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Twelve-year-old Henry York, finally reunited with his family, works with them and the Chestnut King, the long-deposed and mythic leader of the faeren people, to destroy Nimiane and her forces of evil.Tags
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Hidden cupboards behind Henry's bedroom wall unlocked portals to other worlds that Henry and his cousin Henrietta couldn't resist exploring. But they made one terrible mistake--they released the undying witch Nimiane. Her goal? To drain all life from every world connected to the cupboards. Henry must seek out the Chestnut King to defeat her, but doing so will force Henry to make a terrible, irreversible choice. With the fate of the worlds and everyone Henry loves hanging in the balance, will he have the courage to do what is needed to destroy the witch once and for all?
So, here's the plot... Henry is staying with his relatives in Kansas, when their house is transported to a magical world and they must battle an evil witch. OK, Toto, sound familiar?
Well other than getting a general idea of the story, I find myself completely lost while listening to this audiobook. The plot definitely shows promise. In his uncle and aunt's house, Henry discovers a cupboard with 99 doors that lead into other worlds. But, an evil witch, Niniane, must be defeated before she kills Henry and his family. Good overall story and some clever plot twists. So what went wrong? I'm guessing that I had a problem with the narration. This is definitely an example of a narrator overacting a story. There are so many dramatic pauses, show more that I find myself completely lost as to what is going on. This book has some very high reviews. I might have to revisit this one in print, but the audio version did not work for me. show less
Well other than getting a general idea of the story, I find myself completely lost while listening to this audiobook. The plot definitely shows promise. In his uncle and aunt's house, Henry discovers a cupboard with 99 doors that lead into other worlds. But, an evil witch, Niniane, must be defeated before she kills Henry and his family. Good overall story and some clever plot twists. So what went wrong? I'm guessing that I had a problem with the narration. This is definitely an example of a narrator overacting a story. There are so many dramatic pauses, show more that I find myself completely lost as to what is going on. This book has some very high reviews. I might have to revisit this one in print, but the audio version did not work for me. show less
1/20/25: guys my internship apps are NOT getting written i finished this while ostensibly locking in w nora and hannah… yeah um
7th reread?? why 7 for this one but 6 for the others? did i mess up somewhere?
okay ummm thoughts perchance…
- DF is a fever dream this is a waking dream. literally what there were like 293857 plotlines occurring at the same time
- tbh. Never really registered how large scale this entire thing is. the emperor vs tiny little hylfing. so much war and henry casually bargaining with the chestnut king
- i was like wilson you arent slick with your biblical references and then remembered it took me until 2022 to realize where Endor comes from LOLKLAJKFJAKFJS (anyway i read a wilson book and im like okay man show more classical homeschooling moment)
- yeah fine this book lowkey makes me want to cry sometimes
- one of the things i think about when i read these is the timeline bc franks older than the twins but pen is only 14 so frank and dotty had kids later than the books tend to imply i think idk the timelines are a little fudged bc henrys the youngest of 9 and now im curious how old grandmother anastasia really was by the end. also i want to know about frank and dottys endor moment yeeoiwwww
- okaayyy back into my dms... tis funny it takes a moment for henry to be like oh y'all are TWINS
- THE FACT THAT HES ALIVE BC DANDELIONS ARE A FAST GROWING WEED YEEHEEEEE it's neat all the brands of greenery have different potencies and abilities
- everybody trying to keep henry alive yet again and hes like actually i should die everything would be better lol @ 2018 me down there
- my favorite: monmouth turning the galley into a floating forest
- the first time I read this book I remember skipping the galley sequence which is an INSANE thing to do. it's actually so good and painful, frank and the captain squaring off about the westmores' existence in hylfing and then the slaves and the revolts and allat happening. idk tis crazy. they went through hell dear lord
- fat frank through this book goes CRAZYYYY YEEHEEEEEE okay half suicidal faerie who's stopped only by having three kids in his care now
- idc what anyone says frank willis is the most romantic character in these books
- the h/h/z endor sequence is awesome. i enjoyed that. lots happening. henry lighting up his fathers old vines is epic. the kids are all insane and the jerky... lmao...
