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Kingdom Keepers: The Return #2
Kingdom Keepers: The Return Book Two Legacy of Secrets
Disneyland, Opening Day, 1955. When five present-day teenagers known as the Kingdom Keepers find themselves thrown into a past that would make anyone envious, things don't exactly work out the way they'd hoped. Finn, Charlene, Maybeck, Willa, and Philby open a door into a place and a time when the legend of the Disney parks is just starting. They are there, in 1955, to retrieve Walt Disney's infamous pen that once saved the parks as we know them. But like all things Disney, nothing is as it seems.The early days of the Tower of Terror, the origin of the Overtakers (Disney villains), and the real power of magic unfold in an unexpected series of events that propel both the Keepers and Disney itself into a darkness no one saw coming. Along the way, the Keepers visit Walt Disney's hilltop home, Disneyland's opening day and reception, and find themselves separated from friends sixty years away. The three Fairlies, young women in Disney's School of Imagineering, girls with astonishing powers of their own, have unmasked a long-buried secret that threatens the lives of their friends as well as everything Walt Disney worked for.
416 pages, Paperback
First published March 29, 2016
142 people are currently reading
3090 people want to read
About the author
Ridley Pearson
186 books2,107 followersRidley Pearson is the author of more than fifty novels, including the New York Times bestseller Killer Weekend; the Lou Boldt crime series; and many books for young readers, including the award-winning children's novels Peter and the Starcatchers, Peter and the Shadow Thieves, and Peter and the Secret of Rundoon, which he cowrote with Dave Barry. Pearson lives with his wife and two daughters, dividing their time between Missouri and Idaho.
Also writes Chris Klick mysteries as Wendell McCall.
Also writes Chris Klick mysteries as Wendell McCall.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 101 reviews
January 9, 2017
A fantastic thrill ride from start to finish. I picked it up and with the exception of a 20 minute break for dinner, I didn't put it down until I finished. The series keeps getting better and better with each installment. The third and final installment of the Return trilogy is going to be epic!
April 12, 2016
Yay finally had time to finish. As a huge a Disney girl, I was happy to finally get my hands on this book. I have read the entire series and have loved it. No they aren't perfect books, but they are fun and a Disney fans should enjoy them. I can't wait to see where the next book will take the Keepers and fairlies.
July 3, 2017
Story is getting better which is why I gave it four stars. Same annoying habits that the author seems to think readers like. It really gets annoying when every puzzle results in one of the characters understanding it and then spending the next three pages saying "what, you don't get it, it's so obvious". Just tell the damn story and forget the terribly written "suspense" parts.
March 21, 2024
So good.
August 21, 2016
The Kingdom Keepers are back in 1955, trying to follow clues to find Walt’s pen so they can make sure it is properly preserved so they can use it in the future. Meanwhile in the present, Amanda and Jess are trying to figure out how to help them and stumble upon long buried secrets that might change the game for everyone.
The two plots are balanced perfectly, keeping us entertained. Plus we learn some hows and whys that I didn’t know I cared about but explain much of what has been happening in the Kingdom Keeper series. We don’t get as much direct action as in previous books, but there is still some of that, and it is great. Plus, as a DisNerd, I was extremely green with all the Kingdom Keepers got to do in 1955.
Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.
The two plots are balanced perfectly, keeping us entertained. Plus we learn some hows and whys that I didn’t know I cared about but explain much of what has been happening in the Kingdom Keeper series. We don’t get as much direct action as in previous books, but there is still some of that, and it is great. Plus, as a DisNerd, I was extremely green with all the Kingdom Keepers got to do in 1955.
Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.
April 10, 2016
It was fun going back in time to Disney's opening. I like that the plot took place with different characters in both the present day and when Disney opened. I like involving more people in the present day like invisible Emily. And how Jess/Amanda's history figures into the plot.
I gave a low rating for two reasons:
1) Time travel paradox was handled poorly. Being able to write a message on the wall and have it appear at a designated time in the present day is silly. Relies on way too much magic.
2) Really? 2D projections that nobody notices? A lot of words were spent explaining how they evaded detection. But really? You wouldn't notice if a poster started walking around pretending to be a person?
These two things really distracted me when reading the story.
I gave a low rating for two reasons:
1) Time travel paradox was handled poorly. Being able to write a message on the wall and have it appear at a designated time in the present day is silly. Relies on way too much magic.
2) Really? 2D projections that nobody notices? A lot of words were spent explaining how they evaded detection. But really? You wouldn't notice if a poster started walking around pretending to be a person?
These two things really distracted me when reading the story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 13, 2016
OMG! The next one won't come out fast enough. How long do I have to wait? Too long! A lot of detail and back and forth. Had to reread a couple paragraphs to be sure I grasped who and where I was at. But I am already impatient for the next one. Can't wait, can't wait, don't want to wait, but alas I have no choice.
