2 Rated Books 3 Rated Books Book Reviews Joint Review

Joint Review: Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger

Title: Keeper of the Lost Cities

Author: Shannon Messenger

Genre: Fantasy, Middle Grade/Young Adult

Publisher: Aladdin
Publication date: October 2012
Hardcover: 496 pages

Twelve-year-old Sophie Foster has a secret. She’s a Telepath—someone who hears the thoughts of everyone around her. It’s a talent she’s never known how to explain.

Everything changes the day she meets Fitz, a mysterious boy who appears out of nowhere and also reads minds. She discovers there’s a place she does belong, and that staying with her family will place her in grave danger. In the blink of an eye, Sophie is forced to leave behind everything and start a new life in a place that is vastly different from anything she has ever known.

Sophie has new rules to learn and new skills to master, and not everyone is thrilled that she has come “home.” There are secrets buried deep in Sophie’s memory—secrets about who she really is and why she was hidden among humans—that other people desperately want. Would even kill for.

In this page-turning debut, Shannon Messenger creates a riveting story where one girl must figure out why she is the key to her brand-new world, before the wrong person finds the answer first.

Stand alone or series: Book 1 in a planned series

How did we get this book: ARCs from the Publisher (via BEA)

Why did we read this book: We’ve been excited for this book ever since we both laid eyes on it – it was one of our top priority ARCs at BEA! When the release date finally came around, we were ecstatic.

REVIEW

Thea’s Take:

There are two ends of the CG animated movie spectrum. On the one side, there are gems like Wall-E and Up and Toy Story. On the other, there are the lamentable films like Fly Me to the Moon, or Robots, or Shark Tale. Granted, many kids like all of these films and there is some entertainment value to find in each of them – but there’s a huge difference in storytelling skill and in quality.

Unfortunately, Keeper of the Lost Cities falls deep on the Shark Tale end of the MG/YA spectrum. A poor man’s Harry Potter, featuring a super special snowflake of a heroine, Keeper of the Lost Cities is a sadly disappointing – and frequently laughable – dud.

But let’s start at the beginning, shall we? From the synopsis, this novel seems like it would be about a telepathic twelve year old girl that discovers secrets about her family, her true birthright, and her abilities. Right? What Keeper of the Lost Cities delivers instead is a story about ultra-beautiful, ultra-intelligent, ultra-magical elves (yes, elves), whose existence is secret from disgusting humans. It then morphs into Harry Potter knock-off land, complete with a prestigious, secret and ultra selective academy for young prodigious elves, with classes in specialized areas like alchemy and telepathy. Oh yeah, and it turns out that Sophie Foster, our protagonist, is not only superduper desirable (a humble twelve year old, but already commanding the attentions of fifteen year olds) but possesses unparalleled power and is The One who can Save them All.

I could go on and on, so let me just focus on the three areas that bothered me the most regarding Keeper of the Lost Cities: the blase treatment/combo of science and magic, Sophie’s super specialness (and unconvincing nature as a character), and the unabashed Harry Potter ripoffs.

Let’s start with Science and Magic. When it’s done well, I love a speculative fiction book that blends fantasy elements with sci fi, magic with hard science. This is, I suspect, what Shannon Messenger attempted to accomplish in this novel. Unfortunately, it just doesn’t work. From very early on in the book, we learn that even “the slowest elf can still trump a human” – and that elves, apparently, know ALL the things about genetics and DNA and relative physics, but say this isn’t science OR magic. As heartthrob elf Fitz tells our heroine Sophie:

“This is…magic?”

Fitz laughed – a full body laugh, like it was the funniest thing he’d ever heard […] “No,” he said when he’d regained control. “Magic is a stupid idea humans came up with to try to explain things they couldn’t understand.”

But in the next breath, when Fitz starts to describe the impossible apparating speed-of-light travel, he tells Sophie that elves “light leap”:

He held the pathfinder up to the sun, casting a ray of light onto his hand. “Light leaping. We hitched a ride on a beam of light that was headed straight here.”

“That’s impossible […] You need infinite energy for light travel. Haven’t you heard of the theory of relativity?”

She thought she had him stumped with that one, but he just laughed again. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

No further explanation, until a few pages later, when Fitz tells Sophie:

This is how the world really works. It’s not magic. It’s just how it is.

Well THAT explains everything, then. In this type of setting, magic would be completely acceptable as an explanation for feathered dinosaur pets, catching lightning in a bottle, using elderberries to transmutate iron, and so on. But instead, Keeper of the Lost Cities insists on not-science science, not-magic magic, and the end result is, well, ridiculous.

Which brings me to my next gripe: Sophie, the Special Snowflake. When we first meet Sophie, we learn that she is twelve years old, telepathic, possessing a photographic memory, and a high school senior that has been accepted at Yale University. We also learn that she is ‘the prettiest girl in school’, that she is an unprecedentedly powerful telepath, sickeningly sweet and good, and everyone rushes to her aid at slightest provocation. And I just want to include this quote, because Ana and I both had a good laugh when we read it:

Her family couldn’t be her family.

She took a deep breath and let the reality settle in.

The strange thing was, in some ways it made sense. It explained why she always felt so out of place around them – the slender blonde among her chubby brunette family.

Oh WOE! WOE! The life of a slender blonde in a chubby brunette family.

And then, finally, there’s the big whopping Harry Potter Ripoff problem. I’ll make this easy: as soon as Sophie gets to Elfland, she hears that she has been invited to attend a prestigious academy for aspiring young witches and wizards elves called Hogwarts Foxfire. The school is presided over by a benevolent headmaster Dumbledore Dame Alina, who also gets to pick the constantly changing sweet treat password sweet treat tasting flavor that unlocks every student’s locker (on day one, the flavor is Fizzing Whizbees Mallowmelt). Harry Sophie quickly makes friends with Hermione and Ron Marella and Dex, and Dex happens to be a mudblood bad match byproduct, meaning that his parents were muggles non-noble elves. While at school, Sophie excels and is a natural at almost all of her subjects, except for potions alchemy (Professor Snape Lady Galvin seems to really have it out for Sophie for some reason).

And on and on the list goes. I’ll stop here, though. While I’m certain there are many people out there that will enjoy Keeper of the Lost Cities, this book failed to work for me on any level.

Ana’s Take:

Yes, to all that. Thea covered basically everything I wanted to say and I don’t have a lot more to add but here is my two cents. Keeper of the Lost Cities is a ridiculous book and I wish I could just make fun of it, disregard it simply as a bad book experience and think no more of it. But this is such a blatant, poor imitation of Harry Potter with the addition of extremely uncomfortable Racefail that I must look at it from a serious perspective.

I do not have anything to add to Thea’s assessment of Sophie but I have a couple of things to add to her other areas of concern – the Magic x Science conundrum and the Harry Potter Ripoffs.

With regards to the former, my main problem with the ridiculous not-science science and not-magic magic is that it results in a complete lack of internal logic and that is a way too big a flaw in the very construction of the story. The idea that the elves don’t know a lot about the human world is reinforced throughout the story – elves often wonder what a “dollar” is or what is “France”. They also insist that what they do is not science. And yet the very human scientific concept of “DNA” and genetics research is at the very centre of this story.

Regarding the clear Harry Potter Ripoff, I can add a lot more to Thea’s breakdown:

All wizards elves perform spells have gifts and Harry Sophie soon learns that there are three Unforgivable Curses gifts that are frowned upon: the deadly Killing Curse, the Cruciatus Curse and the Imperius Curse the deadly Pyrokineticsm, Infliction and Mermerizing. She also learns to play the wizard’s elven game of Quidditch Catch and that there are other people who don’t really like her like the snobby Lucius Cassius.

I wish I was kidding.

And that brings me to my last point – the brown-skinned Gnomes who work for the Elves as their gardeners.

This is a world in which the vast majority of elves are described as impossibly beautiful with fair skin (there is the odd “olive” skinned elf) and shiny blue/teal eyes. And where, even though everybody works, they do so because they want to because elves are rich and don’t really need money. But basically the elves have important jobs but the Gnomes tend their gardens. And those are the only creatures within the novel described as “brown-skinned”. Then Sophia asks those Gnomes are servants and is promptly told off because of course the elves do not keep servants. The gnomes CHOOSE to live with the elves for their own protection and help them with their gardens because they enjoy it.

The obliviousness to the real-life, historical and racial implication of this point is completely mind-blowing and what made me enraged rather than potentially amused by the book.

In fairness, it is very possible that this might be addressed at some point in the series (after all, didn’t Hermione Granger address the problem of the House-Elves in the Harry Potter series?) and some readers will probably not care about the similarities to HP or even appreciate it as homage of sorts – I am not one of them. Finding the similarities between this and the Harry Potter books might actually have been fun if it wasn’t so awkward – plus the characterisation here is nowhere near as good as Rowling’s endearing creations and this means that characters here are flat, thin, poorly constructed imitations.

Ultimately this is what it boils down to: Keeper of the Lost Cities is not one of the worst books I have ever read but it is certainly one of the most laughable ones. And it made me despair that books like these even get to see the light of day.

Notable Quotes/Parts: HA HA HA. No.

Rating:

Ana: 2 – Complete waste of time

Thea: 3 – Very, Very Bad

Reading Next: Only Superhuman by Christopher L. Bennett

Buy the Book:

(click on the links to purchase)


Ebook available for kindle US & nook

229 Comments

  • Allison (Allure of Books)
    October 12, 2012 at 4:29 am

    HUGE bummer.

  • Bibliotropic
    October 12, 2012 at 4:43 am

    I just… wow. I mean, what more can I say but that? This book might have appealed to me as a quick read, and I like seeing what new fantasy the young’uns are getting their hands on these days, but the blatant Harry Potter rip-offs would just make me want to hurl this book against a wall, I think. I have no patience for rip-offs. References, sure. Homages, fine, if they’re done well. But it sounds like this one was trying to ride some coattails and just couldn’t manage it.

  • Ana
    October 12, 2012 at 4:45 am

    I know, right? We were SO excited about this book and simply could not believe our eyes when we started reading it.

  • Diana
    October 12, 2012 at 6:08 am

    This is the first time I’ve read a description of this book and I’m really disappointed to find out that it’s not in fact, about “lost cities”. I thought it was going to be a book about Atlantis or something.

  • Ana
    October 12, 2012 at 6:13 am

    Diana – there is in fact, Atlantis which is like, an elven city. But it appears very little and it is not central to the plot of this book. I feel that Sophie will eventually (maybe, who knows) become the Keeper of those places but this is not the main story here and it is barely addressed at all, to the point where I have NO IDEA why the book is even called that.

  • AnimeJune
    October 12, 2012 at 6:15 am

    Sorry, I’d respond but I’m too busy shuddering at the thought of a TWELVE YEAR OLD being THE HOTTEST GIRL at her HIGH SCHOOL. Gross gross gross gross.

    Plus the “chubby brunette family” line. Sheesh. What an ungrateful little twit. How dare their darker hair colour and higher body mass offend her Aryan body-shaming megahot 12-year-old sensibilities?

    I think she ought to spend a little time in a cupboard under the stairs.

    At least in the Harry Potter books, JK Rowling actually built on, examined, and dismantled the plot trope of the “Super Special Snowflake” hero with Harry. Harry’s superfamous – but for something he didn’t actually do and really had no control over, and in real life he’s pretty average. And while he is instrumental in bringing down Voldemort, he has to do so with the help of a LOT of people.

    And I totally get what you guys mentioned about internal logic – if there are no rules and limitations to what can actually be done (whether it’s magic or science), then what are the stakes in this story?

  • Ana
    October 12, 2012 at 6:26 am

    AJ – With regards to the high school thing. Thea and I have both been talking about how we feel this is not really a MG book. It doesn’t read like one and heroine doesn’t sound lika e 12 year old. It’s really weird.

  • Rachel Aaron
    October 12, 2012 at 6:38 am

    I’m so so bummed to read this! I’ve had this book on my wishlist forever, but it sounds like it takes one of the only things I didn’t like about HP (the dismissal of science and human achievement) and jumps on it while messing up the stuff that was really good.

    Bah, how disappointing.

    (I still covet that cover, though)

  • Jill
    October 12, 2012 at 7:16 am

    As I read this review, I kept thinking, “This cannot be real.” How do authors publish something like this? Are they just blissfully unaware of the ripoffs/horrible messages or do they just not care?

  • Lark
    October 12, 2012 at 8:50 am

    How disappointing! But I’ve learned to trust your reviews. Time to take this one off my TBR list. Thank you for the heads-up.

  • Alex/AnimeGirl
    October 12, 2012 at 9:47 am

    Wow!
    You saved me from being fooled by another pretty cover!! I think Sophia would annoy me beyond reason and I would have DFN this book on the whole slender blond/chubby burnet thing.
    Talk about lack of tact!

    Thanks for this review 😀

  • hapax
    October 12, 2012 at 2:33 pm

    Wow. It sounds like somebody re-purposed the Harry Potter fanfiction they wrote in high school, and sent it to their uncle at the publishing house.

    But the blatant Mary Sue-ishness had me giggling. I kept thinking, “Oh no, another candidate for Sparklypoo!”

    (http://piratemonkeysinc.com/ms1.htm, if you don’t get the reference; it’s hilarious)

  • Brandy
    October 12, 2012 at 3:57 pm

    Oh my. As I read this I was thinking, “Should I take it off the TBR immediately or read it just to see how awful awful can be?” I don’t have that kind of time on my hands though, especially for a book that has super “hot” twelve year olds (ewwwww) and that level of racefail going on.

    Thanks for suffering through this one so many of us don’t have to.

  • Yeti
    October 13, 2012 at 7:05 am

    The bit about the light reminded me of something…Have you read the K-Pax books? I’ve not read them for a few years but I’m sure prot travelled on a beam of light.

  • Heidi
    October 14, 2012 at 3:50 pm

    Wow. Just wow. I was really excited about this one as well (excited enough to have waited in line for it at BEA), so this is a pretty big bummer. It sounds so amazingly grating I almost want to read it anyway just to see how big my eyes can get at the ridiculousness, but I think I’ll just go ahead and donate it to someone who wouldn’t find such blatant similarities to Harry Potter and an uncomfortably perfect heroine completely unpalatable. At least Harry had faults (in fact, he was one of my least favorite characters–which I like)!

  • jillheather
    October 14, 2012 at 9:38 pm

    Relatedly, a discussion of the not-terribly-coded racism in elves, from Ars Marginal.

  • Mary
    October 15, 2012 at 1:55 am

    Have a villain like Voldemort? lol

  • oliolioli
    October 28, 2012 at 7:26 am

    I was kind of sad when I read this review. Sure, I noticed the similarities when I read this book but I still loved it because honestly, I haven’t been able to find any good children fantasy books in a while. Soooooo, even if it was a harry potter ripoff I still liked the book. 🙁

  • Judith
    November 27, 2012 at 11:14 am

    Wow, this definitely made me delete this book from my TBR list! I can’t BELIEVE that someone would actually write a book that’s such an obvious rip off! Where’s the creativity?! And that quote about the family? That really annoyed me. I mean, not only is the main character apparently more-than-perfect (which I hate in books) but that is just really offensive and sets a bad example for the children who read it!
    Haven’t read this book but I won’t after reading your review. I know it will really irritate me!

  • Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger – A Review | J. Keller Ford ~ Author
    January 16, 2013 at 9:55 am

    […] Joint Review:  Keeper of the Lost Cities (the booksmugglers.com) […]

  • Anonymous
    January 17, 2013 at 4:02 pm

    Um, yeah. Thanks. Like THea and Ana know everything. Sure, they DID review books from, like, I dunno. The 1900s, maybe? What I’m saying is that you two know NOTHING about what a great book is. Plus. Harry potter is a fail. Keeper of the Lost Cities totally replaces it. I don’t care what you two think, and I don’t know who you think YOU are, but seriously? Keeper of the Lost Cities is one of the B-E-S-T books in the world. Come to think of it, people who despise the book and write dumb reviews -wink wink- act like stuck up idiots. >:< Stop insulting good books!

  • Anonymous
    January 17, 2013 at 4:04 pm

    PS. All you people out there. It’s not true. Keeper of the Lost Cities is called Awesomeness. Put it back on your reading list. you will NOT BE SORRY! AT ALL! Don’t listen to those stinking no-good reviewers. Pish.

    From Me

  • Anonymous
    February 23, 2013 at 8:47 pm

    Little disappointed by this review.

  • Anonymous
    November 28, 2013 at 4:44 pm

    I’m OK with your review, but to me Keeper of the
    Lost Cities was too good to be true. It was awesome. Well, to me. Thanks for the review, anyway.

    ~Anonymous

  • Anonymous
    November 28, 2013 at 4:46 pm

    Plus, you woke up at 4 in the morning!?

  • Hss
    December 8, 2013 at 8:48 pm

    Some of the stuff in the reviews were defiantly not true but this is one of my favorite books of all time. Then again I’m only twelve but that’s the age this book was mention for.

  • Hss
    December 8, 2013 at 8:51 pm

    I think every one should STOP obeying reviews and think for themselves

  • Hss
    December 8, 2013 at 8:54 pm

    Oh and also these reviews just point out the bad points of the story and not the good points like description,some good plots and imagination, and the cliff hangers at the end of each chapter

  • Qwerty
    December 12, 2013 at 8:03 pm

    Okay, to all you losers out there, DO NOT listen to those reviews. Keeper of the Lost Cities (and the sequel, Exile) was AN AWESOME BOOK!!!!!!!!!! Seriously! So if you didn’t like this book, well, go f*** yourself. I totally agree with Anonymous (from January 17)! Oh, and Alex/AnimeGirl, why don’t you READ the friggin’ book before you read it??? I mean, that’s so incredibly lame, not reading a book, and then writing a stinking review about it! And I don’t know why y’all hate this book! I, personally and honestly, enjoyed this book very much! So, get out there and read it!

