Customer Reviews

Drowned Wednesday (Keys to the Kingdom, Book 3)

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's hard to be Arthur Penhaligon. As if moving and being asthmatic wasn't bad enough, now he has had two nightmarish adventures, and dealt with the malevolent Morrow Days. In the third book of Garth Nix's dark fantasy series, "Drowned Wednesday," Nix spins his best story yet in this series.

Arthur and his pal Leaf are recuperating from the strange events of Monday and Tuesday... until suddenly the hospital is flooded. Leaf is abducted by a strange boat, and Arthur finds himself adrift on the Border Sea, on a hospital bed. After he's picked up by a shipful of friendly Salvagers, he finds that he's inadvertantly become the target for the malevolent pirate Feverfew, a mortal-turned-Denizen on a ship of bone.

He also encounters Drowned Wednesday, who has invited him to lunch. But unlike Grim Tuesday and Mister Monday, Wednesday needs his help, because she is cursed: she takes the form of a whale, and has a monstrous appetite. She's willing to give him the Key, but he has to deal with the malevolent Feverfew first, and rescue Leaf. Unfortunately to do that, he will have to take a rescue submarine to a seaport... which happens to be inside Wednesday's stomach.

For some reason, after the publication of "Grim Tuesday," the publishers decided to halt production and rerelease the two previous books in hardcover. As a result, "Drowned Wednesday" took forever to come out. Fortunately, it was worth the wait: as writing and characters go, "Drowned Wednesday" beats the second book and equals the first.

"Drowned Wednesday" more or less fits the mold of the previous novels: Arthur deals with the strange residents (rats and Denizens) of the various worlds, while trying to avoid being killed. It sounds grim, but Nix spices it up with plenty of humor, such as the stamp-collecting Salvager captain. One of the funniest moments has Arthur looking at a book about his adventures, which shows him as a buff action hero.

Fortunately, Nix keeps the story from getting formulaic by giving new twists to the story. Not only is it a seafaring tale, but he portrays the Morrow Day Wednesday as a victim, not a villain. Though Arthur is initially suspicious, it turns out that she's actually rather pitiful. And the final chapter of the book ends on an eerie cliffhanger involving the Skinless Boy.

The biggest change is in Arthur himself. In the previous two books, he was a reluctant hero. But now he is beginning to use the power of the Keys without worrying about it, and he is determined to deal with the other Morrow Days. Okay, he still worries a lot, but he's overcoming that; by the finale, he is much more comfortable as the Heir.

"Drowned Wednesday" equals "Mister Monday" for humorous dark-fantasy goodness. Here's hoping that "Sir Thursday" doesn't take long to get here.

The third book in Garth Nix's The Keys to the Kingdom series, while not as strong an entry as the first two, deepens the scope of hero Arthur's adventures while setting the stage for what promises to be a wild ride through the Upper House.

Drowned Wednesday is typical Nix, chock-full of more intriguing concepts, excellent writing, and real dilemmas than most writers produce in three books. Nevertheless, DW is not as tight a book as its predecessors Mister Monday and Grim Tuesday; Nix never builds up the level of suspense as high as he did in those two. Partly this is due to the nature of Arthur's involvement with Wednesday herself, but I won't say more for fear of spoiling the book. Suffice it to say that DW is much like Lirael in that, while a fine story, it does not have quite the narrative drive of its companions. This is probably to be expected, as Nix has said he had to throw out his first draft after he realized it was bad and started over again (hence the delay in its publishing).

Perhaps the most important feature of DW is the developments that take place within Arthur's psyche as he begins to take proactive rather than reactive action and begins to accept that he must do something, rather than waiting for his enemies to do things to him. By the end of Drowned Wednesday Arthur is determined to settle things with the masters of the Upper House once and for all, and he no longer flinches from using the tools (the Keys) available to him. Suffice it to say that I can't wait to find out what happens next. There are new developments with the Skinless Boy too, and Nix offers up enough information about the Morrow Days to leave us wondering what their game is, whether they are in league together and if so what their purpose is, and most of all what was Drowned Wednesday's exact relationship to them. Is Arthur being double- or triple-crossed? Only time will tell. I can't wait for Sir Thursday.