April 16, 2016
I love the kingdom keeper series. And this is just as much a great book as the others. I love the time travel back to 1955. I would have loved to have met Walt like these teens. Ridley has a way of making you believe that anything possible in Disney and it translates over to the real world. Great books.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 17, 2016
This series just needs to end.
February 24, 2017
Can't wait for the next book to come out! If it is half as good as this one it will the best. This was a little slow at the beginning, but after a while it got better.
October 27, 2020
I feel like they are just reusing the plot. It just needed to end after the first series. Too repetitive.
November 21, 2017
These stories bring me a lot of joy. I can't wait to see how this series is going to end. It's fun to see what happened in the past. And the audiobook narrator is great in these.
June 4, 2022
third- these are god tier books tbh
April 9, 2024
This one started out slow but got better as it went on. Still wasn’t one of my actual favorites compared to some of the other books in this series.
August 8, 2025
Ridley Pearson always does a great job on the Kingdom Keepers. These books keeps you on the edge of your seat seat.
August 15, 2019
This book took me awhile, but I really enjoyed it!
August 21, 2022
Legacy of Secrets
The Kingdom Keepers have stepped through a door and are in 1955 (on the opening day of Disney land) on a mission to locate and steal Walt Disney’s fountain pen so they can find it six decades later. A younger version of Wayne suggests they do it while Disney is napping. He keeps the pen in the inside pocket of his sports jacket and he won’t have the jacket on while sleeping. Finn, Philby, and Willa (once getting over their awe of seeing Walt in person) search his jackets. Finn gets close to getting the pen, but there’s a knock at the door and Walt starts to wake up. It’s two women that identify themselves as “maid service” But Willa hears them say that Mr. Hollingsworth said there was something in the apartment worth stealing. Willa thinks the name sounds familiar. She heard about a man that got fired and sued the company for an “unlawful dismissal”. Finn distracts Walt while he makes his escape down the fire pole, but at the bottom waiting for him is Hollingsworth. He questions Finn, but makes a dash for it when the two girls show up.
They try the pen out on a blueprint of Main Steet. Nothing happens. Even though this pen looks similar to the one they have in the future, Maybeck suggests that maybe Walt has a lot of pens that look similar. And maybe he keeps the real one somewhere close to where he draws so not to lose it. Or he’d leave it with the ones he trusted the most (Roy and Lillian). Roy has an office in Burbank and one about the Story Book shop on Main Street there. Wayne mentions other problems that show someone clearly is trying to sabotage opening day. Willa tells what she heard at Walt’s apartment and compares the maids to the OTs and the mentions the wand. They all realize that as of this day, the characters were now “born”.
The Keepers hide out in a tent for the night and discover they’re still in projection form. Meaning Wayne must have built a television station. But later that night the projection fades when the park shuts down. They’re found by three pigs and then a wolf. Charlene, Maybeck, and Philby fight off the wolf and after they save themselves by jumping into a lake, the wolf slinks back off into the bushes. Now that they are mortal (wouldn’t it be better to be holograms?) they can go to the studio. On the way there a green car passes them twice and Finn gets the plate numbers. Finn recognizes the boys as Cast Members. Why didn’t they turn in their costumes?
Charlene hears two boys coming up looking for plans (the schedule the guests don’t see). Philby identifies them as the ones in the green Dodge. There’s no pen but in a statue, there’s something with numbers on it and Maybeck memorizes. The KK come face to face with the 3 “cast members” and find themselves in hot pursuit. When the KK confront them, Maybeck is memorizing their badge numbers. Then they run off. Backstage the three discover another of Roy’s offices. No pen, but they see the “cast member” talking to someone in a suit. They also find a notepad where Roy has been keeping track of badge numbers. But they’re spotted and shut the curtains. The KK manage to exit the cast members in Roy’s office. Wayne comes up with a plan to snatch Mrs. Disney’s purse using 2 of the Keepers to check its contents. They find out she has the same coin and half of a 20-dollar bill as Roy.
On the second day, there’s a celebration that night for Opening Day dedicated to Walt at the Golden Horseshow. They have a feeling the “Cast Members” will show up and they do. There’s a man with them, some women, and a guard. The Cast Members hold back the actors and dancers. Hollingsworth takes the stage and starts accusing Walt of being a fraud but Maybeck quickly gets him off the stage by way of a firehouse. Charlene, Willa, and Maybeck meet up with Philby and Finn who have been picking pockets for the IDs of the “Cast Members”. It all ends with a chase and the KK jump in the water to short circuit their projections.