- oh yeah lol the fingerlings are like.... girl???? scawy... funny that coradin rebelled though. lets go
- love the chestnut king thing. trees moment. hi jacques hi thorn
- sometimes i wonder whats going through the twins' heads half the time especially when henry shows up in endor and is like YEAH THEY TOOK EVERYBODY BTW!!!! they are not different from their younger selves in door before would rather sacrifice themselves for everybody else (henry)
- YOU ARE OLD
- NO ONE HITS THE MACCABABY
- grandmother anastasia's dreams... me when sobbbb. the field was all dandelions but henry didnt care
- so so so so so many banger lines in this book bruh
- okay blackstar epic awesome this world is so bewildering in so many ways the good old nonexistent magic system keeps striking lmao what is happening
- it would have been so freaking hilarious if it turned out henry was a right handed pitcher bc the brands on his right hand and his pitches go crooked at his strongest
- kinda truly insane he only has a fraction of mordecai's strength but bc he's dandelions he wins (and blackstar lol kiddo is getting involved in EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE)
- i loooooove the ending chapters idc idc idc they're great and i love them
- this is really disjointed and makes no sense and also doesn't even hit the big things i was thinking about because this book is all over the place in so many ways and i love it okay whatever goofy AHHHH jshfjkshdfsgaskljdgjlkadflj hello strength and life and laughter. so many characters going everywhere at all times but henry at the dead center of it all. Obviously.
- hi mrs. johnson the GOAT
- wonder which school they went to in the end. university of kansas lmfao. hi mary youve gotten yourself involved in insanity
- (kind of think it would be really funny if the seventh son line ended w henry)
--
11/07/22: hi does someone wanna tell me why it took me until TODAY at SEVEN in the MORNING to realize that Endor is quite literally just from 1 Samuel 28. Literally What
10/27/22: I did the thing where I have a million and two thoughts while I read a book, finish it, and promptly forget ALL of them. the only thought that stuck with me is that literally everyone and their mothers have grey eyes waddaheck. ZEKE has grey eyes???? TIL I guess. apparently it's my SIXTH TIME reading this ???? WHAT lmao
you know what's really funny? the note i left here in 2019 - i was right, all along, and i didn't even know it because i was a fool who didn't understand half of the stuff i was reading. good JOB!!!
anyway yeahhh i had thoughts. where are they?? i just ate three cookies in a row which was an AWFUL idea for multiple reasons. uhhhh oh right! dandelions are cool. I think it's funny that Coradin shows up to replace Darius as Nimiane's Big Bad except he actually deserves pity. suddenly very very curious about Amram and Anastasia's stories. there are so many GORGEOUS quotes in this book i like Wilson's writing style quite a lot in these. and again there is no SHOT henry is 12-13. Insanity, through and through. Beo and the raggant
"May your life be a truth, and your death a glory."
later: editing this to be serious for like two seconds. Spoilering because uhhh what am I even going on about tbh lmao I am EXHAUSTED. Not quite a spoiler for 100C, but spoils Ashtown and Outlaws of Time.I love Wilson because of his treatment of the concept of family, especially in middle-grade where parents and family are often just forgotten about, gotten rid of for plot convenience. I'm not saying all of MG is like that - there's a lot of MG where parents are present and written into the story in a way that doesn't just put them to a side - it just was kind of a trend, because the focus is on the 12 and 13 year olds, and it was just easier that way, or to give them some backstory. And that's not bad in the slightest, either, because it WORKS sometimes. But 100C and Ashtown and Outlaws and the others - family is so important, whether blood or found, or both. Like ok sure 100C has a heavy focus on blood strength, family lineage through Mordecai and Amram and all the way back to the Old Kings (vague fantasy phrases are awesome /s) but that's not what I mean. I mean that is is awesome that Frank and Dotty and Hyacinth and Mordecai and Caleb are *there* and *present* and actively involved, actively being family. Frank and Dotty trying to make up for Ursula and Phil's overbearing, negligent, unavailable parenting, even if awkwardly in the case of Frank. Hyacinth and Mordecai, though long separated - they are Henry's parents, through and through despite just having gotten him back. Because yes, it is Henry's story, and it is his focus, but also - family. Not just parents. I mean it all. The way I find it funny that Richard and Zeke (literally, in the end of CK, which killed me as a kid it was completely unprecedented to me and AMAZING), and even Monmouth end up practically being grafted into the Westmore family. Henrietta and Penny and Anastasia as cousins, Una and Isa and James, Henry's newly found siblings. It is all family, blood or not. Fat Frank. yes I know the difference between friendship and family and both are super important but I am trying to get at something here and I've lost my train of logic LOL.
