Guy Fawkes’s son must join his father’s plot to kill the king if he’s to survive the plague overtaking his body in this reimagined fantastical history of the Gunpowder Plot. Remember, remember the fifth of November. In 17th-century London, two forces rule the people: the color powers and the Stone Plague. Brown masks can manipulate wood. Black masks control the night. And red masks . . . well, … . well, red is the color of blood.
Thomas Fawkes needs a gray mask so he can remove the stone that has invaded his body and will ultimately take his life. But when he fails his color test, his only hope is to track down his father, the infamous Guy Fawkes, and demand his color mask.
But his father has other plans: to kill the king.
Thomas must join forces with his father if he wants to save his own life. When his errands for the cause bring him time and again to Emma Areben, a former classmate, he is exposed to a whole new brand of magic.
Emma doesn’t control just one color–she controls them all.
And she wants to show Thomas the full power of color magic, but it goes against everything his father is fighting for.
If Thomas sides with his father, he could save his own life. But it would destroy Emma and her family. To save one, he must sacrifice the other
No matter Thomas’s choice, one thing is clear: once the decision is made and the color masks have been put on, there’s no turning back.
Praise for Fawkes:
“An imaginative, colorful tale about choosing for yourself between what’s right and what others insist is the truth.” –Cynthia Hand, New York Times bestselling author of My Lady Jane
“Hold on to your heart as this slow burning adventure quickly escalates into an explosion of magic, love, and the truth about loyalty.” –Mary Weber, bestselling author of the Storm Siren Trilogy and To Best the Boys
“A magical retelling that will sweep you back in time–to a divided England where plagues can turn you to stone and magic has a voice.” –Tosca Lee, New York Times bestselling author
“A must-read for all fantasy fans!” –Lorie Langdon, author of Olivia Twist
“Brandes turns 17th-century London into a magical place.” –Jill Williamson, author of By Darkness Hid and Captives
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Remember, remember, the fifth of November …
Fawkes begins in 1604, not long after King James I has ascended the throne of England and joined the thrones of England and Scotland. The country is filled with tension as two factions fight to rule.
The history books has this fight as being Roman Catholic vs. Protestant, with King James (and Queen Elizabeth before him) being firmly of the reformed Protestant faith. But Fawkes twists this into a fight between Keepers and Igniters, both blaming the other for the plague of stone that is at risk of taking over the land.
Fawkes begins with Thomas Fawkes, the narrator, at boarding school on the eve of his Color Test. Yes, there are echoes of Harry Potter and Divergent here, in that every adult has a Color which they can control to a greater or lesser extent. Keepers believe each person can and should only control one Color. Igniters believe the Keepers have been hiding the White Light from the public for centuries. Both sides believe the other caused the plague which kills by turning its victims to stone.
Thomas Fawkes is the son of Guy Fawkes, the most famous of the thirteen men who plotted to blow up the Houses of Parliament to kill King James I and restore a Catholic king to the throne (I live in New Zealand. We still “celebrate” Guy Fawkes with fireworks on 5 November every year). Those who know history (and know history is written by the victors) know the plot was foiled and Guy Fawkes has gone down in history as the bad guy.
Fawkes places us in the mind of Thomas. While he and his father have been estranged for years, both are Keepers. At least, Thomas thinks he’s a Keeper … except he keeps hearing the voice of the White Light. He has been raised to believe Keepers are right, and he has no reason to doubt that.
But he’s never actually stopped to consider what is true. And that’s an unexpectedly modern theme—that what we believe to be right and true isn’t necessarily so. Instead, we need to search for truth. Find truth. And fight for truth.
All of which are difficult in this modern era of #FakeNews.
Anyway, students of history will understand that while Fawkes is trying to persuade us that Thomas Fawkes (and the thirteen conspirators) are the “good guys”, history tells us they are not. That makes the early chapters an uncomfortable read. But students of history will be pleased to know the story does run true to history. Well. Kind of. History doesn’t have Keepers and Igniters and the Stone Plague. Fawkes does not have Roman Catholics and Protestants at loggerheads. But the parallels are there for those who know or care to look.
I’m not a big fantasy reader. But Fawkes worked for me, perhaps because it was a Harry Potter-esque twist on truth that allowed the reader to consider Truth. It got me thinking without taking me out of the story, and that’s high praise.