The KK separate that night, and Finn finds the 13-story hotel and decides to investigate. The building we find out becomes the school Amanda and Jess are at the future and he’s looking for Amanda and Jess’s room. Something passes through him and he starts to hear in his thoughts the voices of possibly either the people who died in this house whose bodies weren’t found our the seven people who died in the story of the Tower of Terror. But they help him out and distract three boys that are using the space. Finn’s attempt to let them know he's alive is successful, but unfortunately, they can’t respond back by carving into the wood like he did. The KK find out the coin (in Lillian’s purse)goes into Esmeralda -a gypsy telling machine- and a cryptic message thati says “I hope it moved you as much as it did me. I named it after you.
Finn goes back to the hotel, and Finn in disappointment shows her the sign he left. Charlene tells him sensibly what he sends might be there sixty years later, but if she sends something it can’t go backwards. They decide to go speak to the cast members living there. Wayne and Philby find out the ID’s of two of Hollingsworth’s people. They post a watch of some employees to watch “Jingles?” to see if Amanda and Jess will send a message. Willa finds out that Esmeralda’s message means Walt named the Railroad after her Lily Belle. They search it but the pen isn’t there. Even though Wayne and Philby adjust the technology to a bootleg 3D it’s still wonky so it makes things even more difficult. The KK notice that Charlene is acting strange (especially Finn when she makes a play at him to make Maybeck jealous). Charlene and Maybeck find out that the locomotive they’re in is also named :”Lilybelle”.
Willa and Philby do find a note on Jingles and are able to escape one of the guards guarding the carousel. The KK ends up at the Disney’s house in an attempt to search his locomotive at home. However, they end up attracting his dog’s attention and Walt comes looking himself. On the way out Philby accidently snags the plates on the leg of his pants. Philby and Wayne are able to detect the warning Amanda sends about A. H. The plates have a riddle of the back so the KK set off to explore the attractions, but they don’t find anything. The clue leads them to a “Cab” (carriage). Underneath Finn spots Mickey. They find lots of hidden Mickey’s in the wood shop, but no pin. They find Walt’s writing desk. Then they find close by a statue of a different Mickey holding.. a fountain pen. The pen doesn’t work. The KK go back to the Gypsy myth but then realize it’s the INK that makes the pen enchanted! They’re found by the CMs and they race to get the ink. Hollingsworth then shows up with the girls frozen and the pen and says he’ll exchange them for the ink. Finn threatens to spill the ink and he does which restores the girls and some gets on the others. Hollingsworth rushes out and they chase him,
Finn rescues the ink with the assistance of Maybeck and then Disney shows up and kicks Hollingsworth out. He tries to give them the pen but tells him he needs to keep it somewhere safe. Then they vaguely fill him in on Hollongswoth’s plan in the future and why it’s important his pen be in Florida. Disney is intrigued why it would be there but that they don’t share. Tia Dalma throughout the book is trying to raise and reconstruct Maleficent. With Walt’s pen found the KK’s are still stuck. Amanda shows up with Philby’s telephone that manually brings them back.
Meanwhile, back in the present Amanda and Jess are at the Disney Imaginer School trying to figure out how to save the KK’s. Jess is now in a secret group “The Think Tank” that comes up with concepts involving the park. They also investigate Hollingsworth and find out there were two (father and son). The son Avery wants to destroy DL to avenge the “wrongdoing” of his father by being fired after stealing some cells.
My Thoughts: This was good! I’m trying to work this out in my brain. It would make sense that in the events of Disney After Dark, they wouldn’t remember having gotten the pen. In the first book, I remember they had to try a bunch of writing utensils before they knew which one it was. And I think this was one of the questions I had when they did find it in One Man’s Dream how did they know? But when I was thinking about it, they didn’t. So, this plot worked out well.
The concept of going back in time to Opening Day in 55 was cool and instantly I knew that I’d enjoy this one It filled in a blank on a major event and a detail from the first book. CLEVER!
There wasn’t too much drama. There was some with Maybeck and Charlene (which didn’t go anywhere) and Finn and Amanda but it wasn’t too *thick* to distract from the story. But I wouldn't have minded more detail on Finn hearing the ghost and if it was the ghost hearing the last things they remembered about that day. I was confused if this was the Tower of Terrorb building in the future but no. It's Amanda's and Jessica's school. So, why would the ghost from the Tower of Terror attraction be hanging around a building that isn't connected to the attraction? Also unless the event involving a real elevator that was in that building that people then just took the myth of and placed it with that attraction, then the ghosts seem out of place. How is it even that people can get *inside* this house. Shouldn't it be locked up if it's in that bad a condition?
At times, I did wish it didn’t flip to Amanda and Jessica, but there was a moment toward the end when I had an OH ISH moment and that’s when I found out Old Avery (Did anyone else mix them up? In my head sometimes it was thinking the Old Avery had found a way to make himself immortal and he was still around in ’15 trying to wreck DL. IDK He might have used a spell on himself to keep his appearance young) was the one that created the OTs.
