Charlie Bone and the Hidden King

The Children of the Red King #5

by Jenny Nimmo

Charlie Bone and the Hidden King [Paperback] Nimmo, Jenny

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Fiction, Childrens, Magic, Adventure

366 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2006

About the author

Jenny Nimmo was born in Windsor, Berkshire, England and educated at boarding schools in Kent and Surrey from the age of six until the age of sixteen, when she ran away from school to become a drama student/assistant stage manager with Theater South East. She graduated and acted in repertory theater in various towns and cities: Eastbourne, Tunbridge Wells, Brighton, Hastings, and Bexhill.

She left Britain to teach English to three Italian boys in Almafi, Italy. On her return, she joined the BBC, first as a picture researcher, then as an assistant floor manager, studio manager (news) then finally a director/adaptor with Jackanory (a BBC storytelling program for children). She left BBC to marry a Welsh artist David Wynn Millward and went to live in Wales in her husband's family home. They live in a very old converted watermill, and the river is constantly threatening to break in, as it has done several times in the past, most dramatically on her youngest child's first birthday. During the summer they run a residential school of art, and she has to move her office, put down tools (type-writer and pencil, and don an apron and cook! They have three grown-up children, Myfawny, Ianto, and Gwenwyfar.

Reviews

[Lena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yesterday was one of those days. It was raining all day so my plans to hang out with my friend got cancelled and on top of that I had a terrible headache. So I decided to just give up on existing for a while and went to bed at 5 pm with this book.

And that was honestly the best decision I could have made, because this book saved the day for me.

You are looking for a cute middle grade series about a magical boarding school but don't want to reread Harry Potter for the tenth time? Then I have just the right books for you!
Because the Charlie Bone series is equally amazing and that is high praise coming from me because I am unironically that person that has read Harry Potter ten times.

This is book 5 of the series and I would definitely recommend reading them in order to get the full experience.

Charlie Bone and the Hidden King is the most hectic book yet, with a lot of different plots happening,

… from Charlie's mum falling for someone that is definitely not Charlie's father and may or may not be an evil wizard
… to Ben returning from Hong Kong only to find out that his dog Runnerbean is missing
… to a new girl, plus her whole family with magical powers showing up
… and to several new villains (including one very surprising one)

Sounds like a lot doesn’t it? But trust me that just makes it even more interesting.

The thing I also always love about the Charlie Bone books is how everything gets resolved in the end and especially how it feels like every single character plays their own unique part in achieving the eventual happy end.

This book probably has my favorite ending out of all of them too, you know, the kind of ending that simply puts a smile on your face.

I cannot wait to re-read the other books as well and this time I definitely won’t wait for a bad day because the Charlie Bone books are perfect for every mood.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm gradually losing patience with this series. I've ignored the fact that these kids go to a special school for the endowed even though there is absolutely no assistance given to the kids to learn how to best use their endowments; I've tried to overlook the fact that everyone knows about endowed people and yet no one ever wants to call the police or a doctor because supposedly no one would believe the situation; I've merely gritted my teeth as the children take on the world while most of the adults are too incompetent to help and too breezy about life to care; and I accept drawing out the seemingly needless mystery about Charlie's missing dad---but ever since the queen came back as a horse in the last book, I have been less willing to take a grain of salt with all this. With this installment I feel like the story just keeps getting more ridiculous.

[Kevin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alrighty, we are now entering the books that I haven't read yet... MY CHILDHOOD IS SOON TO BE COMPLETED...

PS - Now I know why I stopped at this one...

[last · Rating 4 out of 5]

in band 5 vom kindheits reread angekommen und ich glaube das ist mein Favorit, es war aber auch das erste was ich damals gelesen habe 🤷‍♀️ aber deutlich besser als die 4 davon gefühlt

[Anne Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Charlie Bone and the Hidden King back-to-back with Ian Irvine's Runcible Jones: Gate to Nowhere.

These two books are so stylistically similar they are not quite clones but certainly closer than cousins—literary half-siblings, perhaps.