  • Another Anonymous book lover
    December 17, 2013 at 11:00 pm

    Seriously?????? Umm….. I do trust ur reviews sometimes and I have disagreed with a few of ur reviews before I come to this site a lot as well but this review was like REALLY far off from what the book was actually about, and I think u guys were focusing on the wrong points of this book. When u said that the book “delivers instead is a story about ultra-beautiful, ultra-intelligent, ultra-magical elves (yes, elves), whose existence is secret from disgusting humans. It then morphs into Harry Potter knock-off land, complete with a prestigious, secret and ultra selective academy for young prodigious elves, with classes in specialized areas like alchemy and telepathy. Oh yeah, and it turns out that Sophie Foster, our protagonist, is not only superduper desirable (a humble twelve year old, but already commanding the attentions of fifteen year olds) but possesses unparalleled power and is The One who can Save them All” is ALL complete idiocity, I feel like you were too preoccupied with finding similarities between this book and Harry potter to actually pay attention to any of the real plot. Btw the “hottest girl in the academy” that was WAY exaggerated, because that was like only mentioned once in the actual book. And when the author was comparing Sophie to her family “chubby brunette family” she was doing that to make a point that Sophie was far from her families typical resemblance and that she was starting to take better notice in it. Also Sophie isn’t the perfect “snowflake” that everyone supposedly likes the way you think she is, don’t you notice she has a bit of a temper (when she found out Edaline and Grady cancelled her adoption, u see it around there). another thing since you don’t know how to connect the dots I’ll do it for you, the reason the book is called keeper of the lost cities is because remember how when the were in Atlantis they said Sophie would make a good keeper when she was older? And they are in the lost cities which is hidden from humans because the humans betrayed the elves long ago (u 2 really need to learn how to pay attention to well written books), anyway it’s called keeper of the lost cities because sophie is a potential “keeper” , ” of the lost cities”. Just so you know the author put Marella in there as a side character she’s not really a big part in this book, she’s there to make the book more realistic, on your first day of school you meet new people it’s kinda how it’s supposed to work, right? one more thing ( I know this is getting like rrreeeaaallllyyy long but I wanna cover all of my points) the talent of pyrokinesis was the only forbidden talent because it was unpredictable, mesmerizing, and inflicting is just monitored closely because people with those power can do some atrocious things like inflict pain, or mesmerize someone into doing something crazy like jumping of a cliff. Okay I think that’s the end of this random rambling, but I wanted to acknowledge that I know this was not well written or anything but please these comments are all coming from a 12 yr old Canadian girl

  • Another Anonymous book lover
    December 17, 2013 at 11:05 pm

    Oh and I forgot to add that what they really said in the book was Sophie was the prettiest girl in the school, this was said by someone who has a big crush on her so it’s understandable why’d they put it in the book

  • Another Anonymous book lover
    December 17, 2013 at 11:18 pm

    I think this is my last comment *crosses finger that it is*. I also wanted to point out that gnomes are entirely different creatures from the elves and they live with elves because they absorb sunlight with their skin (which they re described in the book as looking more like plants than animals) and they are looking for ways to keep busy all the time so they stay with the elves (I got that info from the second book by the way) one last thing (I think), is that although everyone is rich, they don’t consider themselves that because money is something they are given at birth by the council. In the same sense that we all are citizens after were born

  • Random Human
    February 17, 2014 at 9:33 pm

    Okay honestly this rant about Keeper of the Lost Cities is horrible. This is a great book and even if it shares blood with Harry Potter, that’s perfectly fine! Keeper of the Lost Cities is still different. For instance, the terms, the “magic” and “wizards”, yeah, that doesn’t happen in Keeper. Fitz even says magic isn’t real. And, to everyone’s reviews, you real trust a page that talks about the negatives? Try READING the book, see if you LIKE it.

  • Anonymous
    February 26, 2014 at 3:11 pm

    i loooooved this book,and any one who disagrees can go eat mud

  • Amanda
    February 26, 2014 at 5:59 pm

    When I see or hear of elves, I think Lord of the Rings. Tolkien revolutionized the way we read and write stories, with the help of his friends, one of whom was C.S. Lewis. Now, I understand what you are saying about the book, but that’s not what I was seeing or thinking when I read it for I went in with the thought of Lord of the Rings, not Harry Potter (though I did notice some similarities). On top of that, I am not a fan of Harry Potter, but I did enjoy Keeper of the Lost Cities and I will continue the rest of the series. After all, if others don’t mind the rip-offs of Twilight (Mortal Instruments, which was also considered a rip-off of Harry Potter) and other such stories, then why should we have a problem with this?
    However, if you do wish to read about elves with a little more variety, you should try The Berinfell Prophecies, one “race” of elves is blue-skinned.

  • Anonymous
    February 27, 2014 at 8:17 pm

    i really dont care if it is even a smiget CLOSE to dumb old harry potter, i loved it, cant wait for 3 and… YOU ARE SOOO WRONG, THEA & ANA!!!!!!!!!!! BEST BOOK EVER! i hope at least a handful of you guys agree with me.

  • Anonymous
    March 13, 2014 at 8:51 pm

    I have to agree with Anonymous. I loved this book. I am always looking for good books and now a-days it’s hard to find good books. I think that even though Thea and Anna think this book is a rip-off I think that Harry Potter is a much darker book and therefore not awesome for a younger audience.

  • Anonymous
    May 19, 2014 at 5:29 pm

    I do not agree, Keeper of the lost cities was an awesome book and I found nothing wrong with it, it may be like Harry Potter, but Harry Potter is the best book ever and it is hard to think of an idea that isn’t anything like Harry Potter. You want a bad book, read The House of Hades, total disappointment. I think Shannon Messenger is a great writer and she should keep up the awesome work.

  • Anonymous
    May 21, 2014 at 10:24 am

    I personally LOVED this series. Sophie was really struggling at her school in the human world, bothered by all the noisy sounds. She didn’t have to try really hard to get a test right or answers correct. She just memorized them. And when Fitz swept her off her feet and brought her to the Land of Elves, she didn’t have to hear jabbering sounds anymore. She had to try harder to achieve things among other elves and truly tried her absolute best

  • Anonymous
    May 21, 2014 at 10:27 am

    Sophie finds out about herself but she still went on, proving to us all that life truly still goes on. I think Shannon was a wonderful writer and am hoping book 3, Everblaze comes out soon! (Has every Shannon fan seen the cover of Everblaze yet?!)

  • SVJ
    June 23, 2014 at 12:24 am

    Thea and Ana you guys are stupid. Just because a book was like HP doesn’t it mean it wasn’t good. If it keeps you reading or when your done with the book you feel satisfied or want the next book then it is a good book. All of you that didn’t read the book read it! It is good. Thea and Ana I refuse to listen to your summary’s anymore you guys didn’t even give the book a chance and I doubt you will with other books! Goodbye!!!!!

  • Anonymous
    July 1, 2014 at 12:58 pm

    really I liked keeper of the lost citites because of the ripoff

  • Peacemaker
    July 23, 2014 at 9:31 pm

    I have actually READ the Keeper of the Lost Cites and Exile– and yeah, I GET that their are some similarities between this book and Harry Potter. But, come on. Seriously? You’re going to drop a book just because it’s SIMILAR to another one? Don’t get me wrong, I love HP too. But you know what? Keeper of the Lost Cities is a whole new adventure. It has meaningful characters, characters that are really believable and real, characters that you’ll believe in and WISH they were actually real. I fell in love with the Sophie–she’s a main character who is a brave, strong, young girl–and she’s getting stronger. How often do you get to meet a main protagonist like that?
    The entire series so far has been a huge adventure for me, and I honestly don’t even notice sometimes a few things are almost the same with this and HP. I don’t even care, because it’s not Harry Potter. HP will always shine in a different spotlight.
    All I’m saying is, maybe all you need to do is give this book a chance.
    Or, if you absolutely hate it, then that’s fine too. Not everyone has to love the same thing. Where’d be the fun in that, right?

  • Anonymous
    July 30, 2014 at 11:48 pm

    I really feel bad for people basing their opinions on these people’s opinions. It’s a Harry Potter knock off, yes. BUT! It is really good, of course this is only my opinion. You need to at least try and read the book before you hate on it or are bummed out that you can’t. I loved this book so much and really just feel bad for those who base their own opinions on other’s http://www.thebooksmugglers.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_confused.gif

  • Anonymous
    July 30, 2014 at 11:51 pm

    God, I’ve been reading more comments and people wont even give it a chance and are giving them away and I just ASDFGHJKLNQEFWCEGIWXHFWTHGNC 3Q

  • Tt forever
    August 8, 2014 at 5:15 pm

    oh my gosh come on people this book is awesome ok u will understand EVERYTHING when u read the stinking book i mean come on when fitzs says the magic think he says HUMANS he is not a human he is an elf sheeh peopple this is a review this is what other people say about the book and seriously she is skinny ok and when she says twelve year old yes she is but no one says she is the prettiest girl in school her friend dex …nevermind that would spoil it ok just read a sample of the book read it at barnes and noble and then if u dont like it the return it but come on ALOT AND I MEAN ALOT of people like the book

  • Anonymous
    September 23, 2014 at 9:13 am

    I disagree with the review. Sophie was not described as hot. In fact she is hated and called a freak. I love both Harry potter and keeper of the lost cities. It’s unfair to criticise books As authors spend a whole year writing and get pounded down by you people?

  • Anonymous
    November 7, 2014 at 4:41 pm

    I think you guys could have been a leetle more unbiased and thought about the good parts of the book as well as the bad.

  • Anonymous
    November 7, 2014 at 4:44 pm

    I’d like to see you try to write a book as good and then criticize your own writing. I mean, sorry, but could you maybe approach it from all sides, considering the author’s purpose and all? That would make it a very balanced review. I know you can have an opinion, but seeing as you’re writing this for a wide audience, you could be more considerate to the people who enjoy this sort of book.

  • Anonymous
    November 7, 2014 at 4:49 pm

    Can I add a gripe? How can Sophie be so naive as to continue to fall for Fitz when he proved he was a jerk in book 2? I mean, come on. And I think, like you said, the book could have been a little less “perfect” for Sophie. But, despite my few gripes, I’m still a fan, so I do think the rest of the book is fine.

  • Anonymous
    November 7, 2014 at 4:53 pm

    Yeah, um, I don’t recall you mentioning anything GOOD about the book. What about the humor? What about the PLOT? What about the THEMES in this book? I mean, we can all gripe about the book. But the challenge is to take a book and find the good parts in it, ones that narrate the author’s personality. So who cares if some of it spins Harry Potter? People, there is nothing new under the sun. You’ll never find anything “ORIGINAL”.

  • Anonymous
    November 7, 2014 at 4:58 pm

    Haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. But me? I TOTALLY LOVE THIS BOOK!!!

  • Anonymous
    November 7, 2014 at 5:20 pm

    I think your review could have used some balance. I personally loved this book, and it didn’t deserve the criticism that you gave it. Yes, anyone can gripe about a book, but can they point out the TOTALLY AWESOME stuff about it if they scorn it after ONE READ?
    Shannon Messanger would scorn this review. As do I.

  • AnimeJune
    November 7, 2014 at 9:27 pm

    OMG, this review is over two years old, get over yourselves commenters.

  • Fitzkitty
    November 14, 2014 at 9:14 pm

    I think Keeper was an AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! book. You notice all the comments on here saying they loved the book are from people who READ the book and the comments saying they were glad they read this review were from people saying they had NEVER ACTUALLY READ THE BOOK. And now, thanks to this review, they probably never will. i just want to say, you guys SHOULD read this book. It’s fine if you don’t like it, because everyone likes different things, but you should at least TRY it. Please.

    By the way, alot of the comments about simalarities to Harry Potter seem to stretch the truth a bit, it seems to me.

  • Fria Moon
    December 1, 2014 at 9:31 pm

    Wow. This is my first, and last, time using you guys.
    Read the book.
    Then fix this mess of a review.

  • Anonymous
    January 22, 2015 at 6:33 pm

    I understand that everyone has there own opinion but I happened to COMPLETELY disagree with this one. I LOVED this book and it is my second favorite series of all time. I don’t understand why everyone always relates things to Harry Potter nowadays!! I mean, the story has some fantasy characters in it and special powered and BOOM, it’s exactly like Harry Potter. I do appreciate this review but I think that Keeper of the Lost Cities is DEFINITELY worth your time!!! 😀 😀

  • Kilo
    February 16, 2015 at 11:42 am

    Well I have to agree with this review. I found the book in my store looking for the last percy jackson and the cover got my eyes so I brought the first two (about 30 euros as I am french). Well i was confused. Everything in the review is kind of true. Plus it’s really weird to have so much shipping especially since fitz is clearly introduced as the main love interest. But what I really disliked is the super power, not one but two talents when it’s stated that it’s extremely hard to have just one talent…. It’s good to have flaw it give the character backbone…

    When I read the comment written by twelve years girls who disagree and say it’s the best book ever…. Well that show that twelve years old now want to get fifteen year old boyfriend or several. I weep for the future.

    Well I wasted money….

  • suvashross
    March 12, 2015 at 3:14 am

    What a total crap!!
    The series is honestly the best I ever read, and I don’t really care about the money I spent to buy the first book (I’m from Malaysia, so RM 25 is considered cheap by many), and I definitely don’t care what everyone say about this book. Everyone’s choices are different, but I’m still sticking to this series.

    It’s bad enough to critisize a book you haven’t actually read, and nodding along with all the people who judged negatively about this book.

    To the two people who even bothered to review this book so badly, go and wash your eyes with bleach and try to read the entire series before you say any more bad things.

    It is mentioned perfectly in the first book that magic isn’t real. BESIDES, THIS IS A FICTION FANTASY BOOK, SO THINGS ARE NOT ALL LOGIC, IT’S JUST IMAGINATIVE AND CREATIVE. WELL, GO AND WRITE A BOOK BETTER THAN HARRY POTTER, AND SEE WHOSE WRITING IS RUBBISH!!!

  • suvashross
    March 12, 2015 at 3:15 am

    What a total crap!!
    The series is honestly the best I ever read, and I don’t really care about the money I spent to buy the first book (I’m from Malaysia, so RM 25 is considered cheap by many), and I definitely don’t care what everyone say about this book. Everyone’s choices are different, but I’m still sticking to this series.

    It’s bad enough to critisize a book you haven’t actually read, and nodding along with all the people who judged negatively about this book.

    To the two people who even bothered to review this book so badly, go and wash your eyes with bleach and try to read the entire series before you say any more bad things!!!

  • Anonymous
    May 17, 2015 at 3:38 pm

    I LOVED the book!
    I like Harry Potter. I read all of them.
    Now that you point it out, I now notice the resemblance.
    Just because they are some alike, does not mean anything!
    Just on the first page, I was hooked! AWESOME BOOK!!!

    Also, most books follow the same line. You need a bad guy, something wrong has to happen, and the main character gets out of it.

    Thse book reviewers must take sides. I’m not the person to say things like that, but what they put was horrible! Now people think this is a bad book, but it’s AMAZING!!! PLEASE READ THIS BOOK!!!

  • Random
    May 29, 2015 at 5:18 am

    I think this is a bad review so far by them. I read the book and its awesome. besides, this is just the first book,it improves .I totally recommend u to read it. and i am totally looking forward to the 4th book coming out this year.

  • Keeperfan
    November 1, 2015 at 5:10 pm

    I would just like to say that Sophie wan NOT considered the hottest girl in school, she was just the least admired (in high school). And for “the slender blonde among her chubby brunette family.” Sophie was just describing some of the differences between her family and her. Mesmerising and inflicting isn’t “frowned upon” it’s just rare and one of the more dangerous abilities! One of the Councillers abilities isinflicting! And for the 12 year old girl attracting the attentions of 15 year olds, not true. But everyone has their own opinions and that was mine. Personally, I think that you should read this book for sure. And if you check out the book at the library and you don’t like it, no biggie! Its not like you wasted money on it!

  • Keeperfan
    November 1, 2015 at 5:21 pm

    One more thing, I read that Shannon Messenger (the author) wanted the title to be way different (I don’t know if its true) so if your expecting it to be about lost cites, well, it’s not exactly the main part of the story.

  • Fan
    November 8, 2015 at 1:38 pm

    Read book four it is awesome it explains a lot and you see the true colors of the elvin world

  • bookworm2021
    November 18, 2015 at 8:15 am

    Okay, first off, I like the specifics with your book review and I can see where it came from, but I still have a lot of problems with it.

    About the Magic and Science and animals thing: it’s the elves’ world and their technology is more advanced.It shows how separated humans and elves are in the book when it talks about how different dinosaurs are from what humans think they are, and it shows how elves are smarter than humans. Plus, it didn’t completely disregard human technology, they just said it elves’ technology was a lot more advanced, which is further proven and explored with Dex. Yes, I do have a problem with the chubby brunette family compared to the slim blonde, but it does show how different Sophie truly is from her family.

    Sophie’s an elf, and Shannon Messenger says in the book that elves are normally prettier and smarter than humans. Yes, I do have a problem with the chubby brunette family compared to the slim blonde, but it does show how different Sophie truly is from her family. Also, she didn’t say Sophie was the ‘hottest’ girl in school, she said she was the prettiest, and Dex, who’s opinion is biased, was the one who said that. Also, I take it as Sophie will be prettier than the girls older than her when she reaches that age since Della said she WILL be a heart breaker, as in the FUTURE.

    The gnomes spend a lot of time in the sun. When you spend a lot of time in the sun, your skin either gets sunburned or darkens, so the gnomes skin could be brown because of that, or it could be because the trunk of a tree is normally brown bark, and the gnomes are plant-like. Plus, read the fourth book and you’ll find that gnomes are really important and that it is not racist at all, which is proven when Councilor Emery was described as a dark skinned, -IN THE FIRST BOOK – and he’s a councilor, about as high a status as you can get.

    Pyrokinesis is the only banned ability, whereas the three Unforgivable Curses are all illegal. Inflictors and Mesmers are just rare and people are usually scared of them, but for any of the abilities to be misused it is frowned upon, so your comparison with the Unforgivable Curses isn’t a good one.

    Also, no characterization? Read the next book! This is a first book in the series, and usually in a series, the character gets developed THROUGHOUT THE SERIES. I don’t really think Harry changed that much from the beginning to end of the first book, but even if you do, Sophie changed, too. She went from being the girl who kept her head down and did nothing with her life to the girl who made important decisions. Please, don’t compare the characterization in ONE BOOK to the characterization in SEVEN BOOKS.

    Lady Galvin is not like Snape as much as you think. Yes, she is disagreeable and she doesn’t like Sophie, but she doesn’t like ANYONE whereas Snape likes the Slytherins. The food is different, but it’s a world where gnomes grow everything and everyone is a vegetarian and an elf, so OF COURSE THE FOOD IS DIFFERENT, AND SORRY IF THERE IS A FOOD THAT SOPHIE LIKES SINCE I’M CERTAIN EVERYONE LIKES AT LEAST ONE FOOD! The students locker uses the DNA of every students and when I read about the part where the flavor of the lock always changes, my take was it was because it entertained the teachers rather than the reason in Harry Potter because the DNA already does that. Cassius literally bumps into Sophie ONCE in the book whereas Lucius appears throughout the book, and it isn’t Cassius’s son, Keefe, who’s Sophie’s rival – it’s Stina. Dame Alina is NOTHING like Dumbledore – she’s vain and tried to ruin a wedding. Do you see wise old Dumbledore doing that?

    Also, it isn’t a game of catch, it’s a game where you have to run and protect a base, so when you said Sophie learned how to play Catch, you’re wrong. You said Dex’s parents were considered bad matches since they weren’t nobility, but you’re wrong; they’re bad match because one was Talentless and one was Talented, which – in Harry Potter terms – would make him a HALF-BLOOD not a muggle-born. Sophie wasn’t ‘Sophie-the-Snowflake’ either, and I have no idea where that came from. You spelled Sophie wrong, too – you spelled it as Sophia at one point – and Mesmer, and I know everyone makes mistakes, but it really irks me.

    No offense, but please get your facts right before you make such a criticizing review, because with all your not accurate and not thought out comparisons and points, it makes it seem like you read the book just to look for things to criticize and hate.

    Again, nice specifics, but really get your facts and comparisons straight.

  • Anonymous
    December 1, 2015 at 1:39 am

    Totally agree with you guys. Honestly, those parts you’ve mentioned was what turned me off the book. Big time. Also, I found the prose of the book kinda lacking and was boring to read. I think I was at 25% until I couldn’t stand it and dropped the book.

  • Anonymous
    December 3, 2015 at 7:28 pm

    “NO TWO PERSONS EVER READ THE SAME BOOK!”
    Just because it got a ad review, doesn’t mean you should not read it.
    I personally think this review is really stupid, and the reviewer (ANA and THEA) are EXTREMELY NARROW-MINDED.

  • anonymous
    December 7, 2015 at 6:42 pm

    AnimeJune, and anyone who blindly trusts this review and thinks the same, I’m not sure if you can see this comment or not, but about your latest comment about this being over two (now three) years old: it’s just that keeper fans are kinda mad since, let me tell you, this review has lies in it. Read the other comments to see which ones. And as for the Sophie is the hottest girl in high school – not true. Foxfire starts at age eleven or around that number, and Dex was the one who said that, and Dex likes Sophie. Plus, the words were prettier, not hotter. The slender blonde in a chubby brunette family is something I don’t like much, but she’s just highlighting how different Sophie is. Yes, she could have done it in a different way, but that doesn’t mean the whole book is terrible.

