Septimus Heap, Book Four: Queste [Paperback]

Angie Sage (Author), Mark Zug (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: June 23, 2009 | Age Range: 8 and up | Series: Septimus Heap (Book 4)

There's trouble at the Castle, and it's all because Merrin Meredith has returned with Darke plans for Septimus. More trouble awaits Septimus and Jenna in the form of Tertius Fume, the ghost of the very first Chief Hermetic Scribe, who is determined to send Septimus on a deadly Queste. But Septimus and Jenna have other plans—they are headed for the mysterious House of Foryx, a place where all Time meets and the place where they fervently hope they will be able to find Nicko and Snorri, who were trapped back in time in physik. But how will Septimus escape the Queste?

Queste, like all the books in the Septimus Heap series, is filled with nonstop action, humor, and fantastical adventure as Septimus continues his journey of Magykal self-discovery.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4–9—Fans of Septimus's previous adventures will welcome Sage's latest installment with an eagerness the book deserves. There are fearsome dealings afoot for 12-year-old Septimus Heap, and this time they begin with the foolish Darke Magyk of Merrin Meredith. When Merrin summons Things to do his bidding and aids a malevolent ghost of the first Chief Hermetic Scribe, the result sends Septimus on a Queste. No apprentice has ever survived such an ordeal, but the boy is determined to use this chance to find his brother Nicko, now trapped in time in a mysterious place called the House of Foryx. With his sister Jenna and friend Beetle by his side, he will either succeed in rescuing Nicko and his girlfriend or fall victim to a curse that has claimed too many others. Newcomers to Sage's world would do very well to read earlier books in this series before embarking on this latest title. Characters are almost overly abundant and many crop up in a chapter called "Endings and Beginnings" without making an appearance in the rest of the book. But fans looking for enjoyable characters, a well-paced plot, and the author's customary use of humor and verve will not be disappointed in this newest chapter in Septimus's life.—Elizabeth Bird, New York Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

The Septimus Heap series remains one of the best outcomes of the young-wizard furor catalyzed by Harry Potter. In Sage’s solid fourth outing, Septimus, Jenna, and Beetle hope to retrieve two characters trapped in the past, but discover too late that their rescue mission has inadvertently launched Septimus into the larger, feared Queste that shadows every apprentice’s destiny. The coincidence of the overlapping quests is a little hard to swallow, but everything else goes down easily thanks to vibrant storytelling and inventive flourishes. Grades 5-8. --Jennifer Mattson --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 624 pages
• Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books; Reprint edition (June 23, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060882093
• ISBN-13: 978-0060882099
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.6 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (93 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,682 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Angie Sage loves the sea, spooky old houses, and medieval England. Ms. Sage has created many books for children, including the Araminta Spookie series. You can visit her online at www.septimusheap.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Angie Sage loses her focus - but then recovers in the second half. May 28, 2008

By Joshua G. Feldman TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

I'm a big fan of the Septimus Heap books, and loved the 3 previous titles, Magyk, Flyte, and Physik (and gave them all 5 stars). These are all great books for kids - excellent action packed fantasy that is thrilling without being nightmare inducing. My son (2nd grader) devoured them all enthusiastically and his mother and I did as well. These might be well pitched for young readers but they are a great read for adults as well. The world of Septimus is a Tolkein-like medieval tech place brimming with mythical creatures and colorful monsters and lots of compelling magyk. The stories are classic good versus evil with stunning pace. The protagonists are awesome recognizable kids imbued with fabulous developing powers which never overshadow the fact that what drives them is their sense of friendship and human decency.

With Queste, the 4th in the series, Angie Sage has served up a continuation of the narrative, and takes Septimus, Jenna, and Beetle to some fabulous new places (The House of Foryx is just a flat out cool creation), but she deviates markedly from the pacing and drive of the previous titles. The first three books set up the central conflict immediately and then rush headlong into action. They burn brightly and then finish up with plenty of pages to go to allow a leisurely denouement. This one plods along without any passion or fire for more than 300 pages before the action gets going. We visit all the major characters and are treated to lots of Septimus world color, but the central crisis is centuries in the past and there is no life-or-death urgency at all until the drama of the "Gathering" kicks the plot into high gear - well after the middle of the book. Then the plot moves at headlong fashion (some really great situations and action with the Queste and more cool weirdness in the Sep world - lots of danger and suspense) until the very end of the book where it ends surprisingly abruptly. The crisis ends on literally the last page. There's a tiny bit of wrap up in the form of the usual character vignettes - but we are deprived of any narrative about our characters recover from their ordeal. We don't even get to know how they get home. I imagine Ms. Sage is saving that little complication for the start of book 5 - but I miss the healing run out at the end which I enjoyed with the previous 3 titles.