This book takes place in ships and on the Border Sea. Even if you don't like boating books, this also has a lot of magic and mystery. If you've read and liked Mister Monday and Grim Tuesday, don't stop now. This is the best book I've read all summer!

I believe that Garth nix has taken fatasy to a whole new level that no other author can top. This series isn't some book about some kid in our world gaining magical powers, defeating some bad guy and getting the girl(or guy). Oh no! this is an abstract story with twist and turns everywhere around the plot, characters, and this world full of dreamlike themes.

The story is like the first, meaning much better then the second. It has much more form and the antagonist can be labled much more firmly(the pirate). I am happy for the order, but i still love the strange feel to this book

I must tell yo that only if you have a very oppened mind can you read this book. Harry Potter and the Abhorsen series can be read by any fantasy reader, but this book involves free thought. Many laws and rules in both book adn in our world today are shattered into completly bizzare set of thereoies. But readers of both books will love it because of its action, suspense, and teen appeal(yes it is for a younger audience, but i am 15 and i know adults who can read it too)

this story's only flaw was Arthurs continually complaints or "why me, why me, why me?" alot of the book is wasted on it
the other is Arthurs intuition( ironically i was just writing about this on another review for teh ravenscliff series) He never guesses right!

i loved the story for introducing more people from our world to the morrow days world (leaf) and also the new plot twist at the end (skinless boy)

i reallllllllly want to read the fourth very soon

Garth Nix is an amazing writer. I think few can argue otherwise. This book is a wonderful addition to Nix's callibur of books. I do believe this book is a big rebound after the events of the very grim Tuesday. Yes that pun was intended. Remember, however, that this book is meant to be read by children aged 9-12, so in order to rate it correctly, I must first look through the eyes of the age. In doing so, this book is fantastic, and can only benefit today's youth. Well done Nix, and keep writing!

I have to be honest, I was disappointed with Grim Tuesday. It was too much like Monday, and for a while I thought Nix had lost his touch. I bought this book not knowing what to expect, and to my utter delight, I found this latest book to be new, inventive, and refreshing, as Arthur begins to realize more, and learns more of the house, the architect, and also of the will. There is a great twist in this book, a deviation from the regular plot of the first two books. It is a plot I had hoped Nix would use, and works well with the overall picture of the series. The plot certainly thickens in this third book. Make sure you pick it out from your bookstore. It's a keeper.

This book presents a bit of a change of pace from the first two. Instead of having to fight the holder of the Key for its possession, Lady Wednesday, or Drowned Wednesday as she's now known, would be happy to give both the Key and her portion of the Will to Arthur. The only problem is, the other Days tricked and trapped her thousands of years ago and she has no idea where the Will is hidden now.

And that's the challenge for Arthur, this time. He has to track down the Will and free it. In the process he's shipwrecked (well, bedwrecked would be a more accurate term), takes a trip on a submersible with the Piper's rats, and has to go up against pirates. Drowned Wednesday may be willing to hand over her Key, but that doesn't mean getting it or the Will is going to be any easier for Arthur. A ravenous whale, shipwrecks, pirates, storms, jumping between worlds, and this time Arthur doesn't have a trace of the power from either Monday or Tuesday's Keys to help him out. He's on his own.

The story is a good one, moving at a fast pace and building up good tension. Once again, though, I have a problem with Leaf. For once she's being included in the story, getting sucked into the House and then impressed as ship's boy on one of Wednesday's ships, but she's barely there. We only see glimpses of her on a couple occasions and she hardly has anything to do with the story itself. Even the part she plays at the end could easily have been done by another character, Suzy, for instance. I don't see why she was included here, but I really wish that she'd get a better part in the next few books.

On the good side of things, though, I liked that Arthur couldn't rely on his magic this time around, only on himself and how clever he could be in a given situation. I really liked that he realized at the end how in over his head he's gotten, how he can't possibly be that clever or lucky all the time. He has to carry at least one of the Keys now, otherwise the next time he and people he cares about could be killed.