  • Mel’s Holiday Staff Recommendations | The Shelf Life
    December 11, 2015 at 6:22 pm

    […] Keeper of the Lost Cities, by Shannon Messenger, ISBN# 9781442445949, $8.99, from Simon and Schuster. […]

  • Anonymous
    January 21, 2016 at 4:27 pm

    How dare you!!!

  • Averie
    February 5, 2016 at 10:54 pm

    I kind of feel personally insulted, because this is my all-time favorite book. However, you are entitled to your own opinion.
    Several things I want to point out (some have already been said in other comments_everyone rushes to her aid at slightest provocation):
    1. Some characters DO have dark skin. For Example, Wylie Endal, and his father, Prentice, as well as Councillor Emery.
    2. Sophie is called “the prettiest girl in school” by someone who has a crush on her. SHE DOES NOT IN ANY WAY THINK THAT SHE IS PRETTIER THAN EVERYONE ELSE, AND I WOULD ASSUME THAT EVERYONE ELSE DOES NOT THINK THAT EITHER.
    3. Dame Alina is not benevolent. I actually strongly dislike her.
    4. Sophie is not “sickeningly sweet and good,” nor does “everyone rushes to her aid at slightest provocation.” She has a bit of a temper, often makes rash decisions, and yeah, she CHEATS ON HER ALCHEMY EXAM, even though she regrets it a lot later. Also, most of the school hates her/dislikes her/doesn’t bother to pay attention to her until she becomes famous by destroying her horrible alchemy teacher’s cape.
    5. Lady Galvin is nothing like Snape. Snape hates Harry’s father, while Lady Galvin just doesn’t like her job, making her dislike everyone.
    6. Cassius is nothing like Malfoy. Sure, they are both disagreeable, blond fathers, but Cassius is actually not evil (just arrogant), and neither is his son. You can’t say that much for the Malfoys.
    7. Pyrokinesis is the only forbidden talents. The other two mentioned in the review as forbidden are just rare.
    8. Dex and Marella are nothing like Ron and Hermione. They are just the main character’s friends. That is not a fair comparison. Plus, Marella isn’t really even a main character.
    9. I agree this book has many similarities to Harry Potter. For example, they are both AWESOME! However, the reviewers did not really touch on the unique plot twists (mainly near the end of the book), or the amazing characters, or anything like that. I think that they were to busy looking for faults with the book that they missed all of the good parts. If you are determined not to like something and not open to new ideas as the books improve, you are not going to like it. Also, the rest of the series (which you should definitely read) are much more different from HP than this one. This book just set up the world and characters so that the awesomeness could continue.
    I could go on and on, but you probably get my point.
    THE BOTTOM LINE: Don’t let this review taint your view of an amazing book. Read it. If you dislike it then, OK. As I said, I will respect your opinion (thought on the inside I will be heart broken.
    Happy Reading!

  • Ninja lady
    April 15, 2016 at 9:49 pm

    I love the Keeper series and if none of you bums will stand up for it I will.
    KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES GIVES ME LIFE! I FORCED MY OTHER FRIENDS TO READ IT AND THEY ALL LOVED IT! I AM HONESTLY OBSESSED WITH IT AND I ALMOST THREW THE COMPUTER AT THE WALL WHEN I READ THIS LIE! LOTS OF PEOPLE LOVE THIS BOOKS AND THAT IS WHY THEY ARE MY FRIENDS, WELL THAT AND THE FACT THAT THEY ACTUALLY HAVE A GOOD PERSONALITY UNLIKE YOU! SERIOUSLY WHAT KIND OF JERK GOES AROUND INSULTING PEOPLE’S HARD WORK! SHANNON MESSENGER WORKED HARD ON THAT SERIES AND THEN YOU JUST GO AND MAKE FUN OF IT! Dude, get a life.

  • NinjaLady
    April 15, 2016 at 9:51 pm

    Thank you. Thank you so much.

  • Tracy
    May 4, 2016 at 2:22 pm

    Thanks for the great review. My 10 year old daughter read this book and wanted me to read it. I suffered through the first 10 chapters. When I couldn’t take any more cliches and badly written plagiarism, I went looking for a review. Reassured by a few well written reviews, including this one, I skimmed the rest of the book.

    It’s perfect for a pre teen who wants to explore strange fantasy works without much development or depth. Thankfully, we don’t buy books but use our local library. I prefer my YA books to be much higher quality if I’m going to spend time or money on them.

  • Ravens1316
    July 9, 2016 at 8:46 pm

    I know this reply is 4 years late, but it’s never to late to read a book!! Keeper of the Lost Cities is my ALL TIME FAVORITE BOOK!!!!!!!!!! In my opinion it is nothing like Harry Potter and is just as good (or better) than Harry Potter. The series takes you through many twists and turns that you would never see coming!!! PLEASE give this book a try!!!!!!!!!! I’m 99.9% sure that you will love it!!! Now there are currently 4 books in the series (which get better and better as the series go on:) with the 5th one coming out I think in November. Keeper of the Lost Cities may seem weird at first, but keep reading!!!!!! You won’t be disappointed. Sophie is such a special character that i’m sure you will fall in love with!!! If you go on goodreads you will see how MUCH people love and go crazy for this book!!!!!!! PLS, PLS, PLS, READ THIS BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (sorry if I went too crazy, I’m a teenager who loves this series and loves to read!)

  • Ravens1316
    July 9, 2016 at 9:06 pm

    SPOILER FOR ANYONE WHO LOVES KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES: If you would have read the whole series, things would have made a lot more sense!!!!!!! In (I think) book 4 Sophie is surprised to learn that Human and elf ages are not the same, so it turns out in the elven world, Sophie is closer to Fitz, Keefe’s and Dex’s ages than you really think. Also in my opinion this is nothing like Harry Potter!!! Honestly, There was so much more to the plot than you described to the readers. Sophie makes A LOT more friends than Dex and Marrella (later in the series Marrella and Sophie are not) Also, they have abilities and in Harry potter they have wands that can whip up magic. Base Quest isn’t even a “sport” where everyone attends. It’s just a game that the teens enjoy playing unlike quidditch. (Sorry if I went A little too Far!!! I just love this Series so much and think you should have read the rest of the series!!!!! Sorry for spelling errors!!!!!!!)

  • Ravens1316
    July 9, 2016 at 9:08 pm

    OMG SAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I TOTALLY AGREE!!! I LUV THIS BOOK:)

  • Ravens1316
    July 9, 2016 at 9:31 pm

    🙂 I agree

  • Anonymous
    August 18, 2016 at 1:11 pm

    What is wrong with you people!!!!! Keepers of the Lost Cities is one of my FAVORITE book series. (I have to say that Eragon is always number one.) The TROLLS who made this web obviously never read the other books, or even the first one! Councillor Emery is described as having DARK SKIN!!!!! And so is Prentice and his son are both described as having DARK SKIN as well! If you read the other books they are nothing like Harry Potter. There may be similarities in the first one, but it is NOT a rip-off. These books inspired me to write my own series. The people who wrote this may not have liked it, so they told all these terrible lies about the author and the books. I KNOW I’m not the only one inspired by these books.
    To the people who wrote this, read ALL the other books before you judge them.

  • Anonymous
    September 13, 2016 at 3:32 pm

    I know right. Just stop hating on Keeper of the Lost Cities just because you don’t like it. I mean if you don’t like it so much don’t read it. I hate people like y’all. Always talking about something just because you don’t like it. Well NEWS FLASH: WE DON’T CARE WHAT YOU LIKE. I mean just ugh.

    Most people in middle school LOVE this book!!!! I mean just shut up! ?Personally I think Keeper of the Lost Cities is better than Harry Potter.

  • Anonymous
    September 13, 2016 at 3:33 pm

    I know right. Just stop hating on Keeper of the Lost Cities just because you don’t like it. I mean if you don’t like it so much don’t read it. I hate people like y’all. Always talking about something just because you don’t like it. Well NEWS FLASH: WE DON’T CARE WHAT YOU LIKE. I mean just ugh.

    Most people in middle school LOVE this book!!!! I mean just shut up! ?Personally I think Keeper of the Lost Cities is better than Harry Potter.

  • Noelle213
    November 12, 2016 at 1:10 am

    Oh, wow. You guys should REALLY read the book instead of relying on this blog. First of all, in HP, Harry hates the family he is living with, while in Sophie’s case, she loves them. Second, um, the deadly curses were deadly but the three abilities (pyrokinetiscm, inflicting and mesmerizing) aren’t deadly, they are just closely watched. Third, the books that followed were simply lovely and is different from the HP series. Fourth, really? You think only gnomes were brown skinned? Well sorry to tell you but a lot of other characters were brown skinned and one of them is a really important character. Fifth, I don’t think that this story is a live story, rather, it is a story about finding out who Sophje really is. Lastly, I hope you read all books before you judge it too harshly and I hope you feel happy that you made rude comments about a book that you haven’t really read.

    P.S. I love both Harry Potter and Keeper of the Lost Cities, so I am sure I am not biased

  • Anonymous
    November 19, 2016 at 2:07 pm

    I loved this book. Yes, it has flaws, but every book has flaws. If you want to rant about a horrible book, go rant about Twilight, which ruined vampires & werewolves. And while I do look at book reviews, I read some of the book to see if it’s the kind of thing I like.

  • Anonymous
    November 23, 2016 at 2:59 pm

    First off lol, Twilight is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much worst than KotLC. I agree, all books have flaws even Harry Potter. This is a fun and page turning book.

  • Anonymous
    November 29, 2016 at 8:13 pm

    this is a rly good book series and Shannon messenger is an amazing author so all of you haters go die in a whole cause you have nothing better to do but be critical and ruin peoples sights of and awesome book series…and incase you haven’t noticed she makes a lot of money because so many people love her books so back off

  • Anonymous
    November 29, 2016 at 9:55 pm

    oh and the people who say she is a twelve year old actually if you read on she is fourteen and if she attracts 15 year olds its not her fault and the people she attracts are only 2 years older then her and that is tots normal so if you want to rant about a horrible book do one of your favorite books because seeing your taste i think that they are worthy of being burt up

  • Anonymous
    November 29, 2016 at 10:05 pm

    loved this book!

  • Anonymous
    November 29, 2016 at 10:08 pm

    the best book ever and it is not anything like harry potter because i tried reading it and i actually tried to stand it not just skim it like these crappy people who reviewed it and said it was horrible well i actually tried but i could not stand the book its tots stupid and it even gets kids to believe that black magic is real and stuff!!!!!!!

  • Sunshard
    December 1, 2016 at 1:03 pm

    What? I’m so confused, did you like KotLC or not. I read your review like 5 times, and I still don’t get it

  • Anonymous
    December 10, 2016 at 9:50 pm

    I get it. I read the Keeper of the Lost Cities books, and they were decent, and the review was a bit unfair saying the charecters were “flat, thin, and poor imitations,” (especially Keefe, he is anything but boring) but the Sophie Foster IS the most special snowflake I have ever read about. Honesty? I think I would have enjoyed the book better if she had been talentless and had to use her witt instead of manifesting a new ability for every problem. Last note, please don’t dissmiss Harry Potter like that. Harry Potter was an amazing series, with a better Protagonist that was not such a *cough* special snowflake *cough*. Harry actually had LOTS of flaws, and the ladies didn’t exactly swoon when it came to dating. Harry was also about an average student, and many people could relate to him. Not so many people can relate to being a beautiful genius with boys fawning all over her. Why do you think there’s a Harry Potter theme park? And the new “Fantastic Beast and Where To Find Them” can’t be classified as “old”. Calling Harry Potter dumb is like blowing a whisle for a herd of angry fangirls, and we’ve arrived.

  • Anonymous
    December 10, 2016 at 9:56 pm

    I politely disagree, I really enjoyed the Keeper of The Lost Cities.

  • OnlyKLCfanhere
    December 25, 2016 at 1:14 pm

    It’s really not as bad as they make it sound. Firstly, Shannon never implied that Sophie was hot, only that she was prettier than her low self esteem deemed her to be it’s one of my favourite books and as you read more and more of the series, it’ll drift out of the Harry potter. In my opinion, I really like this book and you should try reading it, everyone has their own opinion and you should see for yourself and have your own take on it.

  • Anonymous
    December 25, 2016 at 1:38 pm

    I think this review just spoiled the book for you, I would bet you were reading it thinking ‘how bad could this possibly be?’ and that’s what made you dig for mistakes that weren’t there. Or it could have simply made you doubtful of the contents of the book. What ever it is, you should read it with an open mind, take for example someone told you that your favourite food was disgusting and listed a hundred reasons why they think so, would that suddenly make you dislike it? No! It’s their personal opinion and what really matters is what you think about it. So if you ever plan on reading it again, take it that your trying a new food. Don’t think of the bad things other people said as you consume it, just focus on what you taste. Who knows, it might become your favourite food! Sorry for the food reference, it was the only thing I thought of to explain. Keep an open mind!!!

  • Anonymous
    December 25, 2016 at 2:11 pm

    Judith, can you please read the book first? You can probably find it in the libraries easily. Everyone is sort of good-looking in the elf world and Sophie is far from perfect. Let me name a few of her flaws; she is extremely clumsy, always falling down. She is quite reckless, she often does things without permission and ends up having close brushes with death. She is horrible at physical activities and alchemy, but of course that is already mentioned. It may be true that the are a few similarities between KLC and HP but everybody gets idea through inspirations and Shannon’s inspiration for have been from Harry potter. There are now 5 books of 7 in the series and as you read them, it slowly unveils into its own beautiful unique story. Please take the time to read it, it’ll probably only take 1 week of your time to try out the first book. And keep an open mind for the best experience.

  • Keeper 4 Life
    January 20, 2017 at 12:22 am

    I completely agree with you! I Love the Keeper of the Lost Cities book series. I don’t know why people don’t like it. I guess they just don’t understand the mystery, imagination, and true friendship in this book. Even if it is a little bit like Harry Potter, I’ve read a lot of books with similarities to Harry Potter, and other books. I will always stand by Keeper of the Lost Cities.

  • Keeper 4 Life
    January 20, 2017 at 12:35 am

    These book reviewers make this series sound like a trash book thrown together for some board middle schoolers with nothing else to read. I know everyone has a right to an opinion, but straight forward telling people that this series is terrible and not worth the light of day, is not just expressing your own opinion, but trying to change other people’s opinion before they even finish the first few chapters. Keeper of the Lost Cities is definitely in my top ten series.

  • Keeper 4 Life
    January 20, 2017 at 12:59 am

    Um.!?!. Just so you know, I am 14 YEARS OLD and I loved the Keeper of the Lost Cities series. Not trying to put down your opinion or anything, but you should really read the entire series, or at least the entire book, before dumping it. In my opinion you sound just like those book reviewers, Narrow Minded!

  • Anonymous
    March 16, 2017 at 5:54 pm

    YOU GUYS!! Where are you getting the”hot gorgeous girl” line from?
    She believes herself to be average looking. NO WHERE in the book does she think she is beautiful.

  • Unknown
    March 18, 2017 at 4:12 pm

    I actually beg to differ. I have read this book and was suprised by how mediocre it was. I then read it again, and instead of picking up on the little hidden parts of this book, I picked up on more parts, nod kept dwelling on the fact that I was NOT SCARED OR WORRIED AT ALL about the villians. The book seems like a girl finds out she’s a superhuman an ends up going to an idealistic world with advanced tech and no worry about poverty or problems, plus some racial slurs, and of course she’s the best at everything. See the difference between Harry Potter?

  • Unknown
    March 18, 2017 at 4:16 pm

    Once again…… I beg to differ. She was actually told she was the prettiest and crap. And a love square of twelve year olds????!!??!! When it come to looks and love, this book fails laughably.

  • Unknown
    March 18, 2017 at 4:22 pm

    I read it, and having read large amounts of books, great and trash, was not impressed, and very let down. I don’t believe they were close minded either. They picked up on the books downfalls, and managed to scrounged up like one good part about it.

  • C
    March 29, 2017 at 1:18 pm

    In my opinion, this review is VERY misleading. Yes, the main character, Sophie, is a special girl in the way that she has more power and talent than the other characters. In response to your review, here is my take on Keeper of the Lost Cities.

    1) The story actually has a very complex plot that is deep and meaningful. These books are meant to be part of series, and review just the first book does not give you the right to be making such harsh judgments about it when you don’t know the full story. The first book is just a part of the series, which leads up to more complex problems, much like Harry Potter, which brings me to my next point.
    2) Yes, the books are similar to Harry Potter in some ways. It’s hard to find a series that isn’t these days because Harry Potter contains so many elements to it. You can’t say that everything that has the tiniest similarity between Keeper of the Lost Cities and Harry Potter is plagiarism of sorts. For example, you crossed out Dumbledore with Dame Alina. What school would not have a principal? Reading later on in the series it would show you these two characters are nothing alike. You crossed out Hermione and Ron with Marella and Dex. What character doesn’t normally make friends with someone at their new school. Hermione and Ron stuck with Harry till the very end, but Sophie and Marella eventually split up. There are many more of these that are similar to Harry Potter, but if you go by those standards, most every tween book would be similar to Harry Potter.
    3) Yes, Sophie is special. But later on in the book and series you realize why. And without her being the way she is, there would be no book and no story to tell. Some books tell about characters with no extraordinary differences. But this is crucial to the story and plot. Sophie does have flaws just like any other character.
    4) As of the first book, there isn’t really a love square at all. Sure, there are a few crushes, what 12 year old doesn’t, but it’s nothing different from real life at all. No boyfriends or girlfriends, no kissing, nothing. Just one or two crushes. I guess it my seem to some people like a love square, but all the characters are really just close friends.

    For anyone reading this review before you read the book, please do not go by it. Read the book for yourself and make your own decisions on how you feel about it. I’m sad that this is the first review that comes up on Google.

  • Anonymous
    March 30, 2017 at 3:57 pm

    I really liked the keeper of the lost cities series

  • book lover
    March 30, 2017 at 3:58 pm

    I really liked the keeper of the lost cities series

  • I HATE KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES
    May 3, 2017 at 2:29 pm

    THANK YOU I read these books and they are so bad, but all my friends love these books and I don’t understand how.

  • Anonymous
    June 12, 2017 at 7:35 pm

    I LOVE keeper of the Lost Cities!!! They are VERY well written, and this review of it STINKS!!! Read all of the book before commenting… X(

  • no name
    September 28, 2017 at 7:01 pm

    Hmmm. In my opinion these books were actually really good. I think that this review should be taken as a matter of someone else’s opinion, and please read the entire series before coming to any conclusions.
    I’d like to note that SOPHIE, not Sophia, was called the prettiest girl in her school by a boy HER AGE and, yes, she did attract boys older than her, but, as we know, elves do have indefinite lifespans, and, as we learn in the later books, do not really count age for much. No one complains about Tris and Tobias’ couple-year-gap, or Katniss’ torn love life, now do they? I would also like to note that this is not a story about a 12 year old getting all smootchy. There is seriously not a kissing scene in all the 5 books out now. AND, by the 5th book Sophie is 14. The most part of relationships are appropriate for her age, and I will also note that most people in 6th grade are in dating relationships (really, people!)