I always thought it was Disney’s magic that brought them to life. It was also ironic that Disney asks why would it be in Florida. Maybe they should have hinted to him “Umm Mr. Disney, I don’t mind to get too personal but you might want to cut back a little on the smoking. Trust me!” Without actually telling him it’ll be the death of him years later.
I probably would have been just as awestruck tho with going back to Opening Day (ok well.. maybe not *all* as we saw with Maybeck’s treatment) and seeing the contrast of back then versus how it looks today. Or just seeing him face to face. I have HUGE respect for all he accomplished to the point that I want to be like that. I even to a small degree took an animation class a long time ago and I LOVED IT! I can’t tell you what it does to see something that you draw that’s flat just transform into something with motion on a screen! It’s the BEST FEELING! I also loved the fact that Lilian was a reader and a high donator to libraries. So I felt like I learned a little bit more about the Disney also! REALLY GREAT BOOK! It all connected perfectly! Bringing Dillion back in AI form was a little eerie and all the chasing got a little tiresome between the KK and the fake CM’s but other than that this was one of the better ones!
Rating: 8
The Kingdom Keepers have stepped through a door and are in 1955 (on the opening day of Disney land) on a mission to locate and steal Walt Disney’s fountain pen so they can find it six decades later. A younger version of Wayne suggests they do it while Disney is napping. He keeps the pen in the inside pocket of his sports jacket and he won’t have the jacket on while sleeping. Finn, Philby, and Willa (once getting over their awe of seeing Walt in person) search his jackets. Finn gets close to getting the pen, but there’s a knock at the door and Walt starts to wake up. It’s two women that identify themselves as “maid service” But Willa hears them say that Mr. Hollingsworth said there was something in the apartment worth stealing. Willa thinks the name sounds familiar. She heard about a man that got fired and sued the company for an “unlawful dismissal”. Finn distracts Walt while he makes his escape down the fire pole, but at the bottom waiting for him is Hollingsworth. He questions Finn, but makes a dash for it when the two girls show up.
They try the pen out on a blueprint of Main Steet. Nothing happens. Even though this pen looks similar to the one they have in the future, Maybeck suggests that maybe Walt has a lot of pens that look similar. And maybe he keeps the real one somewhere close to where he draws so not to lose it. Or he’d leave it with the ones he trusted the most (Roy and Lillian). Roy has an office in Burbank and one about the Story Book shop on Main Street there. Wayne mentions other problems that show someone clearly is trying to sabotage opening day. Willa tells what she heard at Walt’s apartment and compares the maids to the OTs and the mentions the wand. They all realize that as of this day, the characters were now “born”.
The Keepers hide out in a tent for the night and discover they’re still in projection form. Meaning Wayne must have built a television station. But later that night the projection fades when the park shuts down. They’re found by three pigs and then a wolf. Charlene, Maybeck, and Philby fight off the wolf and after they save themselves by jumping into a lake, the wolf slinks back off into the bushes. Now that they are mortal (wouldn’t it be better to be holograms?) they can go to the studio. On the way there a green car passes them twice and Finn gets the plate numbers. Finn recognizes the boys as Cast Members. Why didn’t they turn in their costumes?
Charlene hears two boys coming up looking for plans (the schedule the guests don’t see). Philby identifies them as the ones in the green Dodge. There’s no pen but in a statue, there’s something with numbers on it and Maybeck memorizes. The KK come face to face with the 3 “cast members” and find themselves in hot pursuit. When the KK confront them, Maybeck is memorizing their badge numbers. Then they run off. Backstage the three discover another of Roy’s offices. No pen, but they see the “cast member” talking to someone in a suit. They also find a notepad where Roy has been keeping track of badge numbers. But they’re spotted and shut the curtains. The KK manage to exit the cast members in Roy’s office. Wayne comes up with a plan to snatch Mrs. Disney’s purse using 2 of the Keepers to check its contents. They find out she has the same coin and half of a 20-dollar bill as Roy.
On the second day, there’s a celebration that night for Opening Day dedicated to Walt at the Golden Horseshow. They have a feeling the “Cast Members” will show up and they do. There’s a man with them, some women, and a guard. The Cast Members hold back the actors and dancers. Hollingsworth takes the stage and starts accusing Walt of being a fraud but Maybeck quickly gets him off the stage by way of a firehouse. Charlene, Willa, and Maybeck meet up with Philby and Finn who have been picking pockets for the IDs of the “Cast Members”. It all ends with a chase and the KK jump in the water to short circuit their projections.
The KK separate that night, and Finn finds the 13-story hotel and decides to investigate. The building we find out becomes the school Amanda and Jess are at the future and he’s looking for Amanda and Jess’s room. Something passes through him and he starts to hear in his thoughts the voices of possibly either the people who died in this house whose bodies weren’t found our the seven people who died in the story of the Tower of Terror. But they help him out and distract three boys that are using the space. Finn’s attempt to let them know he's alive is successful, but unfortunately, they can’t respond back by carving into the wood like he did. The KK find out the coin (in Lillian’s purse)goes into Esmeralda -a gypsy telling machine- and a cryptic message thati says “I hope it moved you as much as it did me. I named it after you.
