really was a student, because the Duchess offers him an opportunity to stay on the estate and train to be her research assistant and eventual successor. Just as he's about to tell her the straight story, an alarm goes off, letting him know that Edilman has been caught trying to steal some of the Duchess's treasures. Jaxter eludes her, and her guards, finds his friends (and finds that Callie has been more successful than Edilman, since she's been able to find all the needed plants in the Duchess's garden) and proceeds to mix ingredients for an explosion that will get them through the wall--but he gets a little too close to the explosion for comfort and gets knocked out...for four days.
When Jaxter finally awakens, the trio tries to move on to find the final ingredient they need for the acid to destroy the tapestry: spiderbat milk. The spiderbat caves are nearby, so, checking into a thieves' hostel in the next village, they try to round up tools and supplies required to finish their quest. But here, Edilman shows his true colors by betraying them to the constabulary, and they end up in jail as curse-spreaders from Vengekeep while he (luckily not knowing about the final ingredient) heads back to town to attempt the potion and try to get himself a sizeable reward.
Imagine the kids' surprise to find Callie's cousin, Talian, in the town jail. He helps them break out, even while admitting that he'd chickened out when told to return to Vengekeep to find the source of the curse. So he's now on the run himself, knowing he'll be punished for dereliction of duty if he's caught. However, he helps to get them to the spiderbat caves, where of course, the acquisition of spiderbat milk hits a snag--the spiderbats are mad at the "human animals" for having stolen many of their colony (including the queen's husband) and don't feel like supplying any milk to their now-enemies. Callie speaks to the queen for the group and they arrange to work together: the young people will go hunt for the missing spiderbats, and when they're rescued, the females will provide the milk that's needed.
The spiderbats lead them to a hidden tower, where a rogue mage is working to combine various species and bring out the traits in each that will be useful to him (like the "human/animal" jackal-men who capture the spiderbat king). When they're captured, Talian claims to have come here looking to work for the mage, Xerrus, and that he's brought the two younger kids as servants. In the mage's tower, Jaxter sees the mounted bones of the balanx--bones that look exactly like the flying bones on his mother's tapestry. When the evil mage announces his plans to use all three of them for "scientific" purposes, a scuffle ensues, and Xerrus uses his magic to animate the bones to help him. Jaxter, however, is able to grab Xerrus's magic pendant (the source of his power) and throw it into a cauldron of molten material, thereby melting it--so the mage's power is destroyed, along with the power of most of his creations...but not the balanx, which of course are now powered by the magic of the fateskein tapestry itself. The balanxes are now headed for Vengekeep, but luckily, Talian has a quick-jump spell that allows them to arrive in town just prior to the beasts.
Things in Vengekeep are a mess: mostly because, due to Edilman's arrival, the Castellan has thrown Jaxter's family in jail. It takes the arrival of the balaxes to get them released, and then, working under duress, Jaxter gets the potion mixed up and smeared on the tapestry just as the balanxes turn their attention to attacking HIM, as if sensing their danger of their impending destruction. But it's too late--the tapestry dissolves, the town is saved, and Edilman is seen for the charlatan he is. The kids concoct a story that allows Talian to be the hero so he can be removed from "rogue mage" status and take up his assigned job in town; the Grimjinxes, who had worked really hard to rally the townsfolk to defend themselves against the prophecies, are now asked to stay on as town counselors. Edilman escapes just ahead of the law; Callie is set to start studying to be a mage, and Jaxter is free to go back to the Duchess and become her research assistant. So all's well that ends well--until they get going with book 2!
June Cleaver’s ratings: Language G (although they use a word that's clearly a swearword in the "language of thieves"); Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Substance use (alcohol) PG; Violence PG; GLBT content G; Magic & the occult PG-13; Adult Themes (entire family living a life of crime, and proud of it!) PG; Overall rating PG.
Liz's comments: I had a hard getting into the idea of a family not only celebrating its criminality, but also teaching its children to do so (as well as how to steal, run a con, and other activities in the family business), but once past that, this is an enjoyable quest story that grade 5-8 readers of fantasy will like. The second book in the series, THE SHADOWHAND COVENANT, is also now available.