  • Anonymous
    October 24, 2017 at 11:45 pm

    I would just like to mention that even though books can be very similar, it does not mean that they cannot be enjoyed. In addition, I would not consider this to be a rip-off of Harry Potter because many other books have a somewhat similar plot line of a magical protagonist that is “the chosen one” with magical creatures.

  • Cheesy
    November 9, 2017 at 2:42 pm

    Don’t mind me commenting on your post. You’re not the problem. THIS REVIEWER IS.
    Let me just get a few things out of the way here. This book makes CONSTANT jokes about human items. Sophie jokes about about her being an elf at the start of a book by saying, “What am I going to do? Guide the hobbits to Isengard?”. One time one of the characters puts on a human shirt and asks, “What’s the logo on it? It’s cool!” and Sophie didn’t want to answer ‘Wonder Woman’ to ruin his dreams so she said, “A really cool superhero.” She also makes various other references.
    You saying that ‘the life of a slender blonde in a chubby brunette family’ is a ripoff of Harry Potter is stupid. She’s making a Harry Potter reference. My god.
    With romance. Okay. There is a slight bit of romance but NOT MUCH! It’s like ‘her heart fluttered a bit’, like when you see someone and think ‘Wow. he/she is cute.” and that’s the end of it. One of the characters teases Sophie for liking Fitz but that’s IT. Also, not everyone at the school thinks she’s hot. Briana is the one everyone likes. Nobody likes Sophie because she’s ‘the weird new kid’ and just end up giving her weird looks like ‘how the heck did that loser get in this school?’
    Come on man. Have an open mind.

    Anyone who reads this just find comments about people who ACTUALLY LIKED THE BOOK. Don’t listen to this guy. His ideas are crap.

  • Got Milk?
    November 14, 2017 at 6:05 pm

    Wow, I think I read as much of your unaccurate review as you did of the Keeper’s series. Books were written for smart people, or people willing to learn. They weren’t written for idiots like the you who just want to complain. These books brought me, and later my sister into writing our own books. If you like fantasy and aren’t a complaining airhead these books are for you.

  • Sage
    November 15, 2017 at 12:39 am

    Why the heck, may I add, were you guys up at 4:00 in the morning ranting about how Keeper of the Lost Cities is “ridiculous”, and “laughable”, when this book series is specifically targeting middle grade readers??? I think you two snobby women should stop ruining good books for other people, because as you can see, several comments said they weren’t going to read it just because of this ridiculously laughable review. Oh, and by the way you got so many of your facts wrong it seems like you were just reading Sophie’s story because you wanted to write a dirt review about Shannon Messenger’s masterpiece right off the bat. Stupid, am I right? So please remember if you find yourself reading keeper again- and more than the first book because it gets way better- put your own snobbery aside and notice that the characters are more complex, and the plots more twisting, and the cliffhangers more heart-renching- I could go on and on- than the similarities to HP *epic eye roll*
    So please people do not let this review ruin the best book series I have ever read!! – and maybe yours if you’d just give it a try!!!- Go Keeper of the Lost Cities!!!!!

  • Why whole I tell you
    December 27, 2017 at 5:23 pm

    Actually Marella is SUPER important in the 6th book

  • WriterProfile
    January 8, 2018 at 8:58 pm

    Wow. REALLY?! This is coming from someone who has made constant OCs for Harry Potter, owns ALL EIGHT BOOKS AND HAS READ ALL OF THEM AT LEAST FIVE TIMES, owns ALL THE MOVIES, has HP posters on their walls, and dressed up for Hermione for Halloween, so believe me, I know HP. I also own all six Keeper books, have created constant OCs for kotlc, have read EVERY SINGLE BOOK AT LEAST TWICE, and see myself in Sophie Foster like I see myself in a mirror, so believe me, I know KotLC. And I didn’t notice ANY of the similarities that you mentioned the first time around. Why? Because you’d have to be looking REALLY hard to see them. Were you even READING it for the sake of READING it or for the sake of BASHING it? Cause it sure seems like the latter.
    1. People actually like Dumbledore. I hate Alina so much that I’m KILLING HER OFF in my fanfiction and I’m not sure who I hate more: her or Umbridge.
    2. Yes, SOPHIE is a bit OP, BUT that’s because she was GENETICALLY MODIFIED AT BIRTH. Plus, it’s a super important plot point in the following books, especially when they get TAKEN AWAY!
    3. She is NOT attracting the attention of people 3+ years older than her. Fitz is BARELY a year and a half older than her.
    4. Keefe is as far from boring and flat as it gets. I believe that he is one of the deepest characters in the Keeper series. He hides behind a mask of happiness to keep his friends safe from his pain. Whoa.
    5. Keeper is a KIDS book. It’s for young YA readers. Not for adult bloggers who are up WAY too early bashing my favorite books.
    6. WILL YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME HOW HEARTBREAKING BETRAYALS AND EDGE-OF-YOUR-SEAT CLIFFHANGERS COUNT AS “BAD WRITING?!”
    7. If it’s “such a waste of time,” then WHY are you getting flame from the Keeper fans who make up the vast majority of these comments and WHY is there a huge Wiki Fandom page and WHY are there six books in the series with a seventh to come out this fall?
    How rational do you really think you are at 4 in the morning? Be honest. If you are thinking about reading Keeper and are a KID or enjoy KIDS books, then PLEASE don’t listen to this review. If you don’t like kids books, THEN DON’T READ THEM JUST FOR THE SAKE OF INSULTING THEM!
    Honestly, I think that reading this review was a waste of time. The comments are more useful. This review falls on the “Shark Tale” end of the spectrum, as you so eloquently put it. I give this review a 2.
    I’m just glad that all the Keeper fans are standing up for Shannon Messenger and the fandom they love. Because they absolutely should.

  • WriterProfile
    January 9, 2018 at 10:19 am

    By the way, I nearly CRIED when I read this review.

  • Anonymous
    January 24, 2018 at 1:10 pm

    OK THIS IS SO NOT TRUE!!!!!!!! Keeper of the lost cities is by far my favorite book I’ve ever read. And you people wouldn’t know a good book if it slapped you in the face and said Hi I am a good book. First of all all this Harry Potter Ripoff stuff is totally not true. Sophie learns she is a elf not a wizard. And if you learned you were a elf you probably would go to a school for elf’s. ( OMG ITS THE END OF THE WORLD BOTH HARRY AND SOPHIE GO TO SCHOOL) oh and so sorry that the school is also run by a principal like Harry Potter, maybe Shannon should’ve just had the kids run the school with no adult supervisors. Oh and big whoop Sophie makes friends like Harry Potter I wish she was just a socially awkward person with only a pet imp for a friend. And also she doesn’t just make two friends. And as for the bad matches byproduct and non noble elves of course not all elf’s are going to be perfect just like all humans aren’t perfect that is just the society we live in. I would seriously recommend this book to anyone. So if you planning on reading this please do.

  • Anonymous
    April 6, 2018 at 10:27 am

    Ok so I know everyone is allowed to have their own opinions but as other people have pointed out. You literally don’t have any good things about this book. It’s as if you read the book just to point out the bad things about it. You have to add good things about the book to make it a review.

  • Anon
    May 17, 2018 at 10:15 am

    This is not a real review. I don’t know what parts of the book you guys read, because you obviously didn’t read it correctly. You can’t even remember the main character’s name? I think that you just read and reread the book to pick out the bad parts and those parts weren’t even correct. And all the people that read this review, please don’t believe them. Sophie was told that she was the prettiest girl in the school by Dex, who has a crush on her. This book makes a lot of references to other books/tv shows. They mention Sherlock Holmes a lot and also Wonder Woman. And a slender blonde in a chubby brunette family? This wan’t a rip-off of Harry Potter… it was REFERENCING it. Oh so now schools can’t have principals? And Sophie can’t have friends? Marella and Sophie aren’t even that close, not like Harry and Hermione or Ron. There isn’t even a bit of kissing in these books and there have been 6 so far. You said that you thought this book “would be about a telepathic twelve year old girl that discovers secrets about her family, her true birthright, and her abilities.” And then said it wasn’t, but it is?
    With the science and magic part, I don’t know what you’re trying to prove. You said “Oh it’s not magic or science” but yes it is, it’s science. Science is how the world around us is, right? That’s also what Fitz was saying. If you search up the reviews on Google, they’re all good, so maybe you were just trying to pull all the attention to yourselves to be one of the only bad reviews?
    This is just what I think

  • Anonymous
    September 20, 2018 at 1:25 pm

    Hi. So your reviews suck and you need to write something good about the book for it to be an actual review. Otherwise it’s just your opinion and not a review.

  • Unknown
    October 18, 2018 at 3:54 pm

    I am disappointed at the review. The book is amazing. I even have book 7 pre ordered. In the series it is sooooo different from Harry Potter. In your review you missed everything good about it. You think this book is about Chosen One. It’s more then that, the book is about loyality, friendship, selflessness, and trust. Also no book should be laughed at. People spent years write them and then they get laughed it.

  • Unknown
    October 18, 2018 at 3:59 pm

    I am disappointed at the review. The book is amazing. I even have book 7 pre ordered. In the series it is sooooo different from Harry Potter. In your review you missed everything good about it. You think this book is about Chosen One. It’s more then that, the book is about loyality, friendship, selflessness, and trust. Also no book should be laughed at. People spent years write them and then they get laughed it. If you have read the reviews reconsider your ideas about taking the book off your TBR book list. Give every book a chance even if others say it’s a horrible.

  • Anonymous
    November 7, 2018 at 10:40 pm

    I think Thea and Ana should read more into the book. I’ve read the whole series, up until Nightfall (the 7th book is almost out!!) and yes, I can agree, the beginning is a little similar to Harry Potter. But even in the first book it spirals off. That bit about Dame Alina being like Dumbledore? Nuh uh. Did you see how she acted towards Alden when Sophie messed up on the rules of telepathy? SHE HATES SOPHIE!!! Also, Marella and Jensi? They’re just in the first book and then *poof* gone. They don’t ever hang out with Sophie again- in fact, Marella hates Sophie for a loooooooooong time. They’re definitely NOT like Ron and Hermione. Keeper of the Lost Cities is a GREAT series, and I think Thea and Ana need to go back and read the book again, and actually look for what the book is about.

  • An Avid Book Reader
    November 9, 2018 at 1:20 pm

    I believe that many of these comments are actually very stupid, and most were probably written by 12-year-old people who think that these books are “AMAZING” and “WONDERFUL!” Well guess what? Other people have opinions too. I have read the Keeper series, and I can honestly agree with these reviews. Despite what you may think, it is actually a highly mediocre book. There is very little character development, no depth, way too many sparkles, and overall very immature and childish. Not to mention the stupid “crushes.” Honestly, Sophie’s crush is more like obsession-level now, and it’s kind of creepy how many people ship Sophitz, despite the fact that Fitz has extreme anger issues, that Sophie is stalker-level obsessed with him, and that they are both “perfect.” Sophie, the main character, is a total Mary Sue. She has far too many abilities, practically no weaknesses (you may argue that she has an allergy, but guess what? Other people have allergies too! And they aren’t huge flaws!), and is overall way too perfect. Fitz, the main love interest, is overly perfect and caring. He seems less like a human/elf and more like a mannequin.

  • Anonymous
    November 22, 2018 at 9:54 pm

    ^No. I think your forgetting that 3/4 of the fan base ships SOKEEFE, not Sophitz. Read into the series! Sophie’s stressed and angry and sad. She perfectly imperfect. And honey, THE BOOK WAS WRITTEN FOR KIDS. I’m 16, and I love these books. So quit bashing these books and go do what 60 year olds do in their free time.

  • Loyalty
    November 23, 2018 at 8:41 am

    Reading these comments and reviews made me cry, fling the computer across the room, and want to give a rant myself.
    The eighth book of Keeper of the Lost Cities is out, and you’re bashing on the first book, which is irresponsible, considering it’s one book, which an author spent tireless years typing, writing, cramping her hand just to release into the world. Let me also note it’s your responsibility, as mentioned before, to write reviews that actually give all points of the book.
    This book is not a Harry Potter rip off, I personally am I very proud Ravenclaw, and I love both of these books. There is flaws in both books, you’re only focusing on anything you can find to get dirt on this book, and it is not terrible, it’s not a rip-off, not gross.
    If you’re throwing away a book just because of a review which bluntly calls Harry Potter dumb, and Keeper of the Lost Cities idiotic, please read all the faithful comments, of loyal and happy people who read the book, and yes, love it.
    I never trust book reviews wholeheartedly, because only you can build your own opinion, reading reviews is just swallowing other’s perspective.

    Good day, have a nice one.

  • Anonymous
    November 23, 2018 at 9:05 pm

    A. I agree with some of that, because I think that a lot of you have to agree: The first book is not very good. Like, seriously.

    B. Dame Alina and Dumbledore are QUITE different. Dame Alina is only the Dame until the middle of book 3, out of a 9+ book series, while Dumbledore is always the headmaster.

    C. All of the teachers (at Foxfire) take turns changing the flavor on the lockers, and they are not always sweet. Also, a PASSWORD is very different than a DNA activated lock with a flavor.

    D. Mudblood is VERY different from a Bad Match, and also Dex’s parents are in Nobility.

    E. Sophie DOES NOT excel at very many subjects. Not Elementalism, not Alchemy, etc.

    F. Snape has a MUCH MORE complicated history with Harry than Sophie does with Lady Galvin. Sophie just lit Lady Galvin’s cape on fire and she’s HORRIBLE at alchemy, so that’s why Lady Galvin hates her, and Harry is actually fine at Potions.

    G. It never says that Sophie is the prettiest girl at the school.

    H. DNA is a human concept, but all animals have DNA, so why don’t elves?

    I. ABILITIES, not “GIFTS”.

    J. Pyrokinesis, not Pyrokitetisicsm!

    K. Inflicting, not Infliction!

    L. WHAT IS MERMERIZING???????!!!!!!!

    M. Out of the three, Pyrokinesis is the only one that is banned.

    N. In Harry Potter, the “Deadly Killing Curse” (Avada Kadavra did I spell that right?) does not set people on fire. Pyrokinesis can be used for good, as well.

    O. WHAT IS CATCH?!?!?!?!?! Isn’t that a human game?

    P. You spell “Elvin” “Elven”.

    Q. They are brown skinned because of the metaphor: they are basically plants. Also, there are many non-white important people in the series: Tam, Linh, Wylie, Teirgan, Emery, Clarette, Liora, and others, some just random characters, and some in positions of POWER.

    R. The gnomes DO choose to live with the elves. Read Neverseen.

    S. I know this is a typo, but her name is SOPHIE. Not SOPHIA.

    In the comments:

    T. READ THE REST OF THE SERIES: Atlantis is a BIG part in Nightfall!

    U. She is NOT the prettiest girl in her human school. Again, when does it say that?

    V. Everyone, please just try it. You may become obsessed — like me!

    W. Okay, the first book does sound like a high schooler wrote it (kinda) but READ THE SERIES!!!

    X. There isn’t a villain like Voldemort.

    Y. Oh, Sophie’s NOT more-than-perfect AT ALL.

  • Anonymous
    November 24, 2018 at 12:45 pm

    Even though I am writing this is years late, this review made me so angry.

    Dame Alina is vain and does not care much if others, while Dumbledore is the opposite.

    Marella actually is not that much of an important character in the book, so she would not compare to Hermione.

    Also, Lady Galvin only hates Sophie because she hates her job. The history of Snape and Harry goes all the way back to before Harry even knew Snape existed.

    And gnomes are brown skinned because they are plantlike. If you think about it, it’s just like gnomes being trees.

    And Inflicting and Mesmerizing are actually not banned. They are just closely monitored. Pyrokenesis is the only banned ability. If you had actually taken the time to read the book, you wouldve known that.

    Atlantis actually is one of the most important places in book 6.

    Sophie is not considered perfect— Dex just made a comment about Sophie being prettiest in school, and I doubt many people consider her to be “hot”.

    The gnomes actually do choose to live with the elves. Their home city was taken over, so they fled to the lost cities to exchange their gratitude for a home.

    Their is not one single villain. There is actually an entire group.

    Also, elvin children do not play anything even close to quidditch. They play base quest, which is literally nothing like what they play in Harry Potter.

    If you took the time to read the first book, you would actually give a decent review on this book! I admit, it was not the best out of the seven that are currently out, but it is still quite the opposite of the horrible review you gave.
    Keeper of the Lost Cities is actually a great book.

  • Anonymous
    November 24, 2018 at 1:29 pm

    Also, I have to say: how stupid is this review.
    When you crossed out ‘Harry’ and put ‘Sophie’, my only thought was, “oh yes. Isn’t it soooooooo terrible that Keeper of the Lost Cities has a main character.”

    Also, Lord Cassius is not evil like Lucius.

    Not all elves have “gifts” (they are actually called talents).
    Some are talentless, and are scorned for it.

    Lastly, non-noble elves are called bad matches. And muggles are humans in Harry Potter. I can assure you, that a bad match does not mean “Oh guess what! We are now a compleatly different species because we got married!”
    Ugh. Such an unhelpful review.

  • Anonymous
    November 25, 2018 at 9:32 pm

    Before I start, I mean no offence to Harry Potter fans, since I did enjoy when I first read the books in French, though not nearly as much in English, which I couldn’t finish. The Harry Potter world is very vivid, and I love it, and the female characters, who are super badass and awesome, and Harry Potter fanfics are among the best, so I, again, mean no offence to Harry Potter fans.

    KotLC is my favourite series in the world. Harry Potter doesn’t even come close to how good this series is. The ever-changing plot and complicated schemes are actually existent in this book, while following a main theme, while Harry Potter has a main theme and that’s it. No sub-plots or anything. Book 1: Harry goes to Hogwarts. Harry is almost killed by Voldemort. Harry wins. Book 2: Repeat. Book 4: Repeat. Book 5: Repeat. Book 7: Repeat. I don’t even remember book 6. KotLC has so many sub-plots and sub-sub-plots, it’s almost hard to keep track of and you need to have an at least average IQ to notice them, which the writers of this review noticeably lack. Just because you have a sucky life and your entire existence is surrounding you whining about how horrible your life is doesn’t mean you need to ruin other people’s great work, even if you are jealous. What about KotLC is laughable? Sophie and Dex are f***ing kidnapped and tortured. Is that something laughable? And, while some of the events of the book are confusing, that’s the reason there are 6 other books, with more to come, so all the pieces can fall together. The deep intricacies of this book require a dedication and patience that it takes to actually read the book, instead of skimming and finding anything you can that can relate to Harry Potter, which, in my opinion, isn’t that great.

