Green Rider Series – Kristen Britain

Title: 1-Green Rider, 2-First Rider’s Call, 3-High King’s Tomb, 4-Blackveil, 5-Mirror Sight, 6-Firebrand

Author: Kristen Britain

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: 1 (Green Rider): Karigan G’ladheon was running away from school. She was running for fear of punishment for fighting with another student. While in the middle of the Green Cloak Forest, she met dying F’rygan Cobblebay. F’rygan was a Green Rider, messengers for the king. He begs her to take his messages to the king. She accepts his promise, takes his horse, and starts towards the king’s castle. Not long after Karigan starts her journey, she is pursued by soldiers intent on killing her. As she continues on her way, Karigan realizes there are many strange things in the world. There are ghosts, and one in particular is following her. Her horse seems to know the way more than she does. She gets captured by Weapons, the king’s most elite and loyal soldiers and guards, who have loyalties elsewhere. Karigan barely escapes thanks to the ghost. More ghosts join him and propel Karigan into the king’s castle. She informs Captain Laren Mapstone of F’rygan’s fate. While Karigan rests and recovers, she learns that the letters she carried were of a plot to overthrow the king. Will anyone believe the letters? Will there be a call to action? Will there be enough time? Can Karigan and her new friends save the kingdom?

2 (First Rider’s Call): With the kingdom safe for the moment, Karigan returned to finish school. She wanted nothing to do with Green RidersNot long after she returns, she finds herself riding into town in nothing but her nightgown. Karigan gives up and returns to join the Green Riders. While at the castle, she realizes that magic has become unpredictable, unreliable. Green Rider’s abilities have gone haywire. Blackveil, where dark magic is contained, has a breech in its wall. Its dark magic is seeping into Sacoridia. The breech is growing larger every day. Many are sent to see if the breech can be fixed. All the while, Karigan is being visited by Lil Ambriodhe, the first Green Rider. Captain Mapstone has been in hiding in her room and refusing to come out. The mythical Elitians have made themselves known. What does Lil want? Its Lil there to help? What do the Elitians want? Can they help? Can the breech be fixed? Will magic be contained again? What can be done about the breech and the magic escaping?

3 (High King’s Tomb): A new threat has made itself known in Sacoridia. Mornhaven the Black was responsible for the breech in the wall. Thankfully, Karigan pulled him into the future with the help of Lil Ambriodhe. But now another threat is growing. The descendants of the Acrosia empire, who once tried to take over and rule Sacoridia, are now showing themselves. They call themselves the Second Empire. Over the years they’ve embedded themselves in Sacoridian society. Where they’ve placed themselves, no one is certain. The king sent Karigan on an errand to deliver a message to the Lord of Mirwell, find any source of magic book or scroll, and buy new Green Rider horses. While on her errand, she has Fergal, a Green Rider trainee, with her. He is brash, irresponsible, and rubs Karigan the wrong way. Slowly, they open to each other. While buying horses, Karigan sees the death god’s horse. Karigan and Fergal receive a letter about a rendezvous point near Mirwell. They see that the future queen, the king’s fiancé, has been taken hostage. Karigan thinks of a plan that can save the future queen. While saving the queen, she learns of another plot to take over the kingdom. Will Karigan save the queen in time? Will the plot be stopped? Will the Second Empire be stopped?

4 (Blackveil): The Elitians have shown themselves again. They want to go into Blackveil to see what remains of their ruined kingdom and city of Argnthyne. Their king wants to make a joint mission to go with the Sacoridians. The king accepts. They have until the spring equinox to arrive at the breech of Blackveil. Captain Mapstone and the king want some of the members of the Sacoridian team to be Green Riders. Karigan is asked to go. Two other Green Riders join, as well as three soldiers. The night before they leave, Karigan is asked to go to a royal ball. While there, Karigan looks into a looking mask a gymnast was wearing. She sees a vision of the future. How true is the vision? The next morning, the leave for Blackveil. They arrive the night before the spring equinox. The Elitians arrive the morning of. All of them are nervous. Almost immediately, the dangers of Blackveil make themselves known. The further they travel, the greater the dangers become. Unbeknownst to the group, another group is also traveling to Argnthyne with a darker purpose. Both groups wish to find the Sleepers, ancient Elitians who took an eternal sleep. Karigan’s group wishes to save them them. The other group wishes to use them for their dark purposes. Who will arrive at Argnthyne first? Will Argnthyne still be there? What will become of the sleepers? Will everyone be able to escape?