Arthur's growing up, far faster than any kid should have too, definitely, but there's no choice for him here. At least he's willing to learn, though. He does spend too much time on the "why me?" in this book, but it seemed at the end that he'd gotten that out of his system. He knows what he has to do now and although he may not like it, he's determined to do it and not to be caught powerless the next time. Good for him. The next book promises to be very interesting indeed.

It is Wednesday, and Arthur Penhaligon is lying in a hospital bed with a broken leg and recovering from an unexpected asthma attack while anxiously awaiting for the day's events to unfold. He has defeated Grim Tuesday in the scary Pit and managed to prevent a global economic disaster. Now Arthur has been invited to a luncheon with Lady Wednesday. Arthur isn't quite sure he wants to know how he will get there.

When his friend Leaf visits his hospital room, she asks Arthur about the Scoucher and is curious to know about the weird events that have occurred since she met him. Arthur is hesitant at first, but decides it's safe to tell her the truth about his secret occupation. Leaf thinks it's neat that Arthur has exciting adventures, but when Arthur tries to explain that these adventures are not as exciting as she thinks they are, the next one suddenly begins. Arthur and Leaf are almost swept away as the hospital room starts to flood, and a ship called the Flying Mantis makes its grand entrance. Leaf is taken aboard the Flying Mantis while Arthur is accidentally left in the perilous sea.

It looks like this could be the end of the Rightful Heir, but then Arthur is rescued by the Moth, whose strange and humorous crew salvage across the Border Sea. This is just the beginning of a difficult quest where Arthur must find the Third Part of the Will and the Third Key, and now his friend Leaf. How he is going to complete his search will have him crossing paths with some dangerous thunderstorms; interesting seafaring creatures called Raised Rats; the infamous Lady Wednesday, who harbors a deadly secret; and a fearsome zombie pirate named Feverfew, who wants revenge against Arthur. Meanwhile, there's another new threat secretly biding its time in the Secondary Realms.

DROWNED WEDNESDAY is a thrilling high-seas adventure that is both suspenseful and humorous. This is the best book thus far in Garth Nix's Keys to the Kingdom series. The story reveals more of the mystery of the House throughout, and you are left to wonder whether or not Arthur and the worlds he knows of will continue to exist by Sunday. There will be no stopping readers from putting down this book!

--- Reviewed by Sarah Sawtelle

By now the formula to the "Keys to the Kingdom" series is in place - taking place over a week-long period (with each book chronicling a day) young Arthur Penhaligon travels into the mystical realm of "the House" in order to find seven pieces of a torn Will. This Will was destroyed by the personified Days of the Week (or the `Morrow Days'), each of whom embody one of the seven deadly sins. Arthur has already defeated Mister Monday's sloth and Grim Tuesday's greed, and now comes up against Drowned Wednesday's terrible gluttony. By doing this, Arthur hopes to bring order once more to the House, in accordance with the instructions left by the Architect (the world's Creator) in the Will she left behind.

There's a lot more to it than that, so I strongly suggest reading "Mister Monday" and "Grim Tuesday" before this one, as Garth Nix's storylines are rather complicated - though not so complicated that it's not accessible to young readers. Once more Nix brings fresh new ideas to the fantasy genre, as well as a twisting plot, colourful characters and a brave protagonist who has now decided to take matters into his own hands.

From his hospital bed Arthur is set adrift on a stormy sea, along with Leaf, his new friend from the previous books. He's back in the realm of the House, and has a luncheon meeting with Lady Wednesday before him - and given his experience with the other Morrow Days, he's not looking forward to it. Separated from Leaf, and marked out by the terrible pirate Feverfew, Arthur meets an array of more unusual characters - such as the suspicious Doctor Scamandros and the untrustworthy Raised Rats (the rats that were spirited away by the Pied Piper of Hamilton). Now he must find a way to rescue Leaf and attain the next part of the Will - but who can he really trust?