Finn goes back to the hotel, and Finn in disappointment shows her the sign he left. Charlene tells him sensibly what he sends might be there sixty years later, but if she sends something it can’t go backwards. They decide to go speak to the cast members living there. Wayne and Philby find out the ID’s of two of Hollingsworth’s people. They post a watch of some employees to watch “Jingles?” to see if Amanda and Jess will send a message. Willa finds out that Esmeralda’s message means Walt named the Railroad after her Lily Belle. They search it but the pen isn’t there. Even though Wayne and Philby adjust the technology to a bootleg 3D it’s still wonky so it makes things even more difficult. The KK notice that Charlene is acting strange (especially Finn when she makes a play at him to make Maybeck jealous). Charlene and Maybeck find out that the locomotive they’re in is also named :”Lilybelle”.
Willa and Philby do find a note on Jingles and are able to escape one of the guards guarding the carousel. The KK ends up at the Disney’s house in an attempt to search his locomotive at home. However, they end up attracting his dog’s attention and Walt comes looking himself. On the way out Philby accidently snags the plates on the leg of his pants. Philby and Wayne are able to detect the warning Amanda sends about A. H. The plates have a riddle of the back so the KK set off to explore the attractions, but they don’t find anything. The clue leads them to a “Cab” (carriage). Underneath Finn spots Mickey. They find lots of hidden Mickey’s in the wood shop, but no pin. They find Walt’s writing desk. Then they find close by a statue of a different Mickey holding.. a fountain pen. The pen doesn’t work. The KK go back to the Gypsy myth but then realize it’s the INK that makes the pen enchanted! They’re found by the CMs and they race to get the ink. Hollingsworth then shows up with the girls frozen and the pen and says he’ll exchange them for the ink. Finn threatens to spill the ink and he does which restores the girls and some gets on the others. Hollingsworth rushes out and they chase him,
Finn rescues the ink with the assistance of Maybeck and then Disney shows up and kicks Hollingsworth out. He tries to give them the pen but tells him he needs to keep it somewhere safe. Then they vaguely fill him in on Hollongswoth’s plan in the future and why it’s important his pen be in Florida. Disney is intrigued why it would be there but that they don’t share. Tia Dalma throughout the book is trying to raise and reconstruct Maleficent. With Walt’s pen found the KK’s are still stuck. Amanda shows up with Philby’s telephone that manually brings them back.
Meanwhile, back in the present Amanda and Jess are at the Disney Imaginer School trying to figure out how to save the KK’s. Jess is now in a secret group “The Think Tank” that comes up with concepts involving the park. They also investigate Hollingsworth and find out there were two (father and son). The son Avery wants to destroy DL to avenge the “wrongdoing” of his father by being fired after stealing some cells.
My Thoughts: This was good! I’m trying to work this out in my brain. It would make sense that in the events of Disney After Dark, they wouldn’t remember having gotten the pen. In the first book, I remember they had to try a bunch of writing utensils before they knew which one it was. And I think this was one of the questions I had when they did find it in One Man’s Dream how did they know? But when I was thinking about it, they didn’t. So, this plot worked out well.
The concept of going back in time to Opening Day in 55 was cool and instantly I knew that I’d enjoy this one It filled in a blank on a major event and a detail from the first book. CLEVER!
There wasn’t too much drama. There was some with Maybeck and Charlene (which didn’t go anywhere) and Finn and Amanda but it wasn’t too *thick* to distract from the story. But I wouldn't have minded more detail on Finn hearing the ghost and if it was the ghost hearing the last things they remembered about that day. I was confused if this was the Tower of Terrorb building in the future but no. It's Amanda's and Jessica's school. So, why would the ghost from the Tower of Terror attraction be hanging around a building that isn't connected to the attraction? Also unless the event involving a real elevator that was in that building that people then just took the myth of and placed it with that attraction, then the ghosts seem out of place. How is it even that people can get *inside* this house. Shouldn't it be locked up if it's in that bad a condition?
At times, I did wish it didn’t flip to Amanda and Jessica, but there was a moment toward the end when I had an OH ISH moment and that’s when I found out Old Avery (Did anyone else mix them up? In my head sometimes it was thinking the Old Avery had found a way to make himself immortal and he was still around in ’15 trying to wreck DL. IDK He might have used a spell on himself to keep his appearance young) was the one that created the OTs.
I always thought it was Disney’s magic that brought them to life. It was also ironic that Disney asks why would it be in Florida. Maybe they should have hinted to him “Umm Mr. Disney, I don’t mind to get too personal but you might want to cut back a little on the smoking. Trust me!” Without actually telling him it’ll be the death of him years later.