  • Anonymous
    December 5, 2018 at 8:58 pm

    “What Keeper of the Lost Cities delivers instead is a story about ultra-beautiful, ultra-intelligent, ultra-magical elves (yes, elves), whose existence is secret from disgusting humans. It then morphs into Harry Potter knock-off land, complete with a prestigious, secret and ultra selective academy for young prodigious elves, with classes in specialized areas like alchemy and telepathy. Oh yeah, and it turns out that Sophie Foster, our protagonist, is not only superduper desirable (a humble twelve year old, but already commanding the attentions of fifteen year olds) but possesses unparalleled power and is The One who can Save them All.”
    First, let me start off with, the whole point of the book is that the lost cities are supposed to seem perfect, but there are obvious flaws everywhere that people are too ignorant to see. It’s normal for people to assume their perfect and better than everyone else, but they’re really not better in total. Ex: Elves have smarter brains that are more logical than humans, however they are unable to make hard choices due to their fatal flaw of guilt. And while humans lack special abilities and increased life span and intelligence, they are able to admit their mistakes and are humbler than elves. Elves also have so much prejudice, but they claim they’re better than humans because they don’t have the same prejudices. This book is in fact a deeply psychological book that reveals truths about human nature, which is ultimately what the book reflects.
    Also, Harry Potter wasn’t the first book to have a “prestigious, secret and ultra selective academy”. It is a common pattern in any books with younger protagonists. J K Rowling did not invent the idea of a prestigious school. Also, Foxfire is a much more prestigious academy than Hogwarts, since Foxfire is only for the best, while Hogwarts is for any wizards. Foxfire also has a meaningful name, representing a light in the darkness, which is very metaphorical, unlike Hogwarts which is just two random, funny words put together to appeal to young children. “With classes in specialized areas like alchemy and telepathy” It’s a school. Of course it has specialized classes. Alchemy is their equivalent of science, which I assume the writers of this review did take in their school days, unless they’re dropouts, which wouldn’t surprise me. Also, the abilities of the elves are dangerous, and to leave them to fester without proper training would only have massive horrible consequences, so obviously having school classes for them would make more than enough sense.
    “superduper desirable (a humble twelve year old, but already commanding the attentions of fifteen year olds)” This line makes no sense. All elves are considered physically beautiful because they tend to have traits that are beautiful by human standards. Fitz, the oldest of the friend group, is actually only a year and a half older than her and only has a crush on her starting from the 4th book, when she is fourteen and he is 15/16. Keefe is less than a year older than her and has a crush on her, which is understandable, same for Dex who is about half a year younger than her. Also, some people love people who are different, and the characters of the three boys only fit for people who wouldn’t be attracted to ordinary people, instead people who stand out aka the only elf with brown eyes, Sophie, who also has tweaked genetics that give her more abilities than the average elf. Mostly though, it is probably her character, which is kind and understanding, and she’s good at getting people to trust her.
    “possesses unparalleled power and is The One who can Save them All” Isn’t Harry Potter “The Boy Who Lived”? And people actually call him that in the books? Sophie doesn’t have unparalleled power, she only has more abilities than the average person, which is how it is in fantasy novels. Because of her tweaked genetics, Sophie has 5 abilities so far, but she is still constantly bested by the rebels, who, btw, managed to kidnap and torture her. The abilities only help her survive, but also set a target on her back. Also, everything she does, she does with friends in the following books. The only time I remember her going solo, is when she collected the Everblaze sample, which had repercussions on her, but was the only way to do it. Every action of hers is completely logical, on Shannon’s part, for the plot and are necessary, but also creative.
    Please try to actually read the book and know what’s happening instead of skimming it with the plans of giving a bad review.

  • Anonymous
    December 5, 2018 at 9:27 pm

    PS, just to add to my last review, the Elvin world is full of propaganda. Read Book 4.

  • Anonymous
    December 6, 2018 at 3:22 pm

    Dis book is amazin!!! I read it and was like meh but when you don’t come at it witha critical air its really good! WAY BETTER THAN H.P.! and plot holes shmotoles it gets filled if you read THE WHOLE SERIES!

  • Anonymous
    December 6, 2018 at 3:31 pm

    WAIT YOU DON’T LIKE KEEFE MY HEART IS BROKEN!!!!! HE IS A DEEP AND FUNNY CHARECTER! LOVE HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND WHILE YOUR AT IT FIND SOMETHING GOOD TO DO WITH YOUR TIME! honey its your opinion not a review if its all discrimination!

  • Anonymous
    December 6, 2018 at 6:29 pm

    SERIOUSLY????
    WHAT IS THIS…
    What infuriated me the most is her response to Fitz saying after they light leap, “It’s just how it is”
    YOU EXPECT A TEENAGER TO KNOW ABOUT OR CARE ABOUT IT? HE’S GROWN UP LIGHT LEAPING SO THAT’S VERY MUCH “just how it is” FOR HIM! And I’ll agree there are some weak points in the series (mostly in book one) like their economy, their population, and how their abilities aren’t magic that’s just not called magic–but seriously, other than that it’s a GREAT series!

  • Anonymous
    December 22, 2018 at 7:56 pm

    This book series is the one of the most amazing series ever. This book may be similar to HP in a lot of ways, but so, so different in tons more ways. In case you forgot, the first HP book is 223 pages long and Keeper #1 is 512 pages long. There’s tons of character development throughout the series that strays very far away from this “HP knockoff” stuff. There’s tons more characters and several in-depth, complicated, very well thought out plot lines. It is definitely nothing like the Harry Potter series. If you had actually thought about it more, and maybe read a bit of the next book, Exile, you would realize that this series is completely unique.
    And if the series really is so bad, then why does Shannon Messenger have a contract for nine Keeper books? Plus, she was offered a contract for ten, too. I think that says enough about its popularity and greatness.

  • Anonymous
    January 30, 2019 at 3:36 am

    Lol coming back years later to look at my cringy comment. Tbh, I wish I could scrub it cleanly from my mind. Now, that I’m a lot more older, by a few years, I still do keep up with the series, but my passion for it is just not as same as it was six years ago. I still enjoy reading the books, but I feel like the pacing and the plotlines are…too convoluted? Currently reading book seven now, and… I can see why the shipping in the fandom is unnecessarily immature and childish (I used to be a casual shipper, but I don’t ship anyone anymore). And there’s so many things that you have to remember from the previous books if you’re not a mega-huge fan, which isn’t me (unfortunately, but I’m not going say more into that). However, I totally understand the point of this review, and the fans who defended their favourite series respectfully are applauded. On the other hand, saying that this series is “the best series in the world” and invalidating others’ opinions isn’t cool and is plain immature. My honest opinion summarised: I still do enjoy reading and keeping up with the series, there are flaws, but I read it for the reason because it is enjoyable, and that’s what matters to my reading experience.

  • Arizona
    March 15, 2019 at 6:29 pm

    I remember reading this review about a year ago and leaving a comment befitting a fangirl scorned. I’m coming back and reading my comment and the comments of so many others and I’m trying to figure out what to say.
    I will begin with saying that everyone has the right to their personal opinion. I will add that no one has the right to force their personal opinion onto others. I have become a character reviewer myself, which means that I can, to some degree, now sympathize with the authors of the review. However, I will also say that one of the things I pride myself on is pointing out both the good and the bad in every character. I feel that the same should be done for stories, and that was not what was done here.
    It is true that where there is smoke, there is fire, and that even the best of stories will have its flaws. I will not deny that KotLC is not perfect and will never be perfect. Nothing will ever be “perfect” while still being made by human hands. However, this review is far from perfect and is coming from a biased place. Everything is made with a target audience in mind. Ana and Thea, you are not the target audience. It wasn’t written for 40-year-old women to enjoy at 4:00 AM. That’s not what young adult novels are for.
    I respect your right to your opinion. Please respect everyone else’s right to form theirs. Everyone has different tastes. There are a lot of people here who disagree with you, and for good reason. There is a lot of good in the KotLC series, and there is only so much you can do in one book. A lot has changed in the past 7 books and a lot will change in the next 2. There are a lot of people looking forward to it, and I am one of them.
    You claim that this is a Harry Potter ripoff, yet you forget that there is nothing new under the sun. Trends in literature exist because they work. You may not like a trend, but it’s a trend for a reason. People like something because there is something to like about it and they like that something enough to move past whatever flaws it may have. KotLC is far from perfect, but people like it for a reason. This review fails to show why, and in that sense, it fails to be a review. You pointed out detractors without mentioning any of the strengths. If you had done a more balanced review and pointed out some of the strengths in KotLC – its humor, its themes about self-consciousness, bullying, and losing friends, its wonderful character dynamics – I doubt you would be receiving this current response.
    Is KotLC perfect? No. Was this review fair?
    No.

  • Arizona
    March 15, 2019 at 6:31 pm

    I remember reading this review about a year ago and leaving a comment befitting a fangirl scorned. I’m coming back and reading my comment and the comments of so many others and I’m trying to figure out what to say.
    I will begin with saying that everyone has the right to their personal opinion. I will add that no one has the right to force their personal opinion onto others. I have become a character reviewer myself, which means that I can, to some degree, now sympathize with the authors of the review. However, I will also say that one of the things I pride myself on is pointing out both the good and the bad in every character. I feel that the same should be done for stories, and that was not what was done here.
    It is true that where there is smoke, there is fire, and that even the best of stories will have its flaws. I will not deny that KotLC is not perfect and will never be perfect. Nothing will ever be “perfect” while still being made by human hands. However, this review is far from perfect and is coming from a biased place. Everything is made with a target audience in mind. Ana and Thea, you are not the target audience. It wasn’t written for 40-year-old women to enjoy at 4:00 AM. That’s not what young adult novels are for.
    I respect your right to your opinion. Please respect everyone else’s right to form theirs. Everyone has different tastes. There are a lot of people here who disagree with you, and for good reason. There is a lot of good in the KotLC series, and there is only so much you can do in one book. A lot has changed in the past 7 books and a lot will change in the next 2. There are a lot of people looking forward to it, and I am one of them.
    You claim that this is a Harry Potter ripoff, yet you forget that there is nothing new under the sun. Trends in literature exist because they work. You may not like a trend, but it’s a trend for a reason. People like something because there is something to like about it and they like that something enough to move past whatever flaws it may have. KotLC is far from perfect, but people like it for a reason. This review fails to show why, and in that sense, it fails to be a review. You pointed out detractors without mentioning any of the strengths. If you had done a more balanced review and pointed out some of the strengths in KotLC – its humor, its themes about self-consciousness, bullying, and losing friends, its wonderful character dynamics – I doubt you would be receiving this current response.
    Is KotLC perfect? No. Was this review fair?
    No.
    Thank you for your time.

  • Arizona
    March 15, 2019 at 6:31 pm

    Aaaand I managed to post my comment twice. Lovely.

  • Anime Girl Alex ( the much better, much smarter one)
    April 15, 2019 at 11:10 am

    To all the lovers of KotLC: I completely agree with you. Thea and Ana: you are 1,000,000% nuts if you think this book is as bad as you wrote, then you are MISTAKEN. Read the other six, soon to be seven, other books in the series! You will find they are MUCH better then junk. It wasn’t meant for middle aged book nerd to read and then rant about how bad it is on their blog at 4 am the next morning. It was meant for kids about 11 through 16 year olds who actually enjoy these kinds of books, not you! I am going to personally message Shannon Messenger herself about this, and we’ll see what she has to say about your “review”!!!!!!!

  • Sarah
    April 19, 2019 at 5:05 am

    I am really enjoying the series and I’m 35 so not sure what that says about me. Not everyone will like the same books but I do think it’s poor form to give inaccurate details in a review, and there were so many in this review. It’s not a great piece of literature but Young Adult books are never really written for that reason. Even Harry Potter couldn’t be classed as great literature. Young Adult books are about entertainment and allowing the youth to dream and enjoy the experience of reading. If this book series encourages even one child to read or gives people enjoyment (which clearly it has) then that justifies its existence. Not to mention how refreshing to have a heroine for a change.
    For other people that are enjoying this series I highly recommend the Nevermoor series 🙂

  • Another Peep That Loves This Series
    April 23, 2019 at 6:31 pm

    I honestly think you shouldn’t be doing reviews. At least not for this book. I’m not trying to be rude, but you only point out the bad parts of the series. This series was one of the best things I’ve ever read! It’s exciting and it’s like a rollercoaster, with its ups and downs in every chapter. For everyone reading this, don’t trust reviews. Trust yourself and your own opinion. Try out the books! If you don’t like it, I get it. But don’t let bad reviews keep you from trying something.

  • Another Peep That Loves This Series
    April 23, 2019 at 6:46 pm

    Also, there’s a difference between rip-off and building on a concept.

  • Magnolia Evans
    April 23, 2019 at 8:05 pm

    Dear Ana and Thea,

    I have read and agreed with many of your review, but, I must be honest, your review left me frustrated. I’m sure you aren’t even considering reading the next book, Exile, but I do believe you could benefit from it. The plot strays very much so from the “Harry Potter storyline” later on in the series. For example, by the fourth book, Sophie ends up spending much time away from school due to complications she experiences. And that’s just one example.

    There are a few points I would like to address, if you don’t mind. Dame Alina turns out to be a less-than-pleasant character, for one. And Sophie turns out to be closer in age to Keefe and Fitz than previously thought, due to the fact that elves count their age from their conception date, rather than their birthdate.

    Aside from that, I don’t believe you correctly conveyed the concept of Sophie’s appearance. First of all, in the human world, Sophie might have been above-average beautiful, but that’s because she’s an elf. No one was making moves on her, because she was an outcast. They called her “Curvebreaker,” etc.

    In the elven world, Sophie was about as beautiful as anyone else. The only people who would tell her that she’s more beautiful would be the love interests (i.e. Dex, Fitz), but that’s because they have crushes on her. Which leads me to also point out that, in the elven world, differences in ages in relationships are not uncommon. Seeing as even some human societies are also this way, it’s not something to automatically judge. In Keeper of the Lost Cities, Della and Alden Vacker are 100 years apart, but that’s not weird to them. It’s just how their society works. Since Sophie turns out to be about two years younger than Fitz, and a year younger than Keefe, it’s not a huge difference when compared to the elder Vackers.

    Another benefit to reading further into the series would be to learn more about Project Moonlark. Sophie, being genetically edited, was given the large amount of powers artificially. This makes for an interesting storyline, as well as inspiring doubt in Sophie about her own deservance and other related worries.

    Sophie is not a perfect snowflake in many ways. She does not perform very well in elven school, where she is actually nearly sub-par; she is often distrusting; she struggles to fit in and live up to the expectations set before her; and she was an outcast among the people she was raised alongside, because she was so different. And, like I’ve already said, she’s is comparatively normal-looking to other elves.

    I’d also like to add that the main Keeper group, as it develops, turns out to be pretty diverse. Search up “Wylie Endal,” “Tam Song,” or “Linh Song.” Elves are from all different races; they’re not all pale or olive-skinned.

    Gnomes have dark skin alongside mossy green “hair” to give the appearance of trees, which they become when they die. Their skin is supposed to be bark-like. It’s not meant to be racial discrimination. And while the gnomes to assist the elves without pay, they do it because they love to garden, and because the elves provide security for them, which is described in more detail in Nightfall. It’s like a gift in return for the elves’ help — and the elves don’t force them to help, either.

    One of the main points of Keeper is how society needs to move past unfair stereotypes. This appears with the matchmaking system and the nobility system, as well as elven view of humans. The main characters of Keeper begin to push against discrimination and injustice. I’m saying this to point out that Shannon Messenger doesn’t support such things.

    On a side note, I’d like to address the fact that Shannon Messenger’s marketing agent chose the name based on what they thought would attract the correct age group, so please don’t judge the book for its title. Besides, it does make sense — Sophie is a Keeper (she is a telepath with memories planted inside her), and she lives in the Lost Cities.

    Keeper is so much more complex than a cheap Harry Potter rip off, if you take the time to read further into the series. My last encouragement to you would be to make sure that you’re reading from the eyes of the intended audience. This book is largely directed at a tween audience, so it’s written as a tween audience might enjoy. I myself am of an older age group, but I can and do enjoy this series because I’m willing to appreciate it for what it was written to be.

    My plea to you is to give the rest of the series a chance, and to try to focus a bit more on the positives. Many readers have read your review and will not be giving this book a chance now, due to it. I find that extremely saddening.

    I understand that opinions may differ, and I respect that. I also have read and agreed with many of your other reviews. I suppose that’s why the sarcasm and disgust in this review hits me so hard.

    Thanks for your time, and for your work in reviewing books! I truly do admire and respect you two.

    Sincerely,
    Magnolia Evans

  • SOPHIE FOSTER+KEEFESENCEN!
    April 24, 2019 at 8:36 am

    This isn’t a review! This is complaining about a book! #spoilers!!
    These books are awesome and FYI my grandparents are 7 years apart 3 isn’t a big difference! ALSO you just ruined this book for a bunch of other people!

  • The Honest Person
    May 2, 2019 at 9:46 pm

    Hello I am from the future! I know this is very old but reading this review made me want to scream my head off. First of all, this book series is clearly children’s literature, so give us a break. Second of all, this series is the best you fricking didn’t give it a chance. Third of all, nothing in this book makes me want to laugh at. It has an exciting plot with interesting characters that are very original. If you think this is just a Harry Potter ripoff you are wrong. I think it’s a more modern and futuristic Harry Potter and deserves more recognition. So, if you are willing to follow these two stupid people’s advise, know that you haven’t known for sure yet. Guess that’s a lot of typing for tonight. Wham, bam, thank you ma’am!

  • samantha tegan
    May 5, 2019 at 3:22 pm

    this is a amazing book aparently not every one feels that way but to me and my elementuary-junior high friends LOVE it

  • CM
    May 26, 2019 at 5:11 pm

    Oh my goodness. This review sounds like you barely paid attention to the book. Resaon one: This is in no way a ripoff of Harry Potter. If we want to go there, pretty much every great book is a rip off of Harry Potter if you dont go deep enough. And there is zero rascism! I mean, you didn’t notice the many many character’s that are not fair-skinned? Obviously you just didn’t read the rest of the series. tons of people love this series. Just check this out! https://lost-cities-keeper.fandom.com/wiki/Thread:87110

  • Their review was completely wrong
    July 1, 2019 at 5:23 am

    I’m sorry, but no. This review is completely and utterly wrong. Keeper of the Lost Cities is my favorite book series and I’ve read the Harry Potter books. If you actually read the book(s) you will see that these “comparisons” aren’t that comparable at all! She didn’t say she was mistreated or it was “tough” for her in her chubby brunette family, she merely stated that she was DIFFERENT as in, not similar!!! Next, Dame Alina is hardly the benevolent Dumbledore; she is a brat and Sophie hates her. Sophie never ever goes to her for advice or support. Ana said that Sophie learns about three gifts that are frowned upon Pyrokinetics, Mesmerizing, and Inflicting aka Cruciatious, Imperious, and Killing curses. Nope, it turns out that she has Inflicting and so does one of the longest standing leaders of their world and everyone knows! It’s not a forbidden curse it’s a powerful and dangerous ability that people are aloud to use. Guess what else her Father has mesmerizing and the leaders beg him to use it! Also, no brown skinned elves, um yah, there is!!! He is one of the main characters, and is on the front cover of a book. Another brown skinned elves is beautiful and fierce not a “lower species” or whatever these two horrible reviewers were saying.

  • Their review was completely wrong
    July 1, 2019 at 5:50 am

    I’m sorry, but no. This review is completely and utterly wrong. Keeper of the Lost Cities is my favorite book series and I’ve read the Harry Potter books. If you actually read the book(s) you will see that these “comparisons” aren’t that comparable at all! She didn’t say she was mistreated or it was “tough” for her in her chubby brunette family, she merely stated that she was DIFFERENT as in, not similar!!! Next, Dame Alina is hardly the benevolent Dumbledore; she is a brat and Sophie hates her. Sophie never ever goes to her for advice or support. Ana said that Sophie learns about three gifts that are frowned upon Pyrokinetics, Mesmerizing, and Inflicting aka Cruciatious, Imperious, and Killing curses. Nope, it turns out that she has Inflicting and so does one of the longest standing leaders of their world and everyone knows! It’s not a forbidden curse it’s a powerful and dangerous ability that people are aloud to use. Guess what else her Father has mesmerizing and the leaders beg him to use it! Also, no brown skinned elves, um yah, there is!!! He is one of the main characters, and is on the front cover of a book. Another brown skinned elves is beautiful and fierce not a “lower species” or whatever these two horrible reviewers were saying. Another thing she isn’t a “desirable” twelve year old or whatever. She is a girl who is called a freak and is considered weird because of the way she looks.