Annotation with spoilers: Jaxter Grimjinx comes from a long line of thieves (none of whom, in his immediate family, has ever been convicted of a crime, although they're heartily suspected), but in reality? Jaxter's not much of a thief. He understands the concepts behind running a good con, but strategy is different that actually carrying something out. He's not a good pickpocket or lock picker. What he IS good at is using books, and the information in them, to combat magic using non-magical substances like plants. So there would appear to be a place for him in the family business...just in case they happen to be burgling a house with an enchanted lock.
Which is exactly what happens when Da takes Jaxter out on his first solo burgling venture: they're going to hit the Castellan's house (he being the keeper of the castle, and a main political figure in town). Under the cover of a festival, they break into the house, and although it takes Jaxter 10 minutes to pick a father could have opened in five seconds, with the use of Jaxter's anti-magic lock-picking paste they finally get in and find the jewelled flute they're looking for. Everything's great--until Jaxter accidentally sets the bedroom on fire, and a warning shout trips a magical alarm. By the time they escape the burning house, the entire town is there to watch them being arrested.
However, Ma and Da have planned in advance for such an event. They've planted a tapestry in the archives, now mysteriously brought to light, predicting a series of terrible disasters that will befall the town of Vengekeep in the coming year. Conveniently, it also shows that a family bearing a star birthmark will be the ones to save the town. Surprise! The Grimkinxes are discovered to have the birthmark, and so, although people are still mad about the burglary gone wrong, the family is now seen as necessary to the town's survival, so they're not executed or exiled.
Congratulating themselves on a con well pulled, they are much taken aback when the first event prophesied on the tapestry actually happens: an invasion of lava men, which Jaxter overcomes only by destroying the town watertower and quenching them. Wait--how could this be? When studied under a magnifying glass, the tapestry turns out to have been woven of fateskein, a kind of magical yarn that causes whatever's been prophesied to come to pass. Because of its obvious drawback qualities, the yarn illegal to own, sell, or make--but somehow, Ma bought some at the GrayWillow thieves' market, and no one's going to believe it was an accident, even if she admitted having done the forgery in the first place.
Clearly, it's up to the Grimjinxes to destroy the tapesty before the events shown on it destroy the town--but not surprisingly, the magical yarn is damage impervious. As Jaxter and his friend Callie do research in the town mage's empty home (the old mage died, and the new mage, Talian--Callie's cousin--is mysteriously detained along the way back to town), they comes to realize that the recipe for the only acid that can destroy the fateskein tapestry requires ingredients that just can't be gotten in town. They're going to have to go on a quest for them, and they're going to have to complete it within three weeks, which is when the scariest prophecy--the one featuring flying skeleton beasts--is set to unfold. Their departure is complicated by the arrival of the High Laird's soldiers, who are here to cordon off the cursed town and make sure no ones leaves (thereby spreading the curse to other locations). Jaxter and Callie have to sneak out through the forgotten underground tunnels, which lands them in a lake crawling with spark-leeches, where they lose all their supplies. And that's just the beginning of the adventures!
Callie points out that Jaxter should be able to make some money by selling his potion (the one that unlocks doors that are sealed by magic) at the thieves' market. While at the market, they meet Edilman Jaxter, a former friend of his parents (close enough, in fact, that Ma and Da named their son after him), although they don't stay in touch now. Edilman first takes them to an Aviard nest-village (Aviards are a bird-human hybrid), where he thinks he can con his way into some money that will help him leave the country, and help the kids fund their trip around the Five Provinces to find the ingredients they need for the potion. However, Edilman's con doesn't go as planned, and they have a narrow escape from town. At this point, Edilman proposes to take them to see the Dowager Duchess of Soranna, whom he claims will probably have all those things growing in her gardens. The kids aren't really in a position to decline, although they're alarmed to discover a brand on Edilman's wrist, which indicates he's been convicted and sentenced to death by the High Laird, although has somehow managed to avoid that punishment just yet.