I probably would have been just as awestruck tho with going back to Opening Day (ok well.. maybe not *all* as we saw with Maybeck’s treatment) and seeing the contrast of back then versus how it looks today. Or just seeing him face to face. I have HUGE respect for all he accomplished to the point that I want to be like that. I even to a small degree took an animation class a long time ago and I LOVED IT! I can’t tell you what it does to see something that you draw that’s flat just transform into something with motion on a screen! It’s the BEST FEELING! I also loved the fact that Lilian was a reader and a high donator to libraries. So I felt like I learned a little bit more about the Disney also! REALLY GREAT BOOK! It all connected perfectly! Bringing Dillion back in AI form was a little eerie and all the chasing got a little tiresome between the KK and the fake CM’s but other than that this was one of the better ones!
Rating: 8
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 4, 2016
This book had a much better ending than the first. However, it still blatantly sets up for another book in the series. Had the first two been one book and it ended here it would not be as bad. But this is a trend in his Disney books. Story wise it is enjoyable and continues from where the first book abruptly left off. A good read as long as you aren't expecting the full story.
February 28, 2017
This book is AMAZING!!! A thrill ride from start to finish, I loved every second of it! I cannot get enough of The Kingdom Keepers, and will be counting the days until the next book!!!
April 5, 2016
Can't wait for the next one! :D
April 10, 2016
Amazing! Even better than the first one! This one was definitely edited better too, no typos that I detected! I need the next book! I want to know how this is going to end!!!
January 16, 2021
I'm not really sure where I should begin this review. I guess I should preface this with the following: I liked the concept of this series since the first book. I think it is a really good concept and honestly if it was executed well I would make sure I read the series as often as possible.
However, that's where I have the problem; I don't think this is executed very well. The series is very long and each book has an excess of pages that really don't need to be there. Because this review is not supposed to be about the whole series, I will now move on to this book in particular.
The second installment of The Return in the very long running Kingdom Keepers franchise is kind of clunky. It introduces time travel (Yay!) but it felt really forced/cumbersome throughout the story. When the Kingdom Keepers get off of Jingles the Horse the appear as 2D projections. I don't necessarily have a problem with this, however, anytime they move, it feels like their 2 dimensional properties don't effect them. One would think it hard to move forward in great strides when 2 dimensional and moving sideways much easier. This doesn't ever seem to be the case and their 2 dimensional properties only have benefits for the Kingdom Keepers. I guess what I am trying to say is that the physics don't seem to work. But something I am willing to overlook because this is a children's/YA book.
Something that has irked me in ever book in this series, and something I can not overlook is the writing. The writing has a lot of sentence fragments, spelling errors, and typos. This would be less of a problem if it wasn't so pervasive in EVERY book in the series. The book clearly needs and editor and if this had someone look through it, they did not do a good enough job. Pearson also has a problem making the dialogue believable, as some of the chatter between characters that are all now 17 and 18, would never happen the way he writes it. Finally, every action sequence is clunky and I found myself falling asleep during some of them. Some action sequences really had me scratching my head as to why it was even happening. Like what was the gain or loss if the Keepers won or lost the fight they were in?
The characters are still pretty one dimensional and still wonder why I am supposed to care about some of them and the circumstances they find themselves in. If I am being honest, I'm glad that there is only one more book in this series so I can finally say I finished it.
This series had so much potential, but sadly Pearson has given it a sloppy execution through each book. The first book; Disney After Dark, was good enough to be a standalone story but at this point the story feels so contrived and all the plot devices feel like they have been used and every book past the second one could have been condensed to roughly 100-150 pages instead of having each one 300pgs+. It's time to send this series out to pasture.
However, that's where I have the problem; I don't think this is executed very well. The series is very long and each book has an excess of pages that really don't need to be there. Because this review is not supposed to be about the whole series, I will now move on to this book in particular.
The second installment of The Return in the very long running Kingdom Keepers franchise is kind of clunky. It introduces time travel (Yay!) but it felt really forced/cumbersome throughout the story. When the Kingdom Keepers get off of Jingles the Horse the appear as 2D projections. I don't necessarily have a problem with this, however, anytime they move, it feels like their 2 dimensional properties don't effect them. One would think it hard to move forward in great strides when 2 dimensional and moving sideways much easier. This doesn't ever seem to be the case and their 2 dimensional properties only have benefits for the Kingdom Keepers. I guess what I am trying to say is that the physics don't seem to work. But something I am willing to overlook because this is a children's/YA book.