  • I HONESTLY HOPE THE "REVEIWERS" SEE THESE!!!
    August 11, 2019 at 7:58 pm

    Most of what I want to say has already been said but… “But let’s start at the beginning, shall we?” You said that you were expecting a “telepathic twelve year old girl that discovers secrets about her family, her true birthright, and her abilities.” But you CLAIMED that you got “ultra-beautiful, ultra-intelligent, ultra-magical elves (yes, elves), whose existence is secret from disgusting humans.” a) Of course elves! Its KIND OF a fantasy novel! B) Yes, those things are true BUT its supposed to be a shell of a perfect dystopia covering a flawed mess of corruption underneath!!!! C) “disgusting humans”? The only people that say ANYTTHING like that are the ANTAGINISTS!!!! The “disgusting humans.” are only seen as DIFFERENT AND SEPERATE!! BESIDES THAT you know that it is a SERIES and you STILL expect it to get everything done in ONE book?! That’s a bit much… THEN you say that “It then morphs into Harry Potter knock-off land, complete with a prestigious, secret and ultra selective academy for young prodigious elves, with classes in specialized areas like alchemy and telepathy.” “Harry Potter knock-off land”?! Can you name ONE good fantasy novel with a magical middle school aged girl that attends a magic school that DOS’NT have classes that special classes for students? yeah… didn’t think so… then again you probably gave those ones bad “reviews” too. THEN (This is just the first paragraph of you “Review”)you say “it turns out that Sophie Foster, our protagonist, is not only superduper desirable (a humble twelve year old, but already commanding the attentions of fifteen year olds) but possesses unparalleled power and is The One who can Save them All.” A) “superduper desirable (a humble twelve year old, but already commanding the attentions of fifteen year olds)”?! She was resented and avoided because she was “Curvebuster” any “superduper desirable” person would not be called that in any way!! B) OF COURSE! You expect a girl who just figured out she was different not just from humans but from elves to watch her new world crumble around her and be fine with her being kidnapped!!

    NEXT PARAGRAPH! (FINALLY!) Not gonna copy this b/c well… I honestly don’t want to read it!! But of course light-leaping would be how Fitz’s world would work! He has been leaping for 15/16 YEARS! Nobody questions it!!

    That was short and VERY annoying waste of time!”Which brings me to my next gripe: Sophie, the Special Snowflake. When we first meet Sophie, we learn that she is twelve years old, telepathic, possessing a photographic memory, and a high school senior that has been accepted at Yale University. We also learn that she is ‘the prettiest girl in school’, that she is an unprecedentedly powerful telepath, sickeningly sweet and good, and everyone rushes to her aid at slightest provocation. And I just want to include this quote, because Ana and I both had a good laugh when we read it:” Okay… it is the Special Sophieflake! I seriously doubt you really gave much thought to the “review” you gave. THEN we did not know she was “the prettiest girl in school” because it was NEVER a problem! And “sickeningly sweet”?! no. never happened and I don’t think you can say that she is. THEN “everyone rushes to her aid at slightest provocation.”?! WOW. I don’t think it had ANYTHING to do with her being CUTE except MABEY Dex! And her rescuer claimed that it was his JOB not because he liked her! OF COURSE HER BEING NOT ONE OF HER HUMAN FAMILY!! She has read her moms mind and knows the scene of her birth! “as soon as Sophie gets to Elfland, she hears that she has been invited to attend a prestigious academy.” A) ELFLAND!? REALLY?! B) She wasn’t invited, one of the Councilors was very reluctant to even let her enter the Lost Cities (YES The Lost Cities! Not Elfland!) The rest of your paragraph is just so full of forced “connections” but… Dame Alina is an awful elf and the opposite of Dumbledore! Now Foxfire cant have a headmaster?! The password is another forced connection, ITS AN ALMOST MAGICAL PLACE! THE SCHOOL WOULDT HAVE SIMPLE PADLOCKS FOR LOCKERS! AND HAVING THE MENTORS CHOOSE THE FLAVORS IS JUST TO KEEP SCHOOL FUN FOR STUDENTS!! And now you say that SOPHIE CANT HAVE FRIENDS THAT ARE IN HARD SITUATIONS!! But she does not “excel” SHE BARELY PASSES HER FIRST YEAR!! The fact that Galvin is an alchemy mentor is a coincidence and makes sense b/c it reminds Sophie of how different she really is!! And the book isn’t meant for people who are still in the 1900s!

    NEXT REVIEWER!(Finally! You guys are REALLY getting on my nerves!) But here we go! The elves don’t think of what they do as magic!! its the way things are FOR Fitz there are explanations for the elves who would care to find them! And the idea of genetics and DNA came from the elves when there was a program for human and elf integration! Next comes the ever tiring claim of Harry Potter rip-off “All wizards elves perform spells have gifts and Harry Sophie soon learns that there are three Unforgivable Curses gifts that are frowned upon: the deadly Killing Curse, the Cruciatus Curse and the Imperius Curse the deadly Pyrokineticsm, Infliction and Mermerizing. She also learns to play the wizard’s elven game of Quidditch Catch and that there are other people who don’t really like her like the snobby Lucius Cassius.” These are just more of the forced connections A) You have obviously barely read the books its Pyrokinesis, Inflicting and Mesmerizing. B) So many ways you are wrong I wont bother with the rest.

    But the fact that the gnomes were brown skinned was meant to highlight their connection to plants! And there are powerful elves with darker and olive colored skin! AND the gnomes have the choice of work they can stay with the elves or go to a small village of gnomes! AND ONCE AGAIN I SAY THAT IT SHOWS WHATS REALLY BENEATHE THE PERFET, UNTARNISHED LOST CITIES!!

    There are a few SIMILARITYS between HP and Keeper; the fact that she grew up with humans and eventually was excepted into a specialized school but… having an almost fatal allergic reaction, almost getting expelled and having her adoption cancelled THEN being kidnapped and tortured is nothing to laugh at!!!!!!!!!

    Thank you for wasting my time.

    Sincerely,

    Look what Dex did!

    ??

  • Anonymous
    September 29, 2019 at 8:01 pm

    I’m so mad at you! I’ve read the entire series of this book and I’d just like to say that most of the things you say here AREN’T TRUE!!!

    First, you CANNOT base this entire book series on its first book. That’s basically like reading the first few chapter of a book and deciding it’s not good. The characters in this series seem less thought-out because you don’t KNOW them yet. They are explained much better in future books.

    Also, NOT ONCE DID THEY EVER SAY THAT SOPHIE WAS THE PRETTIEST/HOTTEST GIRL IN SCHOOL!!!! In fact, it is implied that she IS NOT the prettiest girl in Foxfire. Honestly, there’s nothing else to say about this fact other than, yeah, it’s wrong.

    Also about Foxfire, Sophie IS NOT good at all of her subjects other than alchemy. She also struggles with Elementalism and she finds her history class very boring. This shows that she’s not some “star prodigy”, but that she’s really just an everyday student.

    Regarding what you said about the gnomes, the reason they have darker skin is because they are part plant. (Tbh, I don’t even remember them having darker skin, but I’ll take your word for it. I always imagined them having gray skin, like the color of a stone statue, or maybe green-y skin). Also, it is proved even more in later books that the gnomes are there COMPLETELY BY CHOICE!!!! And, no, not all of the characters are white. There are councilors with darker skin, one of which being Emery. Wylie has darker skin as well as his father (Prentice). Tam and Linh (they were first mentioned in book 4, so I’ll give you a pass on this one) are Asian. Even Fitz, a VACKER, seems to be mixed/Hispanic.

    On the topic of looks, when Sophie said that she was ‘a slender blond’ and her family were ‘chubby brunettes’ she mean they looked different. She’s not body-shaming them and she’s definitely not implying that she “better than them.” She’s merely stating that she has a different body-type from them and that they have different color hair (they also have different color eyes, too). She’s saying she felt out of place, because she stood out so much in her own family. It’s like in Frozen, how Elsa looked so weird in the family pictures.

    At one point you claim that the series is trying hard to ‘not be science’ I assume this is a typo, bc it’s contradictory to your previous statements, but that’s not true. The series is trying to say that it’s SCIENCE, NOT MAGIC.

    Also, with Fitz’a explanation about light leaping, it’s like trying to explain how a car works to someone who’s never seen a car before. Sure, there are some things you know, but (unless you’re really knowledgeable about cars) at the end of the day, your answer will be ‘I dunno, that’s just how it works,’ just like Fitz says.

    I have lots more to say, but I’m not gonna take the time to say it. I’m fine with you disliking this series, but saying things that are just incorrect (the ‘Sophie is the hottest girl in school’ thing) and stopping people from reading the series because of it is downright INFURIATING.

  • Anonymous
    November 22, 2019 at 10:22 pm

    I agree that there are some similarities to Harry Potter in Keeper of the Lost Cities, but, if you really think about it, you will find that all books are similar in some way to it. Also, Sophie is by no means perfect. She is constantly worried that she will not be accepted, is at first terrified to be examined by the school nurse, and instantly makes enemies with Stina, one of her classmates, just because her friend Dex doesn’t like her. I wholly recommend this series.

  • Anonymous
    November 25, 2019 at 4:24 pm

    THANK YOU

  • Anonymous
    December 18, 2019 at 10:24 pm

    Upon reading this horrible book review and all the nasty comments that followed, I honestly have seldom been more angry. KOTLC might be a HP rip-off, but in like, five ways. As the series continues, it is COMPLETELY different, the characters and plot are deep and well written. Ana and Thea, I’d like to see YOU try and write a book HALF as good. (I realize that I’m following in the same vein as other comments, but I don’t care.) This series was amazing, and you picked apart the smallest things, not even the plot or the characters or the style of writing. The best you could come up with is that it’s a HP rip-off, and SO WHAT. You obviously have no appreciation for good literature. It’s like you didn’t even read the book but just skimmed it for the less-than-perfect parts. This series has made me laugh, cry, scream in anger or surprise, and literally jump up and cheer more times than I care to say. And yes, I realize that this was seven years ago, but it deserves to be said. If you are going to read this series, ignore this nasty review and READ IT BECAUSE IT’S AMAZING.

  • REPETITIVE POST SEVEN YEARS LATER
    December 18, 2019 at 10:26 pm

    Upon reading this horrible book review and all the nasty comments that followed, I honestly have seldom been more angry. KOTLC might be a HP rip-off, but in like, five ways. As the series continues, it is COMPLETELY different, the characters and plot are deep and well written. Ana and Thea, I’d like to see YOU try and write a book HALF as good. (I realize that I’m following in the same vein as other comments, but I don’t care.) This series was amazing, and you picked apart the smallest things, not even the plot or the characters or the style of writing. The best you could come up with is that it’s a HP rip-off, and SO WHAT. You obviously have no appreciation for good literature. It’s like you didn’t even read the book but just skimmed it for the less-than-perfect parts. This series has made me laugh, cry, scream in anger or surprise, and literally jump up and cheer more times than I care to say. And yes, I realize that this was seven years ago, but it deserves to be said. If you are considering reading this series, ignore this nasty review and READ IT BECAUSE IT’S AMAZING.

  • Anonymous
    December 18, 2019 at 10:36 pm

    Aaand it posted twice. Under two different names.

    Yaaaaaaay technology!

  • REPETITIVE POST SEVEN YEARS LATER
    December 18, 2019 at 10:49 pm

    Also, even though I almost to start crying when I read this review and those comments people left about not even going to try the series, THANK YOU to all the people who backed up KOTLC. It was so gratifying to read all the comments people left about how amazing the series is, and I wanted to bash my head into my computer much less. As long as there are people who won’t even read a book because of one review, there are people who will back up an amazing series that I know I will continue to love even out of my teenage years. This series does not deserve any hate, and hopefully people reading this review will look in the comments and read what the series is really like from actual, dedicated readers. (last post, I promise.)

  • Mary Eliazbeth
    January 15, 2020 at 9:28 pm

    My head when reading this “Haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate, but Im just gonna shake shake shake shake shake I’ll, shake it off.”
    Do you have anything nice to say about it? SRSLY, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.

  • naomi
    February 15, 2020 at 6:02 pm

    Alright, I can see the basis of all of your points. You make some good ones-don’t get me wrong. But most of your points are based on incorrect fact. There are several other great books in the series, and if you read past the first page of the first book you might realize that there are points you missed out on. Again, I’m seriously open to discussion but PLEASE do it with CANON FACTS.

  • Anonymous
    February 17, 2020 at 3:52 pm

    I’m sorry, but most of this is not true. Kotlc is not a rip off and is actually a really good series. You need to read all the books to actually judge them. Please don’t take offense, but this made a lot of us mad in the FANDOM world. Also it’s Sophie not Sophia, then she is never described as hot and it is not a high school she goes to.

  • Loki
    February 17, 2020 at 9:52 pm

    While Keeper of The Lost Cities is similar to Harry Potter in some aspects, I firmly hold on to the belief that it is its own, individual universe with its own original plot. Foxfire is hardly even used as an environment after the first two or three books, for one thing. Another thing is, is that while Sophie is overpowered, there are reasons for it. She’s a science experiment created by an organization called The Black Swan, thus having several abilities. Plus, her powers have limits, she can’t really control them perfectly, etc etc. This review seems false to me.

  • SoKeefeForLifeFangirl
    February 18, 2020 at 5:30 pm

    This review is so inaccurate!!!!! Its NOTHING like Harry Potter. And its Sophie, not Sophia.

  • SoKeefeForLifeFangirl
    February 18, 2020 at 5:31 pm

    This review is so inaccurate!!!!! Its NOTHING like Harry Potter. And its Sophie, not Sophia. Please don’t hate on this, peace!!

  • FANGIRL3908
    April 2, 2020 at 2:59 pm

    I was extremely disappointed when I read this review. As someone who’s favorite book series happens to be Harry Potter AND Keeper of the Lost Cities, I will say that both are unique and DEFINITELY worth reading. This review is incorrect, so to those who took this book of their lists, I beg of you to READ THE BOOK. If it’s not for you, then oh well. But Keeper of the Lost Cities is an amazing book series that doesn’t deserve this negative review.
    To begin with, you cannot describe Sophie’s social setting as a parallel to Harry Potter. Harry was instantly popular while Sophie was quite the opposite. While Sophie was almost cut from foxfire school, Harry was put down since birth. Lady Galvin was incorrectly compared to snape, she was just a difficult teacher.
    The differences just keep piling on, and while the book has similarities to HP, it’s not a rip off. Ana and Thea layer that whole claim pretty much on the point that Sophie realizes she’s an elf. Well, Percy realizes he’s a demigod too right? So many of these aspects are just there in the fantasy genre.

    Those are just some of the reasons this review is incorrect, and if you don’t believe me, read the books yourself.
    I hope to see you defending the book in the future.

    Happy Reading!
    – Fangirl3908

  • Anonymous
    April 2, 2020 at 3:21 pm

    Ok, so I actually have very much enjoyed this entire series. This review got a lot of things wrong, but I’d like to preface this by saying that everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and no book is for everyone. That said, let me get into my review of this review!

    “ Oh yeah, and it turns out that Sophie Foster, our protagonist, is not only superduper desirable (a humble twelve year old, but already commanding the attentions of fifteen year olds) but possesses unparalleled power and is The One who can Save them All.”

    So already there’s a LOT to unpack. First, she doesn’t “command the attention” of any 15 year olds. She is discovered by Fitz, a 15 year old. But after meeting him and going to school she is completely ignored by him, and after that he repeatedly refers to her as something like a little sister. Second 15 year old: Keefe. She meets Keefe while trying to find the Healers Office and he’s ditching class in the hallways. He takes her there so he can get a pass from class. They become friends, I can imagine due to the fact Keefe skipped a grade and is closer to Sophie in age than any of his classmates.
    And there goes the only two “15 year olds” who she draws the attention of. Second part, she “posses the power to Save Them All” she’s been genetically modified by a group called the Black Swan but feels overwhelmed by these implications and cannot use her powers to save anyone thus far, as you assumed. (SPOILERS!!!) She’s barely able to save herself and Dex by the end of the book and nearly dies in the process. She doesn’t even stop or remotely hinder the villains. (/SPOILERS)

    “Well THAT explains everything, then. In this type of setting, magic would be completely acceptable as an explanation for feathered dinosaur pets, catching lightning in a bottle, using elderberries to transmutate iron, and so on. But instead, Keeper of the Lost Cities insists on not-science science, not-magic magic, and the end result is, well, ridiculous”

    Well. Quite possibly a 15 year old boy can’t explain the intricacies of the science of his world, but I digress. And, if you had paid attention, you would have noticed multiple thorough explanations for the dinosaurs. I agree the explanation of elementalism is thin, this is a valid criticism. And, on the elderberry bit. They use fictional runkleberries, not elderberries and they are used to cleanse iron, not transmutate it.

    “ We also learn that she is ‘the prettiest girl in school’,”

    This is just blatantly untrue. Biana is constantly portrayed as more beautiful and graceful than Sophie. This is said by the only person to have a crush on Sophie for 7 books, and is even refuted by someone else in the scene. For most of the book her classmates all despise her, or are afraid of her.

    “Oh WOE! WOE! The life of a slender blonde in a chubby brunette family”

    Sophie has just discovered she is an elf (a slender species) and is coming to terms with the fact that her family IS NOT HER FAMILY. She’s describing how she’s different from her family and has always felt out of place. Not about how much better she is than her family.

    And now we get to my favorite part of this review. The Harry Potter parallels. I’ll try to make this as quick as possible.

    “as soon as Sophie gets to Elfland, she hears that she has been invited to attend a prestigious academy for aspiring young witches and wizards elves called Hogwarts Foxfire. (Is this world not supposed to have a school? Would you rather magical teenagers run amok In society because no fantasy worlds are allowed to have schools? Not to mention all of Foxfire is drastically different from Hogwarts (1 on 1 lessons, not a boarding school, ect;) The school is presided over by a benevolent headmaster Dumbledore Dame Alina, (Dame Alina is most definitely nothing like Dumbledore. She is hated by all the students and is portrayed as a sort of control freak) who also gets to pick the constantly changing sweet treat password sweet treat tasting flavor that unlocks every student’s locker (Ok, you’ve lost me here. The password in Harry Potter is to Dumbledores private office, and you need to know it to get in. The lockers are opened by each students DNA, so they lick a stamp of the lockers. Dame Alina doesn’t even chose the flavors, various faculty do, and they are any flavor, not confined to sweet treats, one day when Elwin chooses the flavor its Gulon Gas) (on day one, the flavor is Fizzing Whizbees Mallowmelt) (sigh) . Harry Sophie quickly makes friends with Hermione and Ron Marella and Dex, (Who have nothing alike with Ron and Hermione aside from: ) and Dex happens to be a mudblood bad match byproduct, meaning that his parents were muggles non-noble elves. (This is a good example of prejudice in the Elvin world, would you rather it be perfect? Secondly, this means that his parents were not genetically compatible, not that they aren’t nobles, as his mother is a noble) While at school, Sophie excels and is a natural at almost all of her subjects, (She excels at her Telepathy and Universe subjects. She is horrible at everything else) except for potions alchemy (Professor Snape Lady Galvin seems to really have it out for Sophie for some reason. (Some reason? It’s already given that Lady Galvin hates her job, and then Sophie blows up her cape, her pride and joy, so she doesn’t like her. She even grows to somewhat like her when Sophie turns herself in for cheating.)”