Edilman conducts them to the estate of the Dowager Duchess, where he poses as a headmaster of an academy with the two kids as his star pupils. At dinner, a series of questions leads Jaxter into a conversation with the Duchess, whom it turns out is interested in exactly the same things as he is--plants, their uses, their possibilities, and the sort of general mysteries of the universe. It's not long before Jaxter begins to wish that he really was a student, because the Duchess offers him an opportunity to stay on the estate and train to be her research assistant and eventual successor. Just as he's about to tell her the straight story, an alarm goes off, letting him know that Edilman has been caught trying to steal some of the Duchess's treasures. Jaxter eludes her, and her guards, finds his friends (and finds that Callie has been more successful than Edilman, since she's been able to find all the needed plants in the Duchess's garden) and proceeds to mix ingredients for an explosion that will get them through the wall--but he gets a little too close to the explosion for comfort and gets knocked out...for four days.
When Jaxter finally awakens, the trio tries to move on to find the final ingredient they need for the acid to destroy the tapestry: spiderbat milk. The spiderbat caves are nearby, so, checking into a thieves' hostel in the next village, they try to round up tools and supplies required to finish their quest. But here, Edilman shows his true colors by betraying them to the constabulary, and they end up in jail as curse-spreaders from Vengekeep while he (luckily not knowing about the final ingredient) heads back to town to attempt the potion and try to get himself a sizeable reward.
Imagine the kids' surprise to find Callie's cousin, Talian, in the town jail. He helps them break out, even while admitting that he'd chickened out when told to return to Vengekeep to find the source of the curse. So he's now on the run himself, knowing he'll be punished for dereliction of duty if he's caught. However, he helps to get them to the spiderbat caves, where of course, the acquisition of spiderbat milk hits a snag--the spiderbats are mad at the "human animals" for having stolen many of their colony (including the queen's husband) and don't feel like supplying any milk to their now-enemies. Callie speaks to the queen for the group and they arrange to work together: the young people will go hunt for the missing spiderbats, and when they're rescued, the females will provide the milk that's needed.
The spiderbats lead them to a hidden tower, where a rogue mage is working to combine various species and bring out the traits in each that will be useful to him (like the "human/animal" jackal-men who capture the spiderbat king). When they're captured, Talian claims to have come here looking to work for the mage, Xerrus, and that he's brought the two younger kids as servants. In the mage's tower, Jaxter sees the mounted bones of the balanx--bones that look exactly like the flying bones on his mother's tapestry. When the evil mage announces his plans to use all three of them for "scientific" purposes, a scuffle ensues, and Xerrus uses his magic to animate the bones to help him. Jaxter, however, is able to grab Xerrus's magic pendant (the source of his power) and throw it into a cauldron of molten material, thereby melting it--so the mage's power is destroyed, along with the power of most of his creations...but not the balanx, which of course are now powered by the magic of the fateskein tapestry itself. The balanxes are now headed for Vengekeep, but luckily, Talian has a quick-jump spell that allows them to arrive in town just prior to the beasts.
Things in Vengekeep are a mess: mostly because, due to Edilman's arrival, the Castellan has thrown Jaxter's family in jail. It takes the arrival of the balaxes to get them released, and then, working under duress, Jaxter gets the potion mixed up and smeared on the tapestry just as the balanxes turn their attention to attacking HIM, as if sensing their danger of their impending destruction. But it's too late--the tapestry dissolves, the town is saved, and Edilman is seen for the charlatan he is. The kids concoct a story that allows Talian to be the hero so he can be removed from "rogue mage" status and take up his assigned job in town; the Grimjinxes, who had worked really hard to rally the townsfolk to defend themselves against the prophecies, are now asked to stay on as town counselors. Edilman escapes just ahead of the law; Callie is set to start studying to be a mage, and Jaxter is free to go back to the Duchess and become her research assistant. So all's well that ends well--until they get going with book 2!
August 19, 2018
This is one of those books that I enjoyed (and sometimes got frustrated with) as an adult reader, but I know it would have been my favorite book as a kid.