Thanks to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
I had been hearing about this book around the blogosphere all summer, and noticed when it showed up on the shelves in the bookstore where I work. Then one night as I was working, the author showed up in my store to see her books on the shelves, as well as maybe autograph them for us. It was so cool to meet her, and of course since she was there, I had to buy a book right away to get autographed. It was a couple weeks after that before I was able to finally pick it up and read it, but it was definitely one that grabbed me from the get-go, and was a wonderfully unique and creative rewriting of a historical time and figure. The author kept me on my toes throughout most of the book with not knowing if Thomas was on the right side in working with his father and the Keepers, or if the Igniters, the ones who wanted people to be able to open up to the White Light when it spoke to them, were the ones we should be rooting for. With the fact that Martin Luther was mentioned in the story, and that I grew up in a Lutheran church school, when he was mentioned, I immediately was pretty sure which side I needed to be rooting for, no matter what that did to my views of the characters as they were and as they related to Thomas.
This is the kind of story that always weaves just enough historical details within, without just being the actual history you might read in a textbook, and having obvious changes – magical light and masks, duh – that makes me want to learn more about the time period and people features in the story. Because while I’d heard of Guy Fawkes, I was immediately more interested in learning about his true contribution and involvement in that time period. I loved that the author touched on the history and how she took her own liberties for her story with it in the end section of the book. I can say that this is now an author I look forward to reading more from, and that she will be on my radar for future books.
Fawkes by Nadine Brandes
Once the masks are on, the war begins
Masks and magic and mayhem. In a society that drew power from hiding behind masks given to them by their parents, Thomas Fawkes desired nothing more than to receive his mask and the color magic that would come from it.
Fawkes is a fascinating blend of historical fiction and fantasy. The author took the details of the Gunpowder Plot and made them into an allegorical story where the conflict isn’t over religion but over color magic and light.
I really loved the analogy of God being the pure color from which all other colors get their being. I also appreciated the way that everyone knew that the White Light talked to everyone, attempting to woo them in the way that God woos us to Himself. There were no specific references to God or religion, yet the parallel drawn was evident to me. Non-Christians would not be offended by anything in the book.
Thomas was an interesting hero. He was wonderfully flawed and weak, not even having received the mask that would provide him with power. His Spiritual journey as he sought the love and approval of his father was touching.
Emma was wonderful! She was feisty, strong and wholly committed to following the White Light. Her relationship with it allowed her to accomplish amazing things. Her mask completely hid her face yet she radiated a beauty that was unmistakable.
While I did enjoy the story and the way the allegory was handled, there were places that things seemed to move slowly and I didn’t find myself riveted to the book.
If you read this book, be sure to see the author’s notes at the back to see what parts are based on history and which are entirely fantasy. I found that interesting as well.
Read the full review of Fawkes by Nadine Brandes with a Preview at AmongTheReads.net
I would like to thank JustRead Tours for giving me a copy of this book. This gift did not influence my opinion or review.
Francis Bacon wrote, “Some books should be tasted, some devoured, but only a few should be chewed and digested thoroughly.” Fawkes by Nadine Brandes is one of those rare books that should be chewed and digested thoroughly. It comes layered with context. It is history. It is an adventure. It is magic. It is truth. It is love. It is a book that captures your complete attention from the first page. I was moved by the entirety of it but two sentences near the end nailed the meaning of the story: “I’d handed over my pride, my cowardice, and my relationships. In return, I found life.”
To paraphrase Winston Churchill, it is history wrapped in a fantasy inside creative brilliance.
Fawkes by Nadine Brandes is a young adult historical fantasy novel set in the time and events of the Gunpowder plot. Thomas Fawkes is dying, a magical plague is turning him to stone, literally. The only thing he thinks can save him is his color mask. Once he is able to connect to color magic through it he thinks it will save him. The only problem is that his father, the famous Guy Fawkes, is the only one who can carve his mask, and Guy has not been an involved father for Thomas. Thomas goes in search of his father and gets pulled into the political intrigue of magic and politics and a plot, the real version of which is still celebrated today.
For me Fawkes was a lot of fun. Blending the real people who were involved with some unique added characters and concepts that make the story all its own. Thomas as a character is still really learning and trying to find himself. He is pulled and pushed by the events and people around him, not really sure who is leading him in the right path. He wants to impress his father but also Emma who he finds a greater and greater connection to. The story from start to finish leads us along a complex path as Thomas is exposed to more and more of the world around him
Overall I recommend Fawkes by Nadine Brandes as a well conceived blend of real events and people with fantasy, romance and adventure. As the characters learn that there is more that meets the surface going on, in so many instances and ways, the twists and turns we are presented with keeps us feeling for the characters and wishing everyone could win somehow. I also enjoyed the afterward where Ms. Brands gives us the historical context behind the characters, who was real, what they actually did, and where the ideas for other characters were drawn from.
(I voluntarily reviewed an advance review copy of this book I received for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my open and honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.)
This is every ya/fantasy lover’s dream book. This has action, espionage, history, and a bit of romance. I enjoyed it and I think any one who loves this genre will enjoy it as well.
*I was given this book by Thomas Nelson publishers through netgalley. This is my honest opinion