Keeper of the Lost Cities: Lodestar - Shannon Messenger

Keeper of the Lost Cities: Lodestar by Shannon Messenger
Genre: Junior/Teen Fantasy

Blurb (on back of book): Sophie Foster is back in the Lost Cities—but the Lost Cities have changed. The threat of war hangs heavy over her glittering world. And the Neverseen are wreaking havoc wherever they can.
The lines between friend and enemy have also blurred, and Sophie is unsure exactly whom she can trust. But when she's warned that the people she loves most will be the next victims, she knows she has to act.
A mysterious symbol could be the key—if only she knew how to translate it. And each new clue reveals how far the dark schemes spread. The Black Swan aren't the only ones who have plans. The Neverseen have their own Initiative, and if Sophie doesn't stop it, they might finally have the ultimate means to control her.
In this heart-wrenching fifth book in the bestselling Keeper of the Lost Cities series, loyalties are pushed to the limit as the villains twist the game into something Sophie might not have the talent to win.

MY OPINION: *****

OK, I have to say something that I say repeatedly: THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING!

OK, I want to start with the spoilers first, but before I start, I want to say to all of you one thing. I am aiming this post towards the people who have finished the book already. It will be filled with spoilers. I will strike-through them, but that won't leave a lot for you to read if you haven't finished the book (unless you want to read the spoilers). Also, this post is also aimed towards people who have read and commented on Goodreads on this book. Lastly, if you have no plans to read this book, I would read the post! By all means, go for it!

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Sophitz is as good as sailed!

I don't know if this is actually a spoiler because, I guess, it is kind of obvious that Sophie would end up with most of them. But I will still cross it out anyways.

Sophitz was EVERYWHERE in this book! OK, first of all, I am totally going to start at her near-kiss with Fitz:

Page 666 (OH NO - IT'S THE BAD NUMBER! WHY??????)

"We could skip the talking...He was so close now, she could feel his breath warming her cheeks...He leaned a tiny bit closer and someone cleared his throat—very loudly..."

KEEFE!!!!!! WHY???? They were SO close!!!!! Keefe had to go and ruin everything. Again. Keefe, why do you have to do this to me?

This book brings out too much emotion from me. I was literally screaming at the book while reading :)

Also, this book is perfectly appropriate for kids, so no worries.

Anyways, there are LOTS of other Sophitz moments, but I only enclosed the best, and saved the rest for you to FIND!  PLEASE COMMENT IF YOU FIND ANY COOL SOPHITZ MOMENTS!

By the way, Sophitz is Sophie+Fitz, in case you didn't know :)

Now, on my way!

MR. FORKLE DIES!!!

NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! My life has ended! Why??? Mr. Forkle, the kind and clever Mr. Forkle (AKA Sir Astin, AKA Magnate Leto, etc). Also, why Gethen? Why did he have to be the one to do it? I just don't get it. The Black Swan, and Sophie, needs Mr. Forkle! He is like the heart of the group, and without the heart, the group DIES.

How I wish I could spoil freely!

Now I will talk with no spoilers.

Tam and Linh become much bigger characters in this book. Tam even accompanies Sophie and Fitz on capturing two of the Neverseen. *SIGH*. Spoilers are literally everywhere.

I feel like Sophitz's only competition is Fitz and Linh, and after reading this book, I feel like that will NEVER happen.

Fitz is old enough to get his Matchmaker's Scroll! But as much as I want that to happen, I'm glad he is going to wait at least 2 years. *COUGH* (SOPHIE HAS 2 MORE YEARS TO GO)! YAY!

Ok, enough Sophitz. Sorry for anyone who doesn't ship Sophie with Fitz. :(

More Spoilers...

Sophie becomes an Enhancer! Personally, I don't like the idea of her new ability. I mean, it doesn't really help her at all, unless she is with others, and even then, what if it is the bad guys? Also, I don't really like the idea of her adding a new ability.

Every time Sophie gets a new ability, I feel like that is going to change her in some way, and she will never be the same person again. I know that Shannon Messenger has a way to work it all out, but I'm always so afraid that her new ability will confuse the whole story.

Fitz is a HUGE character in this story. I just love all the Cognate training he does with Sophie! (*ARGHHH* NO MORE SOPHITZ). Sorry, can't help it :)

I also like how Shannon gives Dex an important role in the story. I don't really like Dex as much as Fitz or Keefe, but I am glad that Dex had a bigger character, because I always feel like Dex is left out a lot. I mean, other than the first book, he doesn't really accompany Sophie alone on any important missions, while basically all of the other team members have.

I can't say anything about Keefe (SPOILERS), but I will state that Keefe is still an amazing guy, despite his mistakes.

OOH, a little romance occurs with Sandor and Grizel. Sorry if you consider that a spoiler :)

So it does turn out that if you haven't read the book, you still have stuff to read. READ ON

This book had an amazing plot line. I started this series last year, maybe, and I still think it is amazing. The only problem is, as my reading matures, I feel like the context is a bit under my level. Then again, even though it doesn't help me grow my reading level, I can still enjoy a wonderful book, AND it takes less time to read!!!! So I guess it is a Win-Win situation.

I have to talk about the problems with the other species. I mean, although Shannon says that the elves hate violence, but it isn't really a book without any action. Shannon does do a great job of describing how the elves have many disagreements, and it sort of reminds me of the real world. Violence is going to be everywhere, and no matter how hard we avoid it, someone is going to start something. But what we can do is try out best to stop it by doing something helpful out of kindness instead of anger. PEACE. LOVE.

Anyways, with everything that has happened so far, it leaves me no choice except to say that I sort of dislike some of the Council members right now. I know they mean well, but sometimes, you just can't force yourself to like someone, especially if they have made many mistakes that wouldn't have happened if they had paused to listen to their own PEOPLE (or I guess, ELVES!). I really hope that the Council redeems themselves by the next 2 books.

BTW, SHANNON MESSENGER JUST RELEASED THAT SHE IS GOING TO RELEASE A SIXTH AND SEVENTH BOOK OF THE SERIES!!!!!! YES!!!!! I cannot wait. The sad thing is, I have to wait another year for the 6th book and 2 years for the 7th book.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was truly an amazing experience. The one thing that I really enjoyed about this whole series is:

THIS SERIES IS SO UNPREDICTABLE.

When I read, I find that the book is always really easy to know what is going to happen, but in the KOTLC series, there are so many possibilities that plot twisters still make me fall out of my chair!

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a little talent, humor, romance, and action mixed into one incredible adventure. It is definitely a book that will interest you, no matter how young or old, even though the series is geared for middle-schoolers.

Main Character: Sophie Foster
Sidekick(s): Fitz Vacker, Dex Dizznee, Keefe Sencen, Tam Song, Linh Song, Mr. Forkle, Edaline, Grady, Alden, Della, Sandor, Grizel, etc
Villain(s): Neverseen (Fintan, Brant, Alvar, Ruy, Gethen, Trix, etc)
Fantasy Elements: Unreal creatures, unreal settings, unreal elements.

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