This is a hilarious and brilliant book about a family of thieves. I love the family dynamic, I love the adventures they're forced to go on, and I love the self-discovery characters experience throughout the book. But the world-building was probably the coolest part of this book. You're basically just thrown in with the characters to learn things as they do (or they'll briefly explain things as you go), but there's a lot more going on in this world than is obvious at first.
For example, it first seems like a normal medieval town with a few quirks. But you learn slowly of some magic and some non-magical ways of dealing with magic through science (our main character is kind of a chemist/apothecary). An actual mage isn't introduced into the story until near the end, so we still don't have a good grasp on the magic system. This was a cool way to get into the story because it left me wanting to read the rest of the series so I could find out more about the world and how the magic system works. So I'm excited to pick up the next book sometime soon.
This is a fabulous read for 8-12 year olds who are interested in fantasy.
This is a hilarious and brilliant book about a family of thieves. I love the family dynamic, I love the adventures they're forced to go on, and I love the self-discovery characters experience throughout the book. But the world-building was probably the coolest part of this book. You're basically just thrown in with the characters to learn things as they do (or they'll briefly explain things as you go), but there's a lot more going on in this world than is obvious at first.
For example, it first seems like a normal medieval town with a few quirks. But you learn slowly of some magic and some non-magical ways of dealing with magic through science (our main character is kind of a chemist/apothecary). An actual mage isn't introduced into the story until near the end, so we still don't have a good grasp on the magic system. This was a cool way to get into the story because it left me wanting to read the rest of the series so I could find out more about the world and how the magic system works. So I'm excited to pick up the next book sometime soon.
This is a fabulous read for 8-12 year olds who are interested in fantasy.
February 28, 2021
I tried to start this back in 2014 but didn't get into it. I'm glad I gave it another chance. I'll admit the first 100 pages were kind of slow for me -not necessarily in terms of action, but because it took that long for me to connect with the characters enough to want to follow them. But once I was past that point, the story really took off for me!
I wasn't sure how I felt about the family's thieving ways in the beginning. Jaxter mentioned that they never stole from poor people, but that doesn't mean they were Robin Hood either. They weren't helping the poor but were very much out for themselves. And I don't agree with the idea that it's ok to steal from people who "can afford it." And then there were moments when I was concerned that certain loose threads wouldn't get tied up since this is the first book in a trilogy. But I'm pleased with the way the story progressed on all accounts. The characters developed in ways I appreciated and everything I wondered about was resolved, making this a fine stand-alone read.
Great characters, interesting setting, lots of action and adventure, good lessons - kids who enjoy fantasy or adventure stories should like this. And I think it would make an excellent family read-aloud.
I wasn't sure how I felt about the family's thieving ways in the beginning. Jaxter mentioned that they never stole from poor people, but that doesn't mean they were Robin Hood either. They weren't helping the poor but were very much out for themselves. And I don't agree with the idea that it's ok to steal from people who "can afford it." And then there were moments when I was concerned that certain loose threads wouldn't get tied up since this is the first book in a trilogy. But I'm pleased with the way the story progressed on all accounts. The characters developed in ways I appreciated and everything I wondered about was resolved, making this a fine stand-alone read.
Great characters, interesting setting, lots of action and adventure, good lessons - kids who enjoy fantasy or adventure stories should like this. And I think it would make an excellent family read-aloud.
December 29, 2017
When you come from a family famous for thievery, forgery, pickpocketing, and burglary, it’s supposed to run through your veins, right? But not so for Jaxter Grimjinx, the clumsiest member of the Grimjinx clan. While he may not be living up to the family thieving legacy, Jaxter has earned himself a unique and irreplaceable place in the family’s heists – he has become an expert at natural remedies for magical problems. Enchanted locked door? Jaxter can get you through. But when the family pulls their greatest con – swapping the town’s prophetic tapestry with a fake – things start to backfire when the disastrous false prophecies mysteriously start coming true. Now it is up to Jaxter and his expertise to save Vengekeep from ruin. This adventurous, humorous tale is full of loveable Grimjinxes, breathtaking escapades, and a refreshing perspective of magic and how it can be wielded and defeated.
