Sebastian Darke: Prince of Fools

Listened to - great voices by the reader. Humorous historical fantasy fiction. No magic - just talking animals. YA fiction. ( )

Reviewed by Natalie Tsang for TeensReadToo.com

Poor Sebastian Darke is just not funny. For most people, this is a minor inconvenience, but for the son of a successful jester, this is bad news.

After his father's untimely death, Sebastian is forced to put on his father's costume and continue his trade. The jester outfit doesn't really fit and neither does the profession. Undeterred but mostly just desperate, Sebastian sets off with his father's Buffalope, Max, to offer his humorous services to King Septimus of Keladon.

On the ensuing journey, the half-elf, half-human teen and his partner/pack animal meet the fierce but pint-sized Captain Cornelius Drummel and rescue a beautiful princess named Kerin. The four think their problems are over when they reach Keladon, but with a corrupt king on the throne the trouble is just starting.

SEBASTIAN DARKE: PRINCE OF FOOLS by Philip Caveney is a fast and fun-filled ride with bad jokes and worse villains. While the jokes are never good, the characters are wonderfully atypical. Philip Caveney follows in the rich tradition of evil crones, hair-brained schemes, and talking animals, and seems to have a lot of fun with it.

One of my favorite characters was Osbert, the barely intelligible but lovable royal Buffalope. An added plus are the pictures. And though I won't ruin the ending, I will say that it's refreshingly unexpected. ( )

This is a semi-traditional story of jesters, kings, princesses, and adventurers with a lot of really great characters. The language is clunky in a few places which does jar the flow of the story, but the average reader will keep reading because of the great dialog and characters. ( )

The lord of Laughter, the Monarch of Mirth–if only the bumbling 17-year-old Sebastian Darke could be a successful jester like his father. The problem is Sebastian’s not funny. But after his father’s death, with no choice but to beg in the streets, the half-human, half-elf teen sets off with Max, his father’s slightly cynical Buffalope, to offer his services as a jester to King Septimus of Keladon. On the way they meet Captain Cornelius Drummel, small in stature, but the fiercest of fighters. The three rescue the fair princess Kerin, who’s being held captive by brigands, and happily escort her home. If only Sebastian knew the kidnapping was engineered by the evil King Septimus! ( )

An interesting tale about a jester and his buffalope, a dwarf, a princess, and a quest to make things right in the kingdom. Unfortunately, I found the plot to be a little too... obvious. No twists or turns, but it was entertaining enough with the interesting illustrations and the banter from the talkative buffalope. ( )