    There’s much more of this review I could go in to, but this has gotten much to long. I hope you don’t discount this book because of this review, even if you don’t end up enjoying it.

    Happy reading!

  • Kid B
    April 19, 2020 at 11:14 am

    Okay, first of all, Thea is ONE person with her own opinion, you never know until you actually read the book. Come on guys, you’re acting like the world revolves around this one person, when there are so many positive reviews. And honestly, if you like HP so much, you would love this book because it’s in a similar world! And Shannon did not rip this off from HP, I mean, it’s a fantasy story so there are obviously going to be magical creatures, like in OTHER fantasy books. Harry Potter is not the only series that uses mythical creatures, ya know? So far, I am a total fan of Kotlc, it has everything I’m looking for in a fantasy book. It contains a mix of all genres so everyone can enjoy the rollercoaster, and each time I think it’s getting boring, BOOM, a new mindblowing plotwise. Honestly, Shannon really knows how to engage readers.

  • Anonymous
    April 20, 2020 at 2:48 pm

    OK, a lot of stuff in this review is taken out of context but let me set the biggest straight:
    SOPHIE WAS NOT THE “HOTTEST AT HER HIGH SCHOOL”, she was told (BY A ELF THAT HAD A MEGA-CRUSH ON HER) that she was the prettiest girl at FOXFIRE! NOT her high school! IN A SETTING WHERE SHE WAS WITH ELVES HER OWN AGE!

  • Anonymous
    April 20, 2020 at 2:49 pm

    OK, a lot of stuff in this review is taken out of context but let me set the biggest straight:
    SOPHIE WAS NOT THE “HOTTEST AT HER HIGH SCHOOL”, she was told (BY A ELF THAT HAD A MEGA-CRUSH ON HER) that she was the prettiest girl at FOXFIRE! NOT her high school! IN A SETTING WHERE SHE WAS WITH ELVES HER OWN AGE! SO please actually READ the books before you review them INCORRECTLY!

  • Anonymous
    April 20, 2020 at 2:51 pm

    OK, a lot of stuff in this review is taken out of context but let me set the biggest straight:
    SOPHIE WAS NOT THE “HOTTEST AT HER HIGH SCHOOL”, she was told (BY A ELF THAT HAD A MEGA-CRUSH ON HER) that she was the prettiest girl at FOXFIRE! NOT her high school! IN A SETTING WHERE SHE WAS WITH ELVES HER OWN AGE! SO please actually READ the books before you review them INCORRECTLY. This is an AMAZING book series and I do not want people to take them off of your To Be Read lists because of this review.

  • MarellaRedek977
    April 29, 2020 at 10:16 am

    I agree! This is a great book series, and though the first book is a bit endearing to read for the third time, the series is amazing and interesting. As Sophie gets older, she also gets smarter and her opinions shift. I think you should at least try reading the first and second books before you take the series off your list because of two peoples’ reviews!
    It is a good book series, and it disappoints me that so many people don’t want to read it. Some of the characters are amazing and I love it. Please consider reading with a different perspective instead of just looking for all the HP similarities. (Besides, it gets less similar as the books go on.) And she was only the “prettiest in her school” according to a kid who liked her, and that was with elves her age!!!! Please pay attention to that stuff instead of the HP similarities. It isn’t fair how unbalanced these reviews are.
    P.S. The gnomes chose to live with the elves!!!

  • Grenadine Kid
    May 9, 2020 at 6:35 pm

    Please don’t judge a 8-part series on the first book. I love this series, and Shannon Messenger’s writing has only improved over time. If you didn’t like the book, that is fine, just please read the whole series before you write a review on it.

  • ANONYMOUS
    May 22, 2020 at 3:36 pm

    Sorry but i totally disagree with everything you both have said here. First of all it does not make sense for either of you to judge this book if you’ve not read the whole series, and judging this review you have only read the first book . Also if you dont have the experience of writing a book yourself you should not judge others on what they have done . Keeper of the lost cities is AMAZING. And some of the facts you stated were wrong like some were so off. this is irritating . The author of this book tried and successfully wrote an amazing book , its not right to just come and abase her like that .This book is awesome . PERIODTTTTTT

  • ANONYMOUS
    May 22, 2020 at 3:40 pm

    Honestly if you dont like the book that’s your opinion , its something you should keep to yourself

  • Anonymous
    May 29, 2020 at 6:36 pm

    They explain everything later! And the characters DO have depth! The thing that (ironical) holds Sophie and her friends together is loss. People have lied to them all their lives and that’s the thing. The first book IS laughable. That’s the point Shannon Messenger set up a world that was one dimensional so you could see all its flaws. It’s all fake and that’s what makes it good, you never know who’s good and who’s bad.

  • Moonlight song
    May 29, 2020 at 8:43 pm

    Wow I feel this is inaccurate, these are opinions NOT facts. I’ve read these books and they are worth reading.

  • Anonymous
    May 31, 2020 at 6:13 pm

    WHAT?! This review is just WRONG. Besides, this review doesn’t even have the facts correct! First of all, it’s RUCKLBERRIES, not elderberries, and second, WHERE does it say that Sophie excels at all of her subjects? Did you forget about elementalism? What about P.E? Remember channeling? AND if this book is so HORRIBLE, how did it get published?

  • Anonymous
    June 1, 2020 at 2:44 pm

    I totally agree with Anonymous that the review is WRONG. I have read the books and to me I think the book is EXCELLENT.

  • Adelie de Foix
    June 3, 2020 at 5:59 pm

    Ok so I am a person who has read all 8 books several times and I am a constant follower of the fandoms so I’d like to say I’m up to date on everything so far, here is my 2 cents. 😀
    Let’s review the review! I feel as if both reviews that Thea and Ana did are very extreme, but then again so are most of the comments in the comment section. I think we should just reduce it to the facts, kay? Just facts, then my personal opinion about the fact.
    1st fact: Yes, the science/magic thing is a bit confusing.
    It says that magic doesn’t exist but then it also says that science is wrong. I didn’t get it the first time, or the second time, or the 3rd time. But that’s just me.
    2nd fact: Yeah, Sophie is a special bean.
    The author, Shannon Messenger, intended her to be that way because the main character of a book has to be different in some way than the other characters, or why would the book be about them? I personally thought that it was a little overdone and that it makes her a little less relatable, but hey that’s just me.
    3rd fact: Harry Potter Ripoff problem is a legit thing.
    It’s not as extreme as Thea and Ana say it is, but it is a problem I noticed when I scoured through the books after reading Harry Potter. It’s kind of hard to see if you’re not looking for it, but it is there.
    4th fact: Different opinions exist about the book.
    Some people love the book. Some people hate it. I think that we should respect other peoples’ opinions and civilly add our own to gain enlightenment about the series. I really don’t think we should be insulting these reviewers because they posted their opinion. They have a right to their own opinion, and for me, it’s actually quite refreshing to read a bad review!
    Overall, I found the 1st book to be quite an interesting read and I would recommend for you to read it. It might not be for you, but everyone has their own opinions and that’s okay. I thought the book was, overall, quite fascinating.
    Have a wonderful day! 😀

  • Gracyn
    June 7, 2020 at 8:27 pm

    @Anonymous 3 comments up.

    “And if it’s so horrible, how did it get published?”

    For your own information, Shannon Messenger visited my school and said it took her about 23 re writing copies and ages to write it, since she wrote a book like 23 times before she went with the final one

  • ari :)
    June 8, 2020 at 7:45 pm

    first of all, noah fence but some of y’all are insane 😮 people are entitled to their own opinions, and while you may not agree with them, you don’t have to say that the reviewers are dumb or narrow-minded because not everyone likes the same things that you guys do. second, the harry potter rip-off is an issue, but it has devolved from that slightly, so maybe give it another try? third, i agree about the special-snowflake thing aha. i’ve read all 8 books and sophie has not changed substantially. she’s still the same. everyone loves her for no reason, especially seeing as her only personality is angst and “bravery.” fourth, the race problem in these books is also.. really concerning. i completely agree with your take on the gnomes, and that’s the same problem that i had with the house elves in harry potter – both are extremely insensitive and ignorant. finally, the characterization is a little awkward and not as well-executed as it should have been, but there are some good characters. i find keefe’s character arc and person as a whole to be one of my favourites, and he’s carrying the entire series for me at this point.
    all in all, i enjoyed your review! i thought it was well-written and i had a good laugh reading it as well. if you still check the comments on this post, i suggest maybe giving kotlc another try if you have nothing better to do. i can’t guarantee that you’ll like it, but keefe is genuinely one of my favourite characters after shannon developed him further and i hate to think that some people don’t know about him 🙁
    have a fantastic day!
    (and kotlc fans – please, stop harrassing them for their opinion. it’s frankly a little embarrassing at this point.)

  • ari :)
    June 8, 2020 at 7:52 pm

    first of all, noah fence but some of y’all are insane 😮 people are entitled to their own opinions, and while you may not agree with them, you don’t have to say that the reviewers are dumb or narrow-minded because not everyone likes the same things that you guys do.
    second, the harry potter rip-off is an issue, but it has devolved from that, so maybe give it another try?
    third, i agree about the special-snowflake thing aha. i’ve read all 8 books and sophie has not changed substantially. she’s still the same. everyone loves her for no reason, especially seeing as her only personality is angst and “bravery.”
    fourth, the race problem in these books is also.. really concerning. i completely agree with your take on the gnomes, and that’s the same problem that i had with the house elves in harry potter – both are extremely insensitive and ignorant.
    finally, the characterization is a little awkward and not as well-executed as it should have been, but there are some good characters. i find keefe’s character arc and person as a whole to be one of my favourites, and he’s carrying the entire series for me at this point.
    all in all, i enjoyed your review! i thought it was well-written and i had a good laugh reading it as well. if you still check the comments on this post, i suggest maybe giving kotlc another try if you have nothing better to do. i can’t guarantee that you’ll like it, but keefe is genuinely one of my favourite characters after shannon developed him further and i hate to think that some people don’t know about him 🙁
    have a fantastic day!
    (and kotlc fans – please, stop harrassing them for their opinion. it’s frankly a little embarrassing at this point.)

  • Anonymous
    June 19, 2020 at 3:10 pm

    @Gracyn
    First YOUR SO LUCKYYYY SHE CAME TO YOUR SCHOOL
    And Second, that’s actually not a lot of drafts. Some writers take up to a hundred drafts to get it right, so I’m not surprised at all.
    Third, she also could have done drafts because she wasn’t happy with it

  • DexIsWayUnderAppreciated
    June 19, 2020 at 3:30 pm

    I don’t have enough time to say all the things i want to say, but I do want to say these 5 things
    1) I feel like you just read the books to find the flaws and decided not to enjoy it at all from the start, because you didn’t write a single good thing about the books, which can’t be accurate because of all the people saying how much they enjoy the KotLC books, so how would that be possible without at least one good thing?
    2) Are people not allowed to have schools now? Or friends?
    3) From what I hear, you are around the age of forty, and this is targeted toward middle- high schoolers, so that may be a reason you don’t care too much for this book.
    4) I don’t think it’s fair to judge an entire series by it’s first book, because the characters and plotholes are expanded on and filled in, so maybe try one or two of the other books.
    5) The Harry potter similarities are because majority of fantasy fiction books follow a plotline called Heroes Journey (look it up if you don’t know what I’m talking about) where a lot of these things you mentioned are explained. For example, the whole “special snowflake” thing is because the hero(ine) has to be different/unique in some way because usually, when this character is introduced to a new extraordinary world, they show it’s flaws and help solve the problems. They need to bring something new or different, otherwise the story would be bland and the main character would be boring. I would like to say a lot more, but I don’t have the time right now.
    I’ll finish up by saying I respect your opinions, but I hope you try the series again with a more open, unbiased mindset and see if you enjoy it a little more.

  • UmWhyDoYouNeedToKnow
    June 26, 2020 at 9:48 pm

    Alright.

    KOTLC was by far, the worst book in history. Okay, perhaps I’m exaggerating. It wasn’t too bad, only Sophie Foster really bugged me. The whole description of Sophie was the cliche high school story were the nerd becomes Ultra Beautiful Popular Kid- UBPK. Sure, she was outcasted in the Lost Cities, but seriously! How does every. Single. Boy. In. Foxfire. Fall. In. Love. With. Her?!
    – Keefe
    – Dex
    – Fitz

    And well, you get the list. Sophie Foster is what I would call a ‘Mary Sue’ she’s absolutely perfect and charming, has boys falling for her every single moment and *surprise surprise* is a unique elf who has many abilities. Sure, she’s a product of Project Moonlark, but I don’t like Sophie and there’s nothing you can do to change it. But OK, yeah, she’s the main character so I guess the author has to do these kind of stuff. But if she could make Sophie less whiny, more developed and well, less perfect, I think KOTLC is a unique book.

    But overall KOTLC wasn’t a completely bad book. Sure, it has some Mary-Sues but, the plot ended up quite nicely. It isn’t my favourite book, but I mean, it’s not horrible. It was well blended, kept me on my toes, and yeah, kind of hooked me in!

    And to all those people who are attacking other people for actually listening to this well pointed out review, I’m sorry to say, but that’s actually pretty rude. Calling others a ‘loser’ who just simply don’t like KOTLC is simply not nice.

    Other people have opinions, just like me, and I’m sorry if I offended anyone with my review but this is just how I feel about KOTLC.

  • Anonymous
    July 22, 2020 at 1:49 pm

    Okay, a few things.
    People who read this review and decided not to read this book, I’m sorry for your loss. Keeper of the Lost Cities may have some similarities to Harry Potter, but it isn’t a ‘cheap ripoff’. Sure, she’s magical and she goes to a magical school, but what did you expect? She’s twelve! She isn’t going to get a job or anything. And Marella was added in there simply so that Thea could get her point across, she isn’t one of Sophie’s close friends or really in her friend group at all. Yes, she meets new people, but… doesn’t everyone on their first day of school? The password to Dumbledore’s office is NOT at all related to THE PASSWORDS ON THEIR LOCKERS. (Also, Dame Alina doesn’t make the passwords, all the teachers do, and they usually aren’t sweets) The only thing that Dame Alina has in common with Dumbledore is that they are both principals. And most schools have principals. Also, every student has a special power, unlike at Hogwarts. If anything, I would compare Foxfire to the Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters from X-men. Unlike the common saying ‘Don’t judge a book by it’s cover’ I would say ‘Don’t judge a book solely by it’s bad reviews’ There are a whole lot of good reviews out there, so don’t just focus on the bad ones. These reviews are opinions, and opinions can sometimes stray from the facts. Also, if you’re an adult and you don’t like it, that might be because it’s meant for kids, just saying.

  • Anonymous
    July 22, 2020 at 2:03 pm

    And Base Quest is not the same as Quidditch! Base quest is basically capture the flag! Are you saying that kids can’t have favorite games now?

  • Anonymous
    July 22, 2020 at 3:51 pm

    Well, I know this is 8 years (!) too late, but I am still reading KOTLC and absolutely love it. I know that some people do not like it, and that that is their opinion, but that is no excuse to bend the facts about the book. If you are trying to right a proper review, judge by the facts, not opinions.
    In my opinion, KOTLC is a great series (now of almost 9! books) and should not be compared to other great books such as Harry Potter. Both series’ are great and have very different plot lines.
    But that is just my opinion.
    Since you are writing a review (and I know I have said this a lot) you should forget about your opinions and just write the facts. You shouldn’t try to steer people away from the book(s) because, as we can see, people have different opinions about books. Instead, you should tell them the facts and let them decide for themselves if they want to try it or not.
    Again, I love KOTLC but others may not. Don’t bias your reviews.

  • ThatBookGirl
    August 9, 2020 at 5:03 pm

    ok, a couple things. Where does it ever say anything about Sophie being the “hottest” girl in school? elves do have higher than average looks, and it says that elves are much smarter than humans, but that doesn’t mean that Sophie is the best looking girl. another thing: there are many differences between HP and KotLC. Yes, many of the things are similar, they are not the same. Also, it later in the series becomes clear that the gnomes CHOOSE to live with the elves because of something another species has done to their home. And many of the places that don’t seem very important become very important later in the series. I appreciate the review, but please don’t knock the series until you know more about it. It truly is a great series and it is one of my personal favorites. Also, with the Harry Potter thing? Snape is very different from Lady Galvin. Snape has a lot of reasons to hate Harry, but Lady Galvin dislikes Sophie because of an accident that happens. And unlike Ron and Herminone, Dex and Marella are not as prominent throughout the series. I understand you have to be critical of the series, but this was too far. You have personally insulted many of the people who loves the series, and i’m not surprised at the amount of hate you have gotten from fans of KotLC

  • AnymousKoltc
    August 14, 2020 at 12:20 pm

    OMG THIS IS a lIE I HAVE READ ALL HE BOOKS I REPEAT THIS IS A LIE THIS IS THE MOST AMAZING SERIES EVER I SPEAK FOR THE THOUSands OF PEOPLE ON FANDOM WHO LOVEEEEEEEE THSI BOOK I AM SO DISSIPOINTED WITH THIS REVIEW

  • AnymousKoltc
    August 14, 2020 at 12:34 pm

    Ok so No this is NOT the truth . Anna and the other girl have not read well or theyve just read the first chapter and thrown the book away
    A FEW REASONS
    1.This Book is completly uniquie
    2.Sophie is not a SNOfLAKE SHE IS MY LEAST FAVORITE Character actually
    3.The person who siad sophie was preety was her COUSION
    4.Marella hermione*Scoffs* Marella and Sophie get in a fight in Book 3 and they stop being freinds UNTIL BOOK 6!!
    5.There are SO MANY MAIN chaRCTERS THAT ARE COLORED for example:
    Wylie
    Prentince
    Counciller Emery
    And Linh&Tam are ASIAN
    6.Foxfire Hogwarts? Excuse me DID HOGWARTS CLOSE DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE YEAR DID HARRY ALMOST EXPLODE HOGWARTS DID HARRY GET EXPELLED I think ive made my point
    7.Dame Alina and Dumbledore are the people in the universe that are least alike ALINA WAS VERY MEAN TO SOPHIE AND GoT HER EXPElleD ALSO SHE BECAME A COINCILLER IN BOOK 3!
    8.Ok so you say Magic I say Physics ITS PHysics ALL Of IT IS PHYSICS
    9.Snape hated Harry becuse of his father Galvinh hated Sophie becuase Sophie destroyed her cape
    10:I speak for a ll the KOLT C FANS WHEN I SAY KOLTC IS NOT A RIPOFF IT IS NOT HARRY POTTER REVIVED TRY TO CHANGE MY mIND

  • Anne
    August 23, 2020 at 7:31 am

    This book is not a rip-off! It is an amazing story and does not copy Harry Potter.

  • Anne
    August 23, 2020 at 7:32 am

    This book is not a rip-off! It is an amazing story and does not copy Harry Potter.The science isn’t confusing and seriously, this review was a bit rude.

  • TheRealCleoKnight
    August 26, 2020 at 5:47 pm

    You’ve both clearly interpreted the book wrong. VERY WRONG. I honestly wonder if you’ve been following the story at all. Sophie being in high school was only mentioned in the first couple chapters, so, again, how is she the prettiest girl in high school? That particular bit was mentioned away after the high school part AND was stated by a boy who had a large crush on her.

  • TheRealCleoKnight
    August 26, 2020 at 5:48 pm

    You’ve both clearly interpreted the book wrong. VERY WRONG. I honestly wonder if you’ve been following the story at all. Sophie being in high school was only mentioned in the first couple chapters, so, again, how is she the prettiest girl in high school? That particular bit was mentioned away after the high school part AND was stated by a boy who had a large crush on her.