5 (Mirror Sight): Karigan was thrown into a new world after the events of Blackveil. She shattered the looking glass and everything went black. She woke up and was pulled from a coffin at a circus. She runs away into an unfamiliar city. Karigan is captured and brought to a house. A few days later, she awakes from a drug induced sleep with a cast on her wrist and bandage on her leg. The head maid commands her to stay in her room to heal. Karigan rebels and is punished. Slowly, she finds little ways to rebel. She learns she’s been takin in my a professor of history and archeologist, and is his ‘niece’ for the time being. Over time, Karigan learns she was brought to the future. She is appalled at what she sees. The people have been taken over and suppressed by an emperor. She learns that the professor, her ‘uncle,’ is part of a resistance movement. His assistant, Cade, is also a part of the resistance. In exchange for information about the forbidden past, Karigan learns of what happened to her Sacoridia. Soon after, she asks to join the resistance. She helps to plan an attack on the new capital. Will the plan succeed? Will Karigan be able to return to the past? Or will she stay in the future?

6 (Firebrand): Karigan has returned to the past, to her Sacoridia. Its been months since the trip from Blackveil has returned, Karigan was declared missing, then presumed dead until she reappeared during a royal celebration. It took her some time to readjust to life and to heal. Too short of time after she healed, the king asked her to go on another mission. This time, she is asked to join the Elitians again and look for the p’hedrose, a moose, human centaur looking creature. Her friend, Estrel, asks to join to help look for her father. Everyone agrees to let her come. A few days before they leave, ice and snow creatures attack the castle. Their journey leads them north, near where the Second Empire are thought to be hiding for the winter. After Karigan, the Eleatian Enver, and Estral leave, the king begins to act strange. The now queen brings it up to Captain Mapstone. Together, the learn that the king has been replaced with another, an aureas slee, a creature of ice and snow, who assumed the form of the king. When aureas slee is ousted, he disappears, leaving the kingdom to look for the true king. The true king was taken tot the aureas slee’s lair. Thanks to some magical creatures, he escapes with others who were captured, but captured by the Second Empire. He becomes a slave and forced to dig a tunnel. To where, he has little idea. Karigan, Enver, and Estral have run into some problems. They have found some clues as to where Estral’s father is. Estral is desperate to find him and sneaks away. Karigan rushes after her friend. They find more clues, but not before they are captured by the Second Empire as well. Karigan and Estral are separated. Kerigan is tortured for information and Estral is forced to watch. Both are strong and give up no information. The girls learn that the Second Empire is trying to find a way into the hells. They seek to control the dark forces there. Will Karigan, Estral, and the king escape? Will the Second Empire succeed? Will someone find the king? Will there be a strong enough force to stop the Second Empire?

Rating: 3.5 – a good series, can’t wait for the next book (hopefully)

Opinion: This series was recommended by a friend of mine. As we enjoy a similar taste in books, I thought I’d give the series a try. I do agree with her in the fact that the books plod along for the first 3/4 of the book and really pick up in the last 1/4. But lots of interesting things happen in the book to keep you reading. With Green Rider, the main plot ended earlier than I thought it would. I kept reading because I was curious about the author would end it. Mirror Sight was the slowest of the books. But with the ending of Blackveil, I was intrigued for the first part, until I found out what I wanted to find out, then the plot started to drag until the last quarter. The fun thing about high fantasy books like theses, with all the made up names, you can say it however you want. My friend and I talked about the books often, we agreed about the pronunciation most of the time. Kristan Britain did a good job with the world building. There were compelling reasons for why things they way they were. Kristan did her research and provides explanations for how things came to be. The only thing I was miffed about was the relationship between Karigan and the king. Well that, and how the end of Mirror Sight worked. It’s one of the downsides of dealing with time travel. I haven’t read many books that have dealt with time travel, but this wasn’t the better ways to handle it, in my opinion. These books are good for those who love fantasy books. It has excellent use of magic and a highly developed world. Kristan is a highly descriptive author, which took me a little to get used to. I’d highly recommend this series for any fantasy lover.