Something that has irked me in ever book in this series, and something I can not overlook is the writing. The writing has a lot of sentence fragments, spelling errors, and typos. This would be less of a problem if it wasn't so pervasive in EVERY book in the series. The book clearly needs and editor and if this had someone look through it, they did not do a good enough job. Pearson also has a problem making the dialogue believable, as some of the chatter between characters that are all now 17 and 18, would never happen the way he writes it. Finally, every action sequence is clunky and I found myself falling asleep during some of them. Some action sequences really had me scratching my head as to why it was even happening. Like what was the gain or loss if the Keepers won or lost the fight they were in?
The characters are still pretty one dimensional and still wonder why I am supposed to care about some of them and the circumstances they find themselves in. If I am being honest, I'm glad that there is only one more book in this series so I can finally say I finished it.
This series had so much potential, but sadly Pearson has given it a sloppy execution through each book. The first book; Disney After Dark, was good enough to be a standalone story but at this point the story feels so contrived and all the plot devices feel like they have been used and every book past the second one could have been condensed to roughly 100-150 pages instead of having each one 300pgs+. It's time to send this series out to pasture.
October 28, 2018
The Kingdom Keepers continue to find themselves in deeper and deeper challenges as they attempt to unwind the mysteries behind the stonecutter's quill and the involvement/development of the Overtakers. Finn, Charlene, Maybeck, and Philby are finding themselves constantly being monitored and vigilant for danger as they navigate the Disneyland of July 1955. The presence of Wayne and his return as a young man is both nostalgic and sad, knowing his ultimate fate and finding out more and more behind his development of the DHIs and his purpose in protecting the park at all costs. As a reader of the Kingdom Keeper series from the very beginning of their exploits in their middle school years, I am moved to see their growth through the yers and the increased complexity of their situations and relationships with one another. Heartbreaking reminders of those lost are brought back in this installment, reminding readers of the Kingdom Keepers series exactly what sacrifices have been made in the quest to keep the parks from being overthrown by the Overtakers. In addition, I am appreciating seeing just how the emotional sensibilities of early employees with Disney are fomenting to create the premises behind how the OTs come into being. I am finding myself both relieved to be coming upon the third and final installment of The Return, but also finding it bittersweet to come to the final book in the Kingdom Keepers series (10 in total, 12 if including The Fairlies novellas). I feel that, while this book was similarly left on a cliffhanger, I'm sure that Pearson will do well by these characters in wrapping up their individual stories and watching them move on past these roles.
March 10, 2018
Thankfully I read the books in the following order: KK 7, The Return Book 1, KK 7.5, and then The Return Book 2. I was thoroughly confused after KK 7.5 and how the Kingdom Keepers returned to the present, but thankfully The Return Book 2 provided an explanation. As I mentioned before, KK 7.5 was a letdown for me. I hadn’t had high hopes for The Return series based on reviews I had read and how the series was dragging on unnaturally wrong. I was surprised how much I love The Return series, perhaps even better than the original series. This second book was a thrill ride from start to finish. It is such an adventure going back in time to 1955 with the Kingdom Keepers to see Disneyland when it first opened and meet the Disneys. Absolutely loved this book. At the end, when Amanda and Finn FINALLY reunited, I was SO HAPPY!!!! This book included a map of Disneyland in 1955 and Burbank in 1955 to reference as I read the book. This was definitely an extra treat and helped to get a visual of exactly what was happening. There was still a bit of editing that needed to be done. Overall, this book was amazing and spoke to the Disney nerd in me. I’m glad I have the third and final book to bid the Kingdom Keepers farewell...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 25, 2021
I have mixed feelings. Overall, it's a good book and I enjoyed reading about the continued adventures of the keepers. They add time travel to this series of 3 books which somehow made the stakes seem lower for me, but they did keep the mechanics of the time travel simple in a way that doesn't make it confusing trying to figure out it's done. It's basically they time travelled by doing this and we aren't really going to go into it much more, it happened and we're moving on, which I appreciate. The reason they time travel makes sense and is an easy plot line to follow but then they add another layer to it that tries to get explained in an unravelling mystery by the people still in the present and it's just hard to follow. But we do get to meet some new characters which is nice.
The other thing is that this along with the past 3 or 4 books have ended in cliffhangers, which can be a good and a bad thing. It's nice that all the books connect and flow with each other, but it can also be hard to see them as separate works and they don't stand alone as well.
Would recommend?
If you have read the previous Kingdom Keepers, and/or enjoy time travelling plots then yes
The other thing is that this along with the past 3 or 4 books have ended in cliffhangers, which can be a good and a bad thing. It's nice that all the books connect and flow with each other, but it can also be hard to see them as separate works and they don't stand alone as well.
Would recommend?
If you have read the previous Kingdom Keepers, and/or enjoy time travelling plots then yes
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 11, 2018
This is the penultimate book in the "Kingdom Keepers" series, in which we come closer to putting the whole mystery together.