And I know this is CK but Ashtown - even though Lawrence is dead, and Katie is long asleep, Cy's siblings are so, so important (and yeah I know Tigs is like a second MC anyway but still) and Rupert, and maybe I'm reaching, but the Polygoners in general.
and Outlaws is much more found family and it is fun. The Lost Boys and Glory and Millie. I think I need to shut up actually what in heck am I on about. It's 8:45 and I am tempted to just go to bed. I have an ungodly amount of assignments left btw lol
2/15/21 - apparently I actually read this once a year which is mildly impressive given that I was sort of joking about this being my yearly reread
(Also sometimes I just see the things I wrote on goodreads when I was 12 and die inwardly WHO let me on the INTERNET)
p.370 (paperback):
"Do not forget who you are."
"Who am I?" Henry asked. "I'm a boy with nightmares, a burned hand, a witch's blood in my face, and her voice in my head."
Henry's grandmother tipped up his chin and stared into his eyes. "You are Henry York Maccabee, seventh son of Mordecai Westmore, seventh son of Amram Iothric, in the line long faithful to the Old King, bone from my own bone, blood from my own blood. You are the pride of your father and the glory of your mother, a fire green and gold and a curse to darkness." She dropped her hand. "May you never need to be told again."
--
2017 - I love this book. It's such a perfect ending to the Cupboards trilogy! If I had time I would srsly write a rave review...but I don't, so I'll just say it is def. on my favorite books list.
[Thanks, Colson, for recommending Wilson]
~ ~ ~
2.10.19 - was having an absolute brainstorm, talking to a friend - and I'm still laughing at the ideas I came up with. My greatest one yet is the idea that the cupboards are each connected to a different parallel universe in the great big -coughs- MULTIVERSE considering all the different timelines they seem to be in, according to the front cupboard map.
(that was a reference -eyes a certain person- #42+)
Somehow they're scaring me with one word - "lost" "damage" "sealed" "vary delay" "varies" "shifting"
what
also goOd joB thE enDinG shIps
--
henry: can i die
zeke & henrietta:
henry: wouldn't it be a lot better if i were dead tho
henrietta:
henrietta: idiot
zeke: what why nO
1/26/20: I don't remember what I was on when I wrote the above but I MEAN IT PRETTY ACCURATELY SUMS UP THE ENTIRE BOOK
I friking love this book all of a sudden. Who knows why.
(Oh, and the amusing part is, it really is technically the multiverse.) show less
7th reread?? why 7 for this one but 6 for the others? did i mess up somewhere?
okay ummm thoughts perchance…
- DF is a fever dream this is a waking dream. literally what there were like 293857 plotlines occurring at the same time
- tbh. Never really registered how large scale this entire thing is. the emperor vs tiny little hylfing. so much war and henry casually bargaining with the chestnut king
- i was like wilson you arent slick with your biblical references and then remembered it took me until 2022 to realize where Endor comes from LOLKLAJKFJAKFJS (anyway i read a wilson book and im like okay man show more classical homeschooling moment)
- yeah fine this book lowkey makes me want to cry sometimes
- one of the things i think about when i read these is the timeline bc franks older than the twins but pen is only 14 so frank and dotty had kids later than the books tend to imply i think idk the timelines are a little fudged bc henrys the youngest of 9 and now im curious how old grandmother anastasia really was by the end. also i want to know about frank and dottys endor moment yeeoiwwww
- okaayyy back into my dms... tis funny it takes a moment for henry to be like oh y'all are TWINS
- THE FACT THAT HES ALIVE BC DANDELIONS ARE A FAST GROWING WEED YEEHEEEEE it's neat all the brands of greenery have different potencies and abilities
- everybody trying to keep henry alive yet again and hes like actually i should die everything would be better lol @ 2018 me down there
- my favorite: monmouth turning the galley into a floating forest
- the first time I read this book I remember skipping the galley sequence which is an INSANE thing to do. it's actually so good and painful, frank and the captain squaring off about the westmores' existence in hylfing and then the slaves and the revolts and allat happening. idk tis crazy. they went through hell dear lord
- fat frank through this book goes CRAZYYYY YEEHEEEEEE okay half suicidal faerie who's stopped only by having three kids in his care now
- idc what anyone says frank willis is the most romantic character in these books
- the h/h/z endor sequence is awesome. i enjoyed that. lots happening. henry lighting up his fathers old vines is epic. the kids are all insane and the jerky... lmao...