Look - if you've read the first 3 and love the Septimus series you are going to read this - if for no other reason than you'll need it before reading the 5th book when it comes out. If you stick with it you'll have a good time. However, I imagine a lot of kids will bail out before things get cooking after page 300. I wish Ms. Sage had kept with the previous pattern of action up front. I'll update this when my 2nd grader reads it. It will be interesting to get his perspective on this issue.

I have more issues with Queste than just the pacing. Tertius Fume is a colorful character - and a cool new addition to the roster of Septimus world folk. As a villain and prime plot mover, however, he is problematic. His motivation is a mystery - and is never revealed in this book. His mode of agency is bit questionable as well. I don't want to have spoilers in this review, but the titular plot element here requires a degree of magical authority on Fume's part that is not established in the narrative anywhere. I'll grant that the previous villains were fairly undeveloped characters too - but at least their motives and goals were clear (DomDaniel wanted the Castle and the Tower; Simon wanted to be Extraordinary Wizard; Queen Etheldredda wanted immortality and eternal rule). What does Fume want? Where is the evil plan? Merrin Meredith's tangential role is far more believable - and his adolescent rage is extremely realistic (and familiar to anyone who knows young teens). Too bad he didn't get to do much more than binge on candy and get the ball rolling.

I also have to complain about a couple of thug-like bouncers who show up at the climactic scenes and have a keystone-cop-like aspect. I feel they are out of place and detract from what should be a magical mysterious situation fraught with rather more transcendental perils than these bruisers.

I know I've said some harsh things - but I'll be the first to admit that I raced through this and couldn't put it down for the last 100 pages. I love the Septimus Heap series and I enjoyed this whole book - including languorous first half. I missed the action early on but I was really happy just to be back in Septimus' cool cool world. The last half was (mostly) Sage in fine form. I'd call it 3.5 stars overall. I'm looking forward to book 5 - I'm quite confident in Angie Sage and will bet there's lots of life left in this series.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Your first QUESTE is to read the other books May 19, 2008

By Amanda Richards HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is the fourth book in the Septimus Heap series, and also the biggest at 596 pages. The first three books, in order are:

Magyk
Flyte
Physik

In order to fully appreciate book four, I would recommend reading the three preceding books first, to make sure that you don't miss a thing.

The main character is Septimus Heap, the seventh son of a seventh son, apprenticed to the Extra-Ordinary Wizard, and always finding himself in the middle of perilous adventures. Septimus and his friends are usually found battling against DARKE magyk, and this book is no exception.

One of his enemies has returned, bringing the nasty old remains of the evil DomDaniel, and with it the DARKE magyk plus all the creepy things that come with the package.

But that's not all.

This fast-paced book also has Septimus, his adopted sister Princess Jenna and his friend Beetle trying to save his brother Nicko and his friend Snorri, who are trapped five hundred years in the past. While all this is going on, Septimus is tricked into embarking on a QUESTE, from which no apprentice has ever returned. With the help of the alchemist Marcellus Pye and restoration expert Ephaniah Grebe, the QUESTE leads them to the House of Foryx where all time meets.

Angie Sage has created a wonderful fantasy series for readers from around ten years old, and I'm looking forward to 2010, when the movie based on Magyk is due to be released.

Note: This book also includes one of those cute little CD-ROMs, and when you play it through your computer, you get a choice of eight "questing stones" leading to information and activities, as follows:

1. About Queste
2. About the Author
3. Ice Tunnel Sledding (a game)
4. Trading Cards for supporting characters Lucy Gringe, Ullr, Ephaniah Grebe, Tertius Fume and Boris Catchpole, with a link to the interactive website where you can find all the characters.
5. Spells for "Pure water" and "Darkening"
6. Tips for traveling to the House of Foryx
7. Top selling sweets at Ma Custard's All-Day-All-Night Sweet Shop
8. QUESTE screensaver for PC and MAC

Worth the money and then some

Amanda Richards, May 19, 2008

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Strong addition to the Septimus Heap series April 26, 2008

By J. A. O'Brien

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I started reading this series just after Magyk came out in paperback. As an adult reader of fantasy novels, I started broaden my horizons with well-written young adult fantasy. Magyk fell squarely in that category.

Angie Sage is a talented, and apparently very hard-working, author. This series has well written characters that she is interested in building on as she builds the series. Characters that were introduced in the first and second books keep coming back - the way you would expect to run across people more frequently in a relative small environment.

I have enjoyed this whole series. I have really appreciated that fact that some of the questions she left us with and the ends of the books - questions that truly reflect on the character of her characters are addressed in the subsequent novels. The 'kids' are growing and this growth is in their decisions and actions in the novels - as well as in the wonderful chapter illustrations (and collector's cards) by illustrator Mark Zug.

This is an exciting addition to the series. There is quite a bit of action in this novel - almost enough to warrant a second read to make sure you didn't miss any of the subtleties. Well worth picking up.

By the way, the hardback version of this book includes a mini CD with games, printable collector's cards and a link to the fun (and safe) Septimus Heap website.