Highly improbable plots with melodramatic overtones, landscapes partly Dickensian, partly Rowlingsian and partly golden age science fiction, character line-ups peopled by angst-ridden orphans, feisty female sidekicks and villains almost slapstick in their perfidy — these are wonderful romping tales, but as for the suspension of disbelief, there was never a hope it could be achieved. I’m not sure the authors were even seriously trying. I’m sure the reader was supposed to feel sorry for the plight of the respective heroes, but I kept wanting to join the bullies and hit them — just to knock some sense into their downtrodden psyches. Both books highly recommended, if you’re not looking for anything intellectually or emotionally satisfying.

[Fran · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a favorite series of mine. I discovered the audiobooks during my first couple years of homeschooling. And while the kids enjoyed the books, the audiobooks are a definite win for all of us. The stories are in a similar vein to Harry Potter, but dissimilar enough to make it fresh and different.

[Ashlie Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the fifth Charlie Bone, strange things are happening: a magical snow has appeared, all the animals have gone missing, Maisie is frozen, and Amy Bone has taken off her wedding ring. Charlie and his friends must find the king and capture his tears to set everything back to normal.

[Drebbles · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the fifth book in Jennie Nimmo's Children of the Red King series, odd things are happening in Charlie Bone's neighborhood. First there is an odd snowstorm and then all the animals disappear. Benjamin Brown, recently returned from Hong Kong, misses his dog Runner Bean and wants Charlie to help get the dog back. Charlie agrees, although he's upset that Benjamin's parents are working at Bloor Academy as spies. Charlie also has other problems. His grandmother Maisie has been frozen and he and his Uncle Paton are unable to break the spell. The Flames also warn Charlie that his mother is in danger, but it's impossible for him to watch over her while he's at school. Sure enough, Amy Bone meets the mysterious Hart Noble and begins to change. Charlie begins looking harder than ever for his missing father before his mother forgets him entirely. Charlie is going to need the help of all his friends, including new friend Naren Bloor, to make things right again.

"Charlie Bone and the Hidden King" was an okay book in an okay series. There are some nice fantasy elements such as Charlie's wand still helping him even though it's a moth and Naren's ability to do "shadow writing". The disappearance and reappearance of the animals is well done. Also interesting is how Charlie's power is growing and Manfred's development of a new power. Unfortunately, Nimmo doesn't use her own imagination enough and many elements in the book come across as Harry Potter rip-offs: there are other schools with endowed children (a dinner scene with head teachers from those schools is straight out of "The Goblet of Fire"); a map; the fact that Charlie has a wand; and there is a magic mirror. The book is awkwardly written and shifts from different the viewpoints of different characters instead of just Charlie's viewpoint. Nimmo often explains things in writing instead of showing readers through the actions of the characters. Many of the characters aren't well developed and when a teacher's secret is revealed it doesn't make the impact that it should since the teacher doesn't register as a character before that. The plot line of Benjamin's parents being spies comes to an abrupt and not very plausible end. While there is a major and quite well done twist at the end involving one of the children, the whole ending of the book feels rushed. Since this was supposed to be the last book in the series (there's another on the way), Nimmo wraps up most of the plot lines, but the plot line involving his father should have been much more developed and I found the end to that particular plot line rather flat.

Children will like "Charlie Bone and the Hidden King" and the entire Children of the Red King Series, but adults will want deeper reading.

[Kristi · Rating 5 out of 5]

That plot twist about Charlie's father was so unexpected, omg!

[Maddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I once again enjoyed the story as a whole, the book failed to improve from the last installment. I keep hanging onto this series because I'm hoping it'll improve but, so far, it has not. Nevertheless, I plan to continue to read the series and see what new stories unfold for the children of the red king!

[Furrawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book five of the series is as strong as the previous four books...

A shadow in green. An emerald. A tree that wears a crown. A frozen grandmother. Three cats of flame. A werewolf dances. And a silvery moth named Claerwen....

Wonderful❤️

Time for book six!