- oh yeah lol the fingerlings are like.... girl???? scawy... funny that coradin rebelled though. lets go
- love the chestnut king thing. trees moment. hi jacques hi thorn
- sometimes i wonder whats going through the twins' heads half the time especially when henry shows up in endor and is like YEAH THEY TOOK EVERYBODY BTW!!!! they are not different from their younger selves in door before would rather sacrifice themselves for everybody else (henry)
- YOU ARE OLD
- NO ONE HITS THE MACCABABY
- grandmother anastasia's dreams... me when sobbbb. the field was all dandelions but henry didnt care
- so so so so so many banger lines in this book bruh
- okay blackstar epic awesome this world is so bewildering in so many ways the good old nonexistent magic system keeps striking lmao what is happening
- it would have been so freaking hilarious if it turned out henry was a right handed pitcher bc the brands on his right hand and his pitches go crooked at his strongest
- kinda truly insane he only has a fraction of mordecai's strength but bc he's dandelions he wins (and blackstar lol kiddo is getting involved in EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE)
- i loooooove the ending chapters idc idc idc they're great and i love them
- this is really disjointed and makes no sense and also doesn't even hit the big things i was thinking about because this book is all over the place in so many ways and i love it okay whatever goofy AHHHH jshfjkshdfsgaskljdgjlkadflj hello strength and life and laughter. so many characters going everywhere at all times but henry at the dead center of it all. Obviously.
- hi mrs. johnson the GOAT
- wonder which school they went to in the end. university of kansas lmfao. hi mary youve gotten yourself involved in insanity
- (kind of think it would be really funny if the seventh son line ended w henry)
--
11/07/22: hi does someone wanna tell me why it took me until TODAY at SEVEN in the MORNING to realize that Endor is quite literally just from 1 Samuel 28. Literally What
10/27/22: I did the thing where I have a million and two thoughts while I read a book, finish it, and promptly forget ALL of them. the only thought that stuck with me is that literally everyone and their mothers have grey eyes waddaheck. ZEKE has grey eyes???? TIL I guess. apparently it's my SIXTH TIME reading this ???? WHAT lmao
you know what's really funny? the note i left here in 2019 - i was right, all along, and i didn't even know it because i was a fool who didn't understand half of the stuff i was reading. good JOB!!!
anyway yeahhh i had thoughts. where are they?? i just ate three cookies in a row which was an AWFUL idea for multiple reasons. uhhhh oh right! dandelions are cool. I think it's funny that Coradin shows up to replace Darius as Nimiane's Big Bad except he actually deserves pity. suddenly very very curious about Amram and Anastasia's stories. there are so many GORGEOUS quotes in this book i like Wilson's writing style quite a lot in these. and again there is no SHOT henry is 12-13. Insanity, through and through. Beo and the raggant
"May your life be a truth, and your death a glory."
later: editing this to be serious for like two seconds. Spoilering because uhhh what am I even going on about tbh lmao I am EXHAUSTED. Not quite a spoiler for 100C, but spoils Ashtown and Outlaws of Time.
And I know this is CK but Ashtown - even though Lawrence is dead, and Katie is long asleep, Cy's siblings are so, so important (and yeah I know Tigs is like a second MC anyway but still) and Rupert, and maybe I'm reaching, but the Polygoners in general.
and Outlaws is much more found family and it is fun. The Lost Boys and Glory and Millie. I think I need to shut up actually what in heck am I on about. It's 8:45 and I am tempted to just go to bed. I have an ungodly amount of assignments left btw lol
2/15/21 - apparently I actually read this once a year which is mildly impressive given that I was sort of joking about this being my yearly reread
(Also sometimes I just see the things I wrote on goodreads when I was 12 and die inwardly WHO let me on the INTERNET)
p.370 (paperback):
"Do not forget who you are."
"Who am I?" Henry asked. "I'm a boy with nightmares, a burned hand, a witch's blood in my face, and her voice in my head."
Henry's grandmother tipped up his chin and stared into his eyes. "You are Henry York Maccabee, seventh son of Mordecai Westmore, seventh son of Amram Iothric, in the line long faithful to the Old King, bone from my own bone, blood from my own blood. You are the pride of your father and the glory of your mother, a fire green and gold and a curse to darkness." She dropped her hand. "May you never need to be told again."
--
2017 - I love this book. It's such a perfect ending to the Cupboards trilogy! If I had time I would srsly write a rave review...but I don't, so I'll just say it is def. on my favorite books list.
[Thanks, Colson, for recommending Wilson]
~ ~ ~
2.10.19 - was having an absolute brainstorm, talking to a friend - and I'm still laughing at the ideas I came up with. My greatest one yet is the idea that the cupboards are each connected to a different parallel universe in the great big -coughs- MULTIVERSE considering all the different timelines they seem to be in, according to the front cupboard map.
