Kingdom Keepers II: Disney at Dawn (The Kingdom Keepers) [Paperback]

Ridley Pearson (Author), Tristan Elwell (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: The Kingdom Keepers

It's supposed to be a happy day at the Magic Kingdom—the return of the teenaged holographic hosts. But things go very wrong when a sudden lightning storm disrupts the celebration, and Amanda's mysterious sister, Jez, disappears. The only clue is the sighting of a wild monkey in the Magic Kingdom during the storm. The mystery deepens as Finn is contacted by Wayne, an old man he hasn't heard from in months. Wayne tells Finn that there's trouble at the Animal Kingdom: the evil Overtakers have gained control of one of the computer servers that will be used to operate Daylight Holographic Imaging there. That means that if any of the holographic hosts fall asleep, they will go into comas—permanently.

Filled with action and brimming with the same meticulous detail as The Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark, this second book in the series—The Rise of Chernabog—is the result of hands-on research behind the scenes at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park. Young and older readers alike will get a glimpse into a second Disney kingdom. The wild rides have only just begun; and the clock is ticking. How long can the teens keep themselves awake in their quest to find their friend—and what happens if they fail?

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

In this sequel to The Kingdom Keepers: Disney after Dark (2005), Disney World is again in danger. The five Kingdom Keepers must battle Maleficent and the Overtakers, who threaten to capture them while they sleep, so the kids must stay awake from the beginning of the battle to its end. Can they do it, or will the urge to sleep be too intense? Lane uses perfectly timed dramatic pauses to build on the suspense-filled story. A number of characters speak with accents (British and African American), and Lane’s interpretations are authentic sounding and crisp. Upbeat music begins and ends each disc. Kids who loved the first title (also available from Brilliance) won’t be disappointed. Grades 5-8. --Anna Rich --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Ridley Pearson is the award-winning coauthor, along with Dave Barry, of Peter and the Starcatchers, Peter and the Shadow Thieves, Peter and the Secret of Rundoon, Peter and Sword of Mercy, Escape from the Carnivale, Cave of the Dark Wind, Blood Tide, and Science Fair. He has also written more than twenty best-selling crime novels, inlcuding Killer View and Killer Weekend, and the young adult fantasies Kingdom Keepers-Disney After Dark, Kingdom Keepers II-Disney at Dawn, and Kingdom Keepers III-Disney in Shadow. He was the first American to be awarded the Raymond Chandler/Fulbright Fellowship in Detective Fiction at Oxford University.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion Book CH; Reprint edition (August 25, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 142310708X
• ISBN-13: 978-1423107088
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #15,479 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #43 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Literature > Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery & Horror > Mysteries, Espionage, & Detectives
  • #52 in Books > Children's Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction
  • #55 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction > General

More About the Author

Ridley Pearson (www.ridleypearson.com), the first American to be awarded the Raymond Chandler/Fulbright Fellowship in Detective Fiction at Wadham College, Oxford University, is the bestselling author of over 35 novels including, Peter And the Starcatchers (co-written with Dave Barry), the young adult novel, The Kingdom Keepers, and two dozen crime novels including: Probable Cause, Beyond Recognition and Killer Weekend (July 2007). His novel The Diary Of Ellen Rimbauer, a prequel to a Stephen King miniseries, was a New York Times #1 bestseller, as was Peter and the Shadow Thieves (#1 for 6 weeks). Ridley adapted The Diary Of Ellen Rimbaurer for ABC Television; it aired in 2003.

Peter and the Starcatchers is to open as a stage play, off-Broadway in March 2011, under Disney Theatrical.

Ridley is a founding member of, and plays bass guitar in, the all-author rock band, The Rockbottom Remainders (www.rockbottomremainders.com), with Dave Barry, Stephen King, Scott Turow, Mitch Albom, Amy Tan and Greg Iles. The band has raised over 2.5 million dollars for charities over its 18 year history.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fun Read for Disney Fans and Cast Members Alike, September 4, 2008

By 

D. Graebner "Theme Park Junky" (Orlando, FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kingdom Keepers II: Disney At Dawn (Hardcover)

Having been a Disney cast member for many years, I read Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark, and now it's sequel Kingdom Keepers II: Disney at Dawn with great interest. Both offer a fun read for kids and adults alike. With "Disney at Dawn," author Ridley Pearson has continued his story of the Kingdom Keepers, a group of school children who originally modeled for the fictional holographic Interactive Host Program at Disney's Magic Kingdom but who now find themselves the unofficial protectors of Disney. In the original story, the kids are magically transported into the Magic Kingdom at night while they're asleep. Their mission - to find out who is behind the mysterious goings on in the park after dark. Animatronic figures are roaming the parks and Disney characters have come alive, including the villians. Now, in the sequel, the kids again find themselves in the park; this time in Disney's Animal Kingdom. They must delve deeper into the mystery of the Overtakers, to find out which super villian is really in charge and what horrible scheme the villians have in mind. Fans of Disney, especially cast members past and present, will enjoy the refereneces to familiar locations and settings. Sure, there are some glaring errors (Ridley, it's Fantasmic, not the fantasmics) and some lesser errors that only cast members will appreciate (there are some interesting assumptions concerning ride operation and cast member IDs for example) but it is a work of fiction, so those mistakes offer an additional element of interest for those of us who work in the industry. I strongly recommend this series as a wonderful read for all ages. With page-turning actions, humorous dialogue, and engaging characters, it's a fun addition to any library!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great Prequel, Not So Great Sequel, June 8, 2009

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Kingdom Keepers II: Disney At Dawn (Hardcover)

The first book, Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark, was a great book. Perfectly done, great story, cool characters, and awesome idea. Disney at Dawn takes the first one, and recycles the idea. Now the story is a lot grimmer in many ways and not nearly as amazing. However, Kingdom Keepers 2 keeps that charm that makes the first one so great. The ideas are a little stupid (such as everything depending on a virtual sword fight), we only get to see one new Overtaker(Chernabog) along with the silly return of Malificent, and the thing about the rides coming to life is taken away. Plus, the Animal Kingdom has replaced the Magic Kingdom as the main part of the story. Also, the whole story takes place in one day and they are not holograms and there is an annoying cliffhanger ending where nothing gets resolved. This book is worth reading once if your Kingdom Keeper fan or not, but there are far better books out there.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A dissapointing sequel, November 30, 2008

By 

Ian rodriguez (new york, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kingdom Keepers II: Disney At Dawn (Hardcover)

The first kingdom keepers was great. I found it to be stimulating, engaging, funny and interesting. The development of characters was strong, the dialogue stimulating yet at the same time easy, while the plot was interesting and mysterious. The characters were likable and the book itself had a sense of magic

The second book is lacking in the development of all characters (except Finn) and the dialogue is much less humorous then before. The plot was engaging yet one sided, once again, centering on one villain (Maleficent) and her animatronics and holographic flunkies. The plot is slightly laughable considering how Chernabog emerges from a 15 ft tall yeti robot, when in Fantasia he was a towering demon that emerged from a Volcano. I also found the lack of villains dull, as the author had many to choose from, especially from animal kingdom (scar, shere khan, and kaa being among them.)With only a minor reference to Captain Hook, and a brief appearance by Chernabog, the villains are incredibly lacking despite the huge amount of stock the author has to choose from. And my last problem with the book is that it didn't clarify any questions from the first book and those that it did, left more questions then before. It was a fun read but disappointing compared to the first novel.