  • KOTLC fan
    September 7, 2020 at 6:52 pm

    This book is extremely well-written, and you’re hearing this from someone who has read the series 3 times, and not two people who didn’t even have the courtesy to pay attention to the actual plot. The part about Sophie being the prettiest girl in school was about foxfire not her high school, and was said by a character who has a huge crush on her. And before you say the characters are bad, read the other books, because the first book is barely scratching the surface of the true characters. And in the reference to her “chubby brunette family” She was simply comparing her physical traits to her family’s to show how different they were. Most of the similarities between this book and HP are very exaggerated. Also, what is elven catch? Unless you’re talking about base quest (which doesn’t even involve a ball) which Sophie plays like twice, you’re waaaaay off. Also, not once does it say in the book that what the elves are doing isn’t science, they just say it isn’t magic!!! And Sophie isn’t as perfect as you made her seem. She got really upset when Grady and Edaline cancelled her adoption, she broke a bunch of major elven laws, and she cheated on her alchemy exam. Not to mention she almost blew up her school.

  • KOTLC fan
    September 7, 2020 at 7:02 pm

    Also, when you said Sophie’s friends are like Ron and Hermione, are you making fun of Sophie for having friends?! Also, she has way more friends than that, don’t sell our girl short. And the Snape/Lady Galvin point is completely inaccurate. Snape and Harry have a long and complicated past (and Harry wasn’t actually bad at potions, Snape just gave him bad marks and kept vanishing his potions) while Lady Galvin hates Sophie because Sophie incinerated her cape. Also, Lady Galvin just hates her job, and is well known for failing students.

  • Anonymous
    September 8, 2020 at 10:42 am

    Gosh maybe be nice?

  • kotlcfangirl664
    September 11, 2020 at 6:48 pm

    If this is such a ROTTEN book, why is it a BESTSELLING series?! And since when is Sophie the One Who Saves Them All? The Council HATES her SO MUCH they BANISH her! And look at this:
    I could go on and on, so let me just focus on the three areas that bothered me the most regarding Keeper of the Lost Cities: the blase treatment/combo of science and magic, Sophie’s super specialness (and unconvincing nature as a character), and the unabashed Harry Potter ripoffs.

    Specialness? Is that even a word? You’re reading a book review written by people who don’t even have proper respect for words! Do you SERIOUSLY think that they could actually be able to read a book? And WHY do you keep calling Sophie a “Special Snowflake?” She’s only called that, like, TWICE in a series consisting of EIGHT BOOKS. So stop spreading NASTY UNTRUE RUMORS about a GREAT book series!

  • kotlcfangirl664
    September 11, 2020 at 6:53 pm

    SPOILER ALERT: Alvar’s evil.
    SPOILER ALERT: Keefe’s mom is evil.
    Bet you didn’t see that coming. Because you just read a book and go like, “Here’s something bad about it, and here’s something bad about it.” You can’t see the GOOD part about the book! SERIOUSLY, WHY DID I EVEN BOTHER TO READ THIS???

  • Anonymous
    September 12, 2020 at 12:08 am

    Do you have ANY RESPECT for books?! NOBODY TRUST THIS REVIEW KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES IS COMPLETELY WORTH YOUR TIME! I mean, if you focus on JUST BAD parts, then DONT READ A BOOK! Because everyone has flaws and you have to respect that. Why can’t you give it a little respect? Be nice? I bet you would appreciate it TONS if you did something and people just told you that it sucks. UGH!

  • Anonymous
    September 28, 2020 at 7:52 pm

    I understand that everyone has an opinion, and I respect that they have an opinion. But this review was narrow-minded and completely crossed the line. Even though I am a fan of KOTLC, I am trying to write this in an unbiased way, but there is no way I can avoid a bit of anger and disappointment toward this review. With so many canonical errors, biased opinions, and disrespectful remarks toward this book, I can’t help but call this out in a comment – which, mind you, I have never done before.
    First and foremost, this book is NOT racist. There are people of multiple races and ethnicities who are very amazing and relatable characters in the series . . . Tam, Linh, Wylie, Maruca, Emery, Prentice, Quinlin, Livvy . . . And that is to name just a few. The gnomes are darker-skinned in resemblance to a plant’s tree bark, and they are never mistreated. It’s a peaceful and symbiotic relationship between two species.
    Sophie (not Sophia, people) is NEVER described as “hot” in any way. She doesn’t even think herself remotely good-looking and is not vain at all. The only person who calls her “the prettiest girl in the school” is Dex, who has a totally biased opinion due to having a crush on Sophie. (And, AHEM, he is HER AGE and only has a silly crush on her, much like many tweens’ feelings. It’s ridiculous to say that she attracts people three years older than her – as you’d find out in the fourth book, she’s literally only one and a half years younger than Fitz and even closer to Keefe, and neither of them start developing even the slightest feeling for her until she’s fourteen, nearing fifteen, which is pretty normal in this society and in literature.)
    I absolutely hate it when anyone calls a book a “Harry Potter rip-off.” As a total Potterhead myself and someone who has read the HP books many times, I consider it both disrespect to Harry Potter and to the series you are comparing it to when you use that title. Anybody who reads the review can see that you’re reading the book with a pessimist spectacle, literally only reading it to try to find out what’s wrong with it. Much like Rita Skeeter. I’m not asking you not to point out criticisms, but try not to read a book for the sole purpose of bashing it and figuring out your own far-fetched comparisons to make it a rip-off. Maybe try to actually see what’s good in the book too . . . We have FAR too much negativity in the world.
    Now to dismantle every one of these ridiculous Harry Potter comparisons that are thrown together. One, Dame Alina is not benevolent. She is vain and spoiled, tries to stop the wedding of two characters, and turns out to be a pretty corrupt leader. She’s only the principal of the school for a few books, and barely plays a role in the books. This is much unlike Dumbledore, who plays an important role in Harry Potter, is a kind-hearted and wise wizard, and has SO MUCH depth as a character. Dex and Marella are nothing like Ron and Hermione. They have totally different personalities, for one. They aren’t Sophie’s two best friends and aren’t the components for the iconic golden trio of Harry Potter. Sophie makes so many other friends in the story. Pyrokinesis, Mesmerizing, and Inflicting are nothing like the Unforgivable Curses. Only pyrokinesis is forbidden. Mesmerizing and inflicting are in no way restricted or frowned upon, they’re simply rare abilities that can cause damage if not ethically regulated. The flavored strips that unlock lockers are not like the password to Dumbledore’s office, and are definitely not a key component of the story. “A bad match” has nothing to do with nobility level or blood status, like in Harry Potter. It means that two people are “genetically incompatible” and are still partners anyway, something that is frowned upon in the elvin world. Though both of these are societal issues in their respective series, they are nothing like each other, and while blood status plays an important role with Voldemort in Harry Potter, a bad match is a societal issue that is not necessarily central to the plot or antagonists in KOTLC. Magic does not exist in KOTLC – while magic is totally centric to Harry Potter. And Lady Galvin is nothing like Snape. She simply hates all of her students (she hasn’t JUST got it in for Sophie!) and her job, while Snape had a complexity to his hate for Harry Potter. Not to mention that alchemy is fundamentally different from potions. Base quest and splotching are simply casual games that elvin kids like to play in their free time, unlike Quidditch, which is an official sport in the wizarding world.
    About the Fitz and light-leaping thing . . . Honestly, people, were you expecting a teenager to give a science lecture? And even if he had, remember, this is middle grade fiction. Adding a ten-page science lecture to it would certainly not impress its target audience. Plus, this is FANTASY! Are you wanting everything to be so perfectly real? And if the world did include “magic” in KOTLC, that would make you criticize it even more as a so-called “Harry Potter rip-off.” Enough said.
    Sophie is NOT a perfect golden girl. The book specifically says that her being a prodigy in the human world doesn’t help her – it makes people tease, torment, and bully her, to take it straight out of the book. And even when she’s come to foxfire, people whisper about her and some even call her a human freak. The only reason she becomes popular in the story is for accidentally burning Lady Galvin’s cape. The reason why she has abilities like telepathy and a photographic memory are crucial to the plot – SPOILER – because she was altered by the Black Swan at birth. It’s not just to make her a “perfect snowflake” (no idea where that came from) and a “desirable” character. It’s literally part of the plot. And Sophie is NOT perfect. She struggles in a lot of her sessions, she has quite the temper, she actually CHEATS on her alchemy exam, and she is overall just totally not the “sickeningly sweet” character you’re describing.
    The one thing you do say that makes sense to me about why you wouldn’t like it is the slender blonde vs. chubby brunette thing. To be honest, I dislike it as well. But seriously, if you actually paid attention while reading, the only reason Shannon Messenger wrote it like this is to make clear the stark contrast between Sophie and her family, and her questioning about whether they are actually related. Sophie is not sickened at the thought of being a slender blonde in a chubby brunette family, she’s sickened at the idea of not being related to her family. She actually loves her family so much, as we can see throughout the story. She would never make fun of her family because they look different from her . . . Quite the opposite, actually.
    Phew, that’s the end of my long rant. I hoped all of you who haven’t read the book took the time to consider this . . . It makes me sad that people are turned away from reading a great book just because of a negative and inaccurate review. And if you’re a keeper fan out there, I hope you appreciated my effort ? and take it upon yourself to call this out as well.
    Thanks for reading!

  • Jay
    October 15, 2020 at 7:43 am

    To all of you who got turned off by the book because of this review- you should still read it! This review is highly exaggerated! While the main character is slightly over powered, not everyone likes her! She’s not some goddess everyone worships! I can think of more than three people off the bat who don’t like her (Lady Galvin, Brote, Stina, Stina’s mom, Stina’s dad, etc..). The characters are actually very realistic and likable. Each one (including Sophie) has their own unique flaws and quirks. None of the classes are similar to Harry Potter’s, except for maybe the Universe (astronomy), History (every school has history!), Agriculture, and Alchemy is similar to potions, but definitely not the same. The school has unique, interesting classes like Linguistics, Metaphysics, Elementalism, and Telepathy. Do those sound like Harry Potter classes? No, they do not.

  • KOTLCisthebest
    November 5, 2020 at 8:26 am

    OMG. This review is soooo not true. KOTLC is my favorite book and Sophie is nothing like what the review said. She has her own flaws and she doesn’t even think she is pretty. (Pretty much the opposit. If you think KOTLC was ridiculous, guess that we don’t need you in this millions of KOTLC fans. KOTLC has its OWN humor, OWN story and OWN characters. Seriously, I don’t get the point why you dislikes KOTLC.
    KOTLC 4 ever!!!
    Sokeefe!!!!
    ??????

  • KOTLCisthebest
    November 5, 2020 at 8:30 am

    OMG. This review is soooo not true. KOTLC is my favorite book and Sophie is nothing like what the review said. She has her own flaws and she doesn’t even think she is pretty. (Pretty much the opposit. If you think KOTLC was ridiculous, guess that we don’t need you in this millions of KOTLC fans. KOTLC has its OWN humor, OWN story and OWN characters. Seriously, I don’t get the point why you dislikes KOTLC.
    KOTLC 4 ever!!!
    Sokeefe!!!!
    ??????

  • Anonymous
    November 8, 2020 at 1:50 pm

    This review is 100% absolutely STUPID. Yes there may be a couple tiny little non-important harry potter refrences but the whole book is nothing like harry potter. You should really read the whole book before you criticize it. So keep calling yourself great review writers even though you’re not.

  • .............................
    November 8, 2020 at 1:51 pm

    This review is 100% absolutely STUPID. Yes there may be a couple tiny little non-important harry potter refrences but the whole book is nothing like harry potter. You should really read the whole book before you criticize it. So keep calling yourself great review writers even though you’re not.

  • .............................
    November 8, 2020 at 1:51 pm

    This review is 100% absolutely STUPID. Yes there may be a couple tiny little non-important harry potter refrences but the whole book is nothing like harry potter. You should really read the whole book before you criticize it. So keep calling yourself great review writers even though you’re not.

  • .............................
    November 8, 2020 at 3:36 pm

    Also It’s SOPHIE NOT SOPHIA. It just annoys me that you say that and also shows you only paid attention to a little bit of the book. Sophie is not at all the most perfect character and definitely was never described as the hottest girl in school. She never wanted to be telepathic it was just part of her. She’s only at the top of her class among humans and as Alden said even the most dumb elf is smarter than the smartest human. Once again Great job so called review writers.

  • TheRealCleoKnight
    December 1, 2020 at 11:42 am

    Hi everyone! I personally love all of your book reviews, so this one was a little disappointing because I personally love all of the KotLC books. I just wanted to let you know that the series gets better and better and there are a wider variety of characters, etc. But anyway, still love your reviews! Keep it up:)

  • ANONYMOUS
    December 11, 2020 at 3:11 pm

    I really don’t think keeper of the lost cities is a harry potter rip-off. Writing a book is hard and you can’t just go on ranting bad reviews without even reading it. Harry potter was the changing point for middle grade fantasy and it follows the hero’s journey plot line just like any other middle grade fantasy book. The author has worked on this book with all her heart and it took 20 drafts to finally publish it. Do reviewers even know how hard it is to write a book or do they just sit back and judge other writers? So please don’t judge with out reading it and if you still can’t show some respect towards the author and her book, you should try writing your own ‘completely original book without copying a single detail from Harry Potter’. I dare you.

  • oops
    December 15, 2020 at 10:33 pm

    As a person who has kept up to date with all the keeper books until now… I’m sad to say…. I completely agree with this review. Reasons? To name a few, Sophie continues to be absolutely perfect at everything that she does. The only true round character is Keefe–you cannot convince me otherwise. And a point that personally offended me? Sophie meets Tam and Linh and describes them as looking like they’d stepped out of an anime, or were k-pop idols. Um, hello? First of all, those are from two very different cultures: Japan and Korea. As an asian person, I found that veeeeeeery offensive. (also do you know how terrifying it would be if you saw someone who looked exactly like an anime character LOL) I could go on for so long–but the best way is to sum it up is that I respect the opinions of others, even if we completely disagree, but I personally think that overall, Shannon has lost view of her plot and is just going ooooooon and ooooooooooooooooon and ON, with no forseeable view in sight.

  • Eliana
    December 18, 2020 at 2:38 pm

    Keeper of the Lost Cities in my opinion is one of the BEST books I have ever read in my entire life. Yes, it is pretty childish, but I love it. If you would just read the rest of the series you would understand why I love this series so much. The first book is just the intro to the book the best books in this series are the ones that come after the first one.

  • Anonymous
    December 21, 2020 at 12:24 pm

    i

  • Anonymous
    December 21, 2020 at 12:45 pm

    Even though I’m about 11 years late I think this argument is very relevant. The KOTLC books are like,okay books. There not awful and I have read them. It’s just that the characters in Kotlc are not written so well. Almost all of the characters are described as being white,straight,super smart and pretty. Which makes it seem as though in a world that Shannon Messenger would create anyone out of that category wouldn’t exist. The characters that are out of that description are often either described very horridly or are a part of the bad guys group. The characters are also very bland. Sophie Foster is just a classic pick me/quirky girl. She has no personality except being a prodigy and being insecure. The only character that has a personality and character development is Keefe. Keefe struggles with things,he has emotions that make sense and are relevant. Also the books are a lot like Harry Potter,just without the warmness and dreaminess of the HP universe. The love triangle between Keefe,Fitz,and Sophie follows a pattern that the Hunger games have with Peeta,Gus (I can’t remember his name), and Katniss. A lot of the books are just full of filler. Just pointless writing that has no meaning and doesn’t add anything to the plot.-So yeah,I have some issues with the books.

  • Eliana G Waechter
    December 21, 2020 at 2:15 pm

    I disagree strongly. Yes, it is like the Harry Potter series, but not all the characters are white, straight, super smart, and pretty. Also, they are not described horridly. Sophie Foster is not just a classic pick me/quirky girl. She has many feelings and different emotions. It is not just pointless writing. Also, how would you feel if writing was your career and someone called it pointless. What you just called pointless was someone else’s life work. You should really think about how the writer tries to write the story. Also, I doubt that you could ever write as well as Shannon Messinger ever will.

  • Dancergirl123
    December 21, 2020 at 9:19 pm

    Hello! Um…. So…. Keeper of the lost Cities is the most amazing book ever and I strongly disagree with everything you have said!
    I am really sad that you could say all these horrible things! I found what you said quite rude and disrespectful. Saying you disliked a book is one thing but to completely shame the author of copying hp to me is unfair. This is her fantasy world that she created and plus Hp does not have Silveny, the Neverseen, The Black swan, imps, and most importantly where is Keefe in hp? When you can tell me where these things are in hp I believe you…. but until then this is an unfair thing that you have said. And you have completely miss guided readers that should definitely read this book!
    I give it 10000000/10 it is amazing and full of plot twists and adventures!
    I would definitely recommend!

  • Dancergirl123
    December 21, 2020 at 9:29 pm

    And the fact that you can leave such a negative review on such a great book makes me sick! Like have you even read all 9 books?!
    I AM SORRY THAT YOU DIDN’T LOVE A BOOK BUT UT ISN’T OKAY TO GO OUT AND SHAME IT LIKE THIS! I MEAN…. NOW ALL OF THESE READERS THAT SHOULD READ THIS AMAZING BOOK WON’T!
    So yeah! Plz don’t go around shaming such an amazing book like this! It just makes me soooo mad and I think you should read the whole series before you can go out there and HATE ON IT!

  • Eliana G Waechter
    December 22, 2020 at 7:44 am

    Thank you!!!! I agree with you so much. This series is my favorite book series ever and I’ve read many series before. I can’t tell you how much I love these books! Also, you really should not shame a book if you have not read all of the books in the series.

  • R2A88
    December 22, 2020 at 11:48 am

    Though I can agree with some of these points, KOTLC DID NOT copy Harry Potter. And the book series gets better and better as it goes on. The characters go through things that real teens go through, just with some fictional components to it.
    How many stories can you name when the main character is the chosen one, destined to defeat the bad guys?
    A lot.
    And the characters aren’t perfect at all! In fact, they’re going through horrible things. Some things that kids can relate to. And if you gave the other books a chance, you would see that.
    These books are soooooo worth the read. I mean, sure. They’re not on a Harry Potter level, but they’re still charming in their own way! I read all of the books (except Unlocked because it wasn’t out yet) in a week and immediately reread them. Once you get into it, it builds up so much awesome story and you can’t set it down.
    Also, I can name over 25 people who have a crush on Keefe freaking Sencen (INCLUDING MYSELF).

  • R2A88
    December 22, 2020 at 11:57 am

    Another thing, Sophie was NEVER described as the prettiest girl in school. Did you actually read this book? She was BULLIED. At the high school, and Foxfire. A lot of your claims are VERY off. It’s a shame that you said these things when it’s obvious you didn’t pay much attention.

  • Eliana G Waechter
    December 22, 2020 at 1:07 pm

    Sophie Foster was NEVER the prettiest girl in school. She wasn’t even described as the prettiest girl in school and everyone bullied her because she was a 12-year-old high school senior.

  • KennedyDaPotato
    December 28, 2020 at 3:53 am

    Thought I’d get a bit diverse and add some spice in the comments hehe. I’ve read the series except maybe not the two or one current books because I ended up dropping it. After reading this review it kind of made me look back at the story itself and made me realize that I was more or less enjoying the book out of the erg of wanting more Harry Potter like worlds. I can’t say this for everyone but that was my personal reