Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. *This post may contain spoilers*
Cassandra Clare’s writing is always such a comfort and after reading her books for years stepping back into her fictional worlds is always so easy! I was hooked from the start and was racing through The Ragpicker King as soon as I got my hands a copy.
The Ragpicker King is the stunning sequel to Sword Catcher and is set to be published 4 March 2025. Set in a world of political friction, classism and magic that threatens the walls of Castellane and Prince Conor and his Sword Catcher and bodyguard Kel. Together they walk very different lives, one destined to rule while the other destined to die protecting the royal blood line. This book is set fairly recent to the events of the Shining Gallery massacre that dominated the last pages of Sword Catcher. Kel along with the Ragpicker King’s employees Merren, Jin-An and Jerrod as they investigate who is trying to sabotage the House of Aurelian and wage a war of a catastrophic impact.
The pace in The Ragpicker King is much quicker than the first book and starts fairly quickly after the events of Sword Catcher. I loved the scenes where Kel, Jin-An and Merren are working together and how well developed and distinct their personalities are and how well they bounce off each other. I couldn’t get enough of the action scenes and how each character has deeper layers to their motivations and their personas. Their loyalty to the Ragpicker King is really interesting and how despite being criminals, they treat each with respect like a twisted family. This situation also adds a strain on who Kel can trust in the palace by creating a lot of tension between him and Conor. This is all while Kel has Conor’s protection in mind. This makes the events at the end of the book even more gut-wrenching. Kel is constantly on this tight-rope between telling lies to protect Conor and completely alienating him instead. The relationship between these two characters who are almost like brothers is really complex and ultimately leads to an internal fight between Conor and him protecting Castellane. Conor is torn between being seen as weak or pushing away the one person he thought he could always rely on.
I love the idea of Kel as Conor’s Sword Catcher and bodyguard and how he balances keeping Conor safe but also his work with the Ragpicker King. There are moments where he is seen straining with all these secrets which made him more human, especially as he isn’t allowed a life that isn’t Conor’s shadow. I love his interactions with Antonetta and his conflicted feelings for her. Antonetta is really well written as this weak and often overlooked character and I loved learning more about her personality. Conor also grew on me a lot in this book and how he is both ruthless and extremely dedicated to looking after Castellane. I wasn’t as invested in Conor and Lin’s relationship as much as I was Kel and the Ragpicker King gang. That being said, Lin is really interesting with her desire to cure her friend and claiming to be the goddess that causes this backlash of being trialed with the fear of exile if she is found unworthy of goddess status. I really enjoyed the tension between Conor and Lin and the forbidden love between a commoner and royalty and how her unwavering need to cure and care for her patients drives her loyalty to Conor above her romantic feelings. The way that the King’s mystery illness weaves into the overarching plot was clever and I am intrigued how the stolen magic will impact Conor as the King’s heir going forward.
As with any Clare book, all the detailed and rich world building of Sword Catcher is expertly picked away to reveal another layer of political intrigue, class and status with an unusual magic system. I loved the multiple point of views of different characters which helped created a dynamic narrative of what was happened and the emotional stakes and motivations throughout the story. This changing point of view was constantly keeping me hooked trying to piece together what was happening. I did find the political aspects a little slow in places to understand, but that being said everything threaded together at the end which made for a really unexpected plot twist. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series – this book has set the scene perfectly for what I expect the rest of the series to be jaw dropping!
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Amy is a writer and reviewer and is currently querying literary agents with her debut fantasy novel inspired by the magic and adventure of Pirates of the Caribbean and grandeur of Bridgerton. For more content click here to read book reviews, short stories and updates on Amy’s writing journey.
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