The five Keepers are still trapped in the past, a few days after Disneyland's opening, while the Fairlies try to evade real-life bad guys who are connected to their past in the quasi-governmental research facility they still call Barracks 14. With the help of an Imagineer, Joe, they're coming closer to rescuing their friends ... who are also working on coming home in their own time with the help of 19-year-old Wayne Kresky. Wayne, in the Keepers' own time, was a Disney Legend who helped them battle the Overtakers -- Disney villains come to life.
This has been an entertaining little series full of treats, history, and fun for Disney fans. I'm now reading the final book and will be sorry to see it end.
The five Keepers are still trapped in the past, a few days after Disneyland's opening, while the Fairlies try to evade real-life bad guys who are connected to their past in the quasi-governmental research facility they still call Barracks 14. With the help of an Imagineer, Joe, they're coming closer to rescuing their friends ... who are also working on coming home in their own time with the help of 19-year-old Wayne Kresky. Wayne, in the Keepers' own time, was a Disney Legend who helped them battle the Overtakers -- Disney villains come to life.
This has been an entertaining little series full of treats, history, and fun for Disney fans. I'm now reading the final book and will be sorry to see it end.
July 23, 2019
Upon receiving a cryptic message from their old (and now-deceased) friend Wayne, the Kingdom Keepers travel into the past, to the opening day of Disneyland in 1955. There, they try to prevent the sequence of events which resulted in the "birth" of the Overtakers. But if there are no Overtakers, then there is no need for the Kingdom Keepers ever to exist ...
I found a few errors in the Hardcover text: Page 8, Finn, whose boyish charm had matured into an intriguing forbearance. / (As it stands, this is an incomplete sentence. Suggestion:) FINN'S boyish charm had matured into an intriguing forbearance. ; 83, Tim had previously snuck into / previously SNEAKED into ; 317, Maybeck what did you find? / Maybeck, what did ; 335, You're sure you can you do this / sure you can do this (omit "you" after "can") ; 340, to try and open it / try TO open.
I found a few errors in the Hardcover text: Page 8, Finn, whose boyish charm had matured into an intriguing forbearance. / (As it stands, this is an incomplete sentence. Suggestion:) FINN'S boyish charm had matured into an intriguing forbearance. ; 83, Tim had previously snuck into / previously SNEAKED into ; 317, Maybeck what did you find? / Maybeck, what did ; 335, You're sure you can you do this / sure you can do this (omit "you" after "can") ; 340, to try and open it / try TO open.
December 29, 2024
Really good book! The romances are annoying me right now, but as always the dialogue and clues are just so amazing! I actually solved one of them myself which was a TON of fun but made it painful to endure the Keepers trying to figure it out when I knew the answer! I read it all in one day, one sitting only interrupted by taking my pup out and taking to my brother about it- I wish he’d read it. As sequel (or prequel?) series go, I think this is a great one! I’m not planning to read Kingdom Keepers Inheritance because it is about the children and I took a risk when I started this- reboots or sequel series just never seem to do as good. But this one really does! (My apologies to those who love KK Inheritance- I’m sure it’s a great series just not my cup of tea) I can’t wait to start the last book! I ❤️ the Kingdom Keepers!
May 23, 2023
I've had a "love" "hate" relationship with Ridley Pearson . . . W--A--Y back with his collaboration with Dave Barry on "Peter and the Star Catchers". What an author. Just when you think you're following all the clues, and have a possible resolution to the characters and plot . . . . . . . . BAM . . . Going to read book 3 . . . and beyond.
This is my first review of a Ridley Pearson book. Like the Beatles song says, "I don't know why, nobody told you, how to unfold your love. I don't know how . . . someone controlled you, they bought and sold you." I was "sold" on Ridley Pearson with the first paragraph of "Peter & the Star Catchers".
Absolutely LOVE the intrigue in ALL his series. Mr. Pearson's "Risk Agent" and "Walt Flemings" series are equally engaging (PG13+ - in my opinion)
This is my first review of a Ridley Pearson book. Like the Beatles song says, "I don't know why, nobody told you, how to unfold your love. I don't know how . . . someone controlled you, they bought and sold you." I was "sold" on Ridley Pearson with the first paragraph of "Peter & the Star Catchers".
Absolutely LOVE the intrigue in ALL his series. Mr. Pearson's "Risk Agent" and "Walt Flemings" series are equally engaging (PG13+ - in my opinion)
February 23, 2019
The five Kingdom Keepers travel on "Jingles", the time-traveling carousel horse and they travel to 1995, when the Disneyland Park is first opening.They meet a younger Wayne Kresky and an alive, Walt Disney. Together, the five kingdom keepers find out about a person who wants to make Walt Disney a fraud. Meanwhile, Amanda and Jess find out more about the "Legacy of Secrets" with help from Nick, Emily, and Tim. In the middle of this chase, the kingdom keepers travel back in time to find out who wants to frame Walt Disney and stop him, one and for all.
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