The Perilous Sea

by Sherry Thomas Narrated by Philip Battley

Overview

Iolanthe and Titus continue their mission to defeat the Bane in this striking sequel to The Burning Sky-perfect for fans of Cinda Williams Chima and Kristin Cashore-which Publishers Weekly called ""a wonderfully satisfying magical saga"" in a starred review and Kirkus Reviews said ""bids fair to be the next big epic fantasy success.""

After spending the summer away from each other, Titus and Iolanthe (still disguised as Archer Fairfax) are eager to return to Eton College to resume their training to fight the Bane. Although no longer bound to Titus by blood oath, Iolanthe is more committed than ever to fulfilling her destiny-especially with the agents of Atlantis quickly closing in.

Soon after arriving at school, though, Titus makes a shocking discovery, one that throws into question everything he believed about their mission. Faced with this revelation, Iolanthe struggles to come to terms with her new role, while Titus must choose between following his mother's prophecies-or forging a divergent path to an unknowable future.

Editorial Reviews

Booklist

Thomas mixes her coexisting worlds—Victorian England and a parallel magical Realm—with skill, and the romance bubbles with witty banter and elaborate declarations of love. It’s theatrical but satisfying.

Kirkus Reviews

2014-06-18
The second entry in a grand epic fantasy tackles the dilemma of “[h]ow to stop being the Chosen One.”A girl and boy awake in the middle of the Sahara Desert, injured and bereft of memory but wielding awe-inspiring magic; they reluctantly join forces to elude capture by the Atlantean tyrant. Weeks earlier, in a parallel narrative, Prince Titus and Iolanthe Seabourne, aka Archer Fairfax, return to Eton College in a “nonmage” Victorian England, preparing to hone Iolanthe’s elemental powers to destroy the Bane. Their partnership falls apart when a dramatic revelation completely overturns the meaning of the prophecy that guides their plans. This sophomore outing offers more unexpected twists, spectacular magic, witty banter, hairsbreadth escapes, star-crossed romance, angst-ridden choices—more of everything except significant plot advancement. While the previous volume established the complicated geopolitics and various magical systems, Thomas’ ravishing prose now delves deeper into the tortured, bittersweet relationship between Iolanthe and Titus and (to a lesser degree) their school chums. For all their gifts and responsibilities, they are still just 17, prone to all the moodiness, melodrama and occasional magnificence that adolescence entails. Themes of identity and memory, destiny and choice tie together the two stories, told in alternating chapters with ubiquitous cliffhangers. When the storylines finally intersect, the resolution is so abrupt as to be almost anticlimactic; but the dramatic, defiant conclusion will stoke anticipation for the next volume.With all the strengths and failings alike of the first book, only ever-so-much more so, this aims directly at its fans and will not likely pick up new ones. (Fantasy. 12 & up)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170267491
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	09/16/2014
Series:	Elemental Trilogy Series , #2
Edition description:	Unabridged

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