May 20, 2021
A while ago, I made the discovery that I am at least 60% more likely to pick up a book if Brett Helquist illustrated the front cover, a fact which came as a bit of a shock to me. I spent about two minutes trying to find out why this was, how long it had been this way, and what I should do about it before I gave up and used Goodreads to find all said books.
Well, The Vengekeep Prophecies was a result of this search, and I’m so glad I found it! It is my favorite type of book: magic, adventure, good writing, fantastic world building (“bangers,” “zoc,” and “naff-nut” being some of my favorite aspects), and absolutely amazing characters who say and think hilarious things. The conflict dragged on just a little, and it was somewhat predictable at times, but otherwise, the book was perfect. Highly recommend to all middle-grade fantasy lovers!
Well, The Vengekeep Prophecies was a result of this search, and I’m so glad I found it! It is my favorite type of book: magic, adventure, good writing, fantastic world building (“bangers,” “zoc,” and “naff-nut” being some of my favorite aspects), and absolutely amazing characters who say and think hilarious things. The conflict dragged on just a little, and it was somewhat predictable at times, but otherwise, the book was perfect. Highly recommend to all middle-grade fantasy lovers!
July 4, 2018
This is a fun series that one of my students turned me onto. Clever writing, quick wit, and entertaining as can be. I loved the quotes at the beginning of each chapter. Each character had unique talents, and there were a few twists and turns I didn't expect. Nothing inappropriate for younger children. Similar to Artemis Fowl in that the main characters are a family of thieves. I am glad they redeem themselves in the end...and, really, throughout the entire book. I mean, who else is going to save Vengekeep? I hope I am worthy to be called an honorary Grimjinx. This series might be one I need to buy
November 5, 2020
Fun, fast-paced, creative, and exciting. These aren’t your standard sort of prophecies, and I thought the twist on the trope was delightfully clever. The Grimjinx family is enjoyable and Jaxter’s journey as a character was a good one. I might quibble over half a star or so for some of the details not quite holding together as I would have liked, but I’ll round it all up for the sake of a couple of my students, who are more the target audience for this and who loved it.
(Addendum: I’ll note that this is the first book of a series, but it completely stands on its own as well. I don’t think there was even a hint of setting something up for a sequel. So you can take it however you like.)
(Addendum: I’ll note that this is the first book of a series, but it completely stands on its own as well. I don’t think there was even a hint of setting something up for a sequel. So you can take it however you like.)
March 22, 2018
The book I read for this marking period is called “The Vengekeep Prophecies”, by Brian Farrey. It is about a family, the Grimjinxes, that excels at thieving. They live in a town called vengekeep, and they have been robbing and stealing for hundreds of generations. However, for all the legacy that backs the family, the main character, Jaxter, is not very good at stealing. After a magical curse falls over the town, it seems that Grimjinxes are the only ones that can save it. Jaxter, along with his new friend Callie, set out on a quest to save the town.
Overall, I thought this was an ok book. The story is simple and typical of a book of this genre, which is both a good and a bad thing. In some parts I find the simpleness. a good thing, and sometimes the story is a bit too predictable and typical. The town they live in reminds me of a medieval town, but I feel like the tired to add to many fantasy elements. The names of some everyday items have been modified, but I think the modifications are distracting and unnecessary. The plot is also predictable, and the characters overreact and underact to a lot of situations. Overall, this book just seemed lacking in some parts and over the top in others. In the end, though, I read the whole thing, and It was a decent book.
Overall, I thought this was an ok book. The story is simple and typical of a book of this genre, which is both a good and a bad thing. In some parts I find the simpleness. a good thing, and sometimes the story is a bit too predictable and typical. The town they live in reminds me of a medieval town, but I feel like the tired to add to many fantasy elements. The names of some everyday items have been modified, but I think the modifications are distracting and unnecessary. The plot is also predictable, and the characters overreact and underact to a lot of situations. Overall, this book just seemed lacking in some parts and over the top in others. In the end, though, I read the whole thing, and It was a decent book.
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