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Oh, my children!" sighed the king. And then he was gone.
But the tears flowed on, coursing down the furrowed trunk, red as blood.
Mathonwy stared at the tears in dismay. He tried to stem them with his wand, but on they flowed. So, summoning all the wit, the poetry and the magic that was in his soul, Mathonwy cast a spell. "One day, my friend", he said, "your children will come to find you, and oh, what a day that will be!"

*3.5

With this reading, I'm beginning to remember what I loved about this books... the magic, the friendship, the history, and all the fights against the evil forces.

[C.J. Milbrandt · Rating 5 out of 5]

At this point, there's very little I can say without spoilering early books in the series, and I do detest spoilers. Needless to say, new problems are multiplying nearly as quickly as old ones are settled. Feasts and faculty. Enchantments and eavesdropping. Bridges and Bloors. Missing animals and moonlight.

Already well into the next book!

[Jacob Castillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

long convicted joyride

Some of the best action and heartfelt moments help this book along. It feels like the longest and most convoluted of the series but great moments really do carry it. Paton is a badass and new powers and allies are introduced. A great villain truly makes your blood boil. And the ending so far is tied for best ending to a book in the series.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fifth book in the Charlie Bone series and they have grown on me. I loved how Charlie discovered what happened to the animals, and that he learned about the shadow in the portrait. I'm also so glad the sorcerer was not able to enchant his mother for too long, and that he finally found his father!

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book!

[Beth Polaski · Rating 5 out of 5]

The suspense! The plot twist of Charlie’s father! The evil carelessness of his family! I can’t believe I didn’t put it together sooner! Eager to order the remaining books from this series!

[Dinnu Reads Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am starting to like this series more and more, it's warm and dreamy! The characters make humanly mistakes but they learn and nice things tend to happen to nice people in the end! 😊

[Dow · Rating 3 out of 5]

this one is a bit all over the place but asaaaaaaaa!!!! i'm so happy he's finally coming around to the group. and the next book is all about him if i remember correctly!

[Ashley Meihls · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awwwww 💜

[Lauren Hamby · Rating 5 out of 5]

hands down the best book in this series (& one of two that I regularly re-read). always a treat!

[Jreads · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m very disappointed in this book, I can’t begin to tell you

Spoiler free review- most of the book was great, normal 4 stars then the ending popped out of nowhere and it was awful

-spoiler territory-
I’m going to tell you all the things I liked about this book first, the beginning was so promising (you start off the book with uncle Paton ofc it’ll be good) and pretty interesting, I loved the whole dinner party reveal I thought that was done perfectly and Benjamin’s finally back,

1) there was WAY too much going on in this book, you have the animals disappearing, the introduction of bartholamew, (idk if I spelt that right) maisie frozen, Charlie’s mom is bewitched, the shadow’s gone from the portrait, the dinner party, Julia’s book store on fire, the diaries, the browns are spying on the kids, the red king tree and circling stuff, and out of the blue, LYELL? Honestly the little paragraph abt what the book is abt only says a fraction of what’s here.

2) WHAT WAS LYELL’S REVEAL??? It was AWFUL the author literally just tacked it on at the end of the book! This has been building up for the past 5 books and they end it like this? Firstly, fidelio said that tally twelve bells was stolen, this should’ve been a key moment but NO Paton and company, rush up to mr pilgrim/Lyell with this magic potion thing that makes him better, also where did man Fred come from? He just showed up, broke the vial, and ran away but don’t worry, him breaking the vial is only bad for another 2 sentences because Lyell ends up consuming it anyway and now he can remember

It was such a bad ending that lasted like 4 pages for something that’s been building up in all these books, also they didn’t explain why they thought the kings tears would work they were just like “here’s a random vial, let’s give it to him!” It was really just awful storytelling, it’s like the author didn’t want to go over her 400 pages and just quickly wrote out the ending.