(that was a reference -eyes a certain person- #42+)
Somehow they're scaring me with one word - "lost" "damage" "sealed" "vary delay" "varies" "shifting"
what
also goOd joB thE enDinG shIps
--
henry: can i die
zeke & henrietta:
henry: wouldn't it be a lot better if i were dead tho
henrietta:
henrietta: idiot
zeke: what why nO
1/26/20: I don't remember what I was on when I wrote the above but I MEAN IT PRETTY ACCURATELY SUMS UP THE ENTIRE BOOK
I friking love this book all of a sudden. Who knows why.
(Oh, and the amusing part is, it really is technically the multiverse.) show less
Hidden cupboards behind Henry's bedroom wall unlocked portals to other worlds that Henry and his cousin Henrietta couldn't resist exploring. But they made one terrible mistake--they released the undying witch Nimiane. Her goal? To drain all life from every world connected to the cupboards. Henry must seek out the Chestnut King to defeat her, but doing so will force Henry to make a terrible, irreversible choice. With the fate of the worlds and everyone Henry loves hanging in the balance, will he have the courage to do what is needed to destroy the witch once and for all?
I agree with a previous reviewer that the ending felt too neat. My other complaint is that the world-building was a bit lacking; though the title of the book is The Chestnut King, we really don't find out much about him and his relationship to the faerie queene. The pacing was a bit stop-and-go; there were several parties, with different parties going different places for different reasons, and parties sometimes splitting up or joining up. All in all it was a bit confusing, and in the end, unnecessary; lots of attention focused on journeys that didn't matter so much and characters who didn't really do anything. The book would've benefited from more focus on the important journeys and characters, and fewer words given to other plotlines show more and characters.
The book does tie up the Nimiane loose end, and gives you a glimpse into the 'ever after' part of Henry's life. show less
The book does tie up the Nimiane loose end, and gives you a glimpse into the 'ever after' part of Henry's life. show less
AMAZON REVIEW : 8/11/2015 When Henry York found 99 cupboards hidden behind his bedroom wall, he never dreamed they were doors to entirely new worlds. Exploring them with his cousin Henrietta was all the action and adventure an overprotected boy could imagine. But Henry's discovery also released the undying witch Nimiane, whose hunger for power could destroy every world connected to the cupboards and every person whom Henry loves. Now Henry must seek out the legendary Chestnut King to answer the unanswerable: How do you kill someone who cannot die?
MY REVIEW:
If you love Narnia and Harry Potter, you will LOVE this series. It is all about taking risks,friendship, family, loss, magic, facing your fears and being who you were meant to be. show more
Loved it and read all 3 books in a row and everyone I have recommended it to has also loved it. show less
MY REVIEW:
If you love Narnia and Harry Potter, you will LOVE this series. It is all about taking risks,friendship, family, loss, magic, facing your fears and being who you were meant to be. show more
Loved it and read all 3 books in a row and everyone I have recommended it to has also loved it. show less
This is the final book in the 100 Cupboards series. Since I had read the first two books, I felt compelled to read the third and I believe final book. For some reason, I didn't find this book quite as engaging as the previous two but I persisted so that I could find some sort of closure as to how, and if, Henry was going to save himself and his family from the witch, Nimiane. The book concludes with some quite unexpected twists and turns to the unusual plot.
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Author Information
42+ Works 9,799 Members
N. D. Wilson is a bestselling novelist, a professional daydreamer, and a writer/director/producer of film and TV projects ranging from nature documentaries to preschool animation. He and his wife have five children, and he is currently a Fellow of Literature at New Saint Andrews College, where he teaches MFA candidates how to play with words.
Series
Work Relationships
Is contained in
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Chestnut King
- Original publication date
- 2010
- People/Characters
- Henry York; Nimiane; Henrietta; The Chestnut King
- Epigraph
- "Tell me pauper son," said the witch Nimiane. "Before I harvest the faren, before I rouse your father to watch his seventh son die, why did you come? You have many portals. You could flee through the worlds and live awhile... (show all). Why do you come to your death?" Henry shifted, clenching the grip o his sword. "You know why," he said. "I come because of the words spoken when I received my name. I come because you are the darkness, and I am dandelion fire. You have seen me in your dreams. You know what I can do do you."
- Dedication
- For my mother and father (who never lost me)
- First words
- In a world tangled in places with this one, both near and far from where we stand, near and far from where our grandfathers are standing as children, near and far from our past, from our now, from our never, there are two sea... (show all)s separated only by a long strong belt of land.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)And a door opened in the air.
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Statistics
- Members
- 833
- Popularity
- 32,946
- Reviews
- 8
- Rating
- (4.24)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 16
- ASINs
- 6