Once more Nix fills his books with allusions to myths, legends and other famous stories - here in particular he shows his regard for Herman Melville's "Moby Dick", and characters both old and new turn up to join in the adventure - in particular the irrepressible Suzy Turquoise Blue. Drowned Wednesday in particular gets a different treatment than the other Morrow Days, portrayed as a victim rather than an antagonist - the role of villain goes to the pirate Feverfew.

Unfortunately, `Drowned Wednesday' was not as enjoyable as the last two books - a sense of invention and magic was missing this time around, though there is still plenty to explore. The Border Seas were simply not as interesting to me as the previous settings; Arthur spends most of his time on ships and submarines - I either wanted to go back to the myriad of rooms of the House or onto the tantalising named and often-mentioned `Great Maze' and `Incomparable Gardens'.

Nix seems obsessed with giving poor Arthur as many injuries as possible (rest assured, had he been in the real world, he would not have survived all the gashes, broken limbs and asthma attacks he experiences here),and often tension is created through near-escapes and close encounters - nothing like the battles and competitions of the other books. "Drowned Wednesday" is therefore not quite as gripping as the previous instalments - but I can only be critical in comparison with other Nix books, since "Drowned Wednesday" is still much better than many other children's fantasy out there, and I`m eagerly awaiting "Sir Tuesday".

And does anyone else think that the name `Arthur Penhaligon' is a little too similar to `Arthur Pendragon' to be a coincidence?

It's hard to be Arthur Penhaligon. As if moving and being asthmatic wasn't bad enough, now he has had two nightmarish adventures, and dealt with the malevolent Morrow Days. In the third book of Garth Nix's dark fantasy series, "Drowned Wednesday," Nix spins his best story yet in this series.

Arthur and his pal Leaf are recuperating from the strange events of Monday and Tuesday... until suddenly the hospital is flooded. Leaf is abducted by a strange boat, and Arthur finds himself adrift on the Border Sea, on a hospital bed. After he's picked up by a shipful of friendly Salvagers, he finds that he's inadvertantly become the target for the malevolent pirate Feverfew, a mortal-turned-Denizen on a ship of bone.

He also encounters Drowned Wednesday, who has invited him to lunch. But unlike Grim Tuesday and Mister Monday, Wednesday needs his help, because she is cursed: she takes the form of a whale, and has a monstrous appetite. She's willing to give him the Key, but he has to deal with the malevolent Feverfew first, and rescue Leaf. Unfortunately to do that, he will have to take a rescue submarine to a seaport... which happens to be inside Wednesday's stomach.

For some reason, after the publication of "Grim Tuesday," the publishers decided to halt production and rerelease the two previous books in hardcover. As a result, "Drowned Wednesday" took forever to come out. Fortunately, it was worth the wait: as writing and characters go, "Drowned Wednesday" beats the second book and equals the first.

"Drowned Wednesday" more or less fits the mold of the previous novels: Arthur deals with the strange residents (rats and Denizens) of the various worlds, while trying to avoid being killed. It sounds grim, but Nix spices it up with plenty of humor, such as the stamp-collecting Salvager captain. One of the funniest moments has Arthur looking at a book about his adventures, which shows him as a buff action hero.

Fortunately, Nix keeps the story from getting formulaic by giving new twists to the story. Not only is it a seafaring tale, but he portrays the Morrow Day Wednesday as a victim, not a villain. Though Arthur is initially suspicious, it turns out that she's actually rather pitiful. And the final chapter of the book ends on an eerie cliffhanger involving the Skinless Boy.

The biggest change is in Arthur himself. In the previous two books, he was a reluctant hero. But now he is beginning to use the power of the Keys without worrying about it, and he is determined to deal with the other Morrow Days. Okay, he still worries a lot, but he's overcoming that; by the finale, he is much more comfortable as the Heir.

"Drowned Wednesday" equals "Mister Monday" for humorous dark-fantasy goodness -- with an extra helping of eccentric sailors and glowing ships.