Now I want to tell you what I would’ve done and how I would’ve rewritten the ending,

Charlie reveals to his mother that he knows who his father is, maisie asks what they’re going to do about it and Charlie stands up dramatically and is like “we’re going to get my father back”
End of book 5, leave it on a clifffhanger

Book 6, to free Lyell from hypnotism they need to play the exact things he heard when he was hypnotized, since tally twelve bells has been stolen they have to orchestrate the exact same melody from that night, grandma bone has gotten wind of what they’re up to and warns manFred and all his cronies, they dismiss school for the week and lock up their doors, mr pilgrim can still hear from where he resides so it’s time for the big night

Fidelio is a big piece in this operation, he’s the conductor for them, (this is also good because Fidelio is always left out of the endowed and this can make him feel important) Gabriels’s playing the organ, everyone else in the group in music is also helping out (Billy raven, Charlie, etc) while the musicians are doing that, Olivia, Emma, Tancred and Lysander are trying to get into the academy, they’re breaking down the doors and have to take out dorcas, the twins, all those guys with the help of Paton and Mrs bone walking with them to reach Lyell, speaking of Lyell, of course they couldn’t replicate the sounds entirely since there are different people singing and not as many but it’s still just enough to help Lyell, he starts vaguely remembering his wife and Charlie and Lyell fights off the hypnotism himself then tries to reach his family downstairs, there’s an epic fight going on down there and they eventually get Lyell but manfred and his gang vow to get revenge, after playing, Charlie rushes down to meet his father and they see each other at the exact street corner where he was hypnotized, they embrace, do whatever else you want, and bam

THAT is a satisfactory ending, that’s what should’ve went down but instead we have kings tears Ex machina that fixes everything in 2 pages

The book was crammed enough all ready with all the stuff they put in, and that ending gave this book 2 stars

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A more exciting entry in the Charlie Bone series. New threats are introduced and the re-entry of Charlie’s dad should make for an interesting final three books. It can be a bit slow at times.

[G · Rating 3 out of 5]

The prologue is a big giveaway for the further events. I rather itkept at the later part of the story, so at least I could be 'surprised. Through his journey, Charlie slowly discovered his father's identity, which I wasn't surprised to find out who he was. Once he hinted that he knw his father, my mind became an auto-filter of the possibilities of all the characters, and I got it right. 'Naren' is also not Chinese nor Cantonese of sunflower.

Character development is still not efficient. Too many characters - even the protagonist, Charlie Bone has only one or two layers of character, plus such a common (and well liked and overused name)called Charlie, Charlie Bone has little identity to me. And same goes for Emma, Tanfred, Lysander, Benjamin(Ben is back! And what did he do in the book that was the most memorable to me? "Where is Runner-Bean(his dog taken under Charlie's care)?" ), Olivia (I was hoping her power could contribute to the main plot, but it just happens that it was just for doing silly little mocks, so much for the endowed child who makes peace in Bloors), Emma(I'm the worst, I always forget about her and her personality), Fidelio(I want a story dedicated to his life and the Gunns), etc.

There are significant ridiculous bits that I couldn't remember, but the one with Manfred irks me. In 'The Hidden King', Manfred can't hypnotise anymore, BUT. He can use fire. (Ooooh, burn!) How on Earth did he inherit the power of fire? Yeah, we all know Manfred is supposed to be feared, but doing this is too intentional and unrealistic.

HOWEVER, I enjoyed it. Sort of. Great advancement in plot. Some images are memorable in my head. Still can't get over Fidelio and the Gunn family's swag. Will not, and never will. xx

[Mapleleaf · Rating 2 out of 5]

One morning, Charlie wakes up to snow and no animals in sight - no dogs, cats, even birds! He begins to worry that Runner Bean, his friend Benjamin's dog, will not be found or returned before Benjamin returns from China. As always, Charlie and his friends work together to solve the mystery but it was a new friend Naren who leads the way. The animals, having felt the earth rumble, ran away to Naren's family home hidden away from the Bloors. Her father Bartholomew Bloor has turned his back on his family and their evil ways. However, when Naren leads him to her home to fetch some of the animals, especially Runner Bean, her father helped Charlie who promised never to reveal Naren's home or to return. The rumble that the animals felt was when someone unearthed a magic mirror that allowed the shadow in the Red King's portrait to travel to present time. The story weaves in the discovery of Charlie's father, Lyell Bone, who was disguised the whole time as Mr. Pilgrim. He was hypnotized by Manfred Bloor to forget his past including his wife Amy and son Charlie. The spell was eventually broken after Charlie and eleven other enchanted children gathered around the Red King tree and recited a spell as they circled three times. At last, Charlie has his family back together.
Series is much more exciting with Lyell's return.

[Bailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I say this for every review of this series, but I think this might be my favorite book. Thank goodness good ol bens back! Missed him. Give me more of Lysander and his parrot pleaaaase. They are my favorite. Olivia and her mom going under cover was the best scene Hahahah. But also Payton sprinting through the city to save his beloved Julia was another highlight. Every little look, hand squeeze, and kiss on the cheek with those two just kills me. I know I say this incessantly but I love the history and ancestry that we learn about in every book. Charlie and his dad made me bawl in this book. For being kid books, they really make you feel emotions. Oh my goodness this book is the most intense it has been at the end!! The battle with the enchanter!!! Awww! I love the team the endowed are! Iove all their powers and every single friend of Charlie’s for different reasons. Lysander is soooo swoony though. Book boyfriend of this series for sure. Ha. Man this book!! Oh my so many emotions at the end of this book. The reunion of his father and mother was so beautiful. Asa pikes redemption arc was the best. I CANT WAIT TO READ THE NEXT BOOK.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 4, 5, 6, and 7 of this Charlie Bone series gives the reader more of the slightly weird happenings with Charlie, his friends, his not-friends and the nasty aunts and kind uncle. Rather than writing a new plot review for each one, I'll lump them together. Readers can get vested in this series by hoping that Charlie will find his father and wanting to discover who The Red Knight is, and for those reasons, mainly, one is motivated to read the whole series. I liked them well enough to pull them out as a re-read (audiobook listen) when I found myself bereft of new things to read for a while.

I do not agree with reviewers that compare this series to Harry Potter, either favorably or as a poor competitor. Although there are some ideas that could be deemed parallels, I think this series has a character of its own. I think that young readers who like the stories with magic and clever youngsters would like this series and perhaps would like it better than HP.

My favorite character: Runner Bean, the neighbor boy's pet dog.

[Belle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think three stars is going to be a pretty consistent rating across all the books in this series, since they're not incredibly mind-blowing, and the writing itself can even be a bit messy at times and not fully fleshed out. BUT if I were to rate this against the other books in the series, I would definitely say this was one of the better books and was closer in quality to the first.

One thing I was especially pleased with by the end was Charlie reuniting with his father—FINALLY, considering it was stupid-obvious from the first book who Charlie's father was and it only took five books for him to figure it out!

Also, as if this doesn't need to be said enough: I love the Flame cats and I always will. They are precious, protective babies who are always there to save the day. 💛

[Rebekah · Rating 2 out of 5]

(For the people in the back: NAREN IS NOT SUNFLOWER IN ANY CHINESE DIALECT. What is it supposed to be, 那人?)

Nimmo's writing is at its laziest yet in the fifth installment of the Charlie Bone series (formally known as the Children Of The Red King series).

What makes this so painful to read is that the events described are brilliantly imagined. The story is a great children's fantasy but it's buried in schizophrenic narration. I mean, this would have been a 4-star book if only Nimmo had had an experienced reader (and maybe a UK-born Chinese person to tell her what's wrong with her Naren character) scrutinise it and provide feedback to refine her story before publication.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book five in the Charlie Bone series.

After an eerie warning by the flame cats, Charlie notices an ominous change in the picture of the Red King that hangs in Bloor's Academy. Soon all the animals disappear, Maisie freezes solid, and Amy begins to forget Lyell completely.

Charlie, with the help of his friends, not only finds the animals, but also some important clues that may finally reveal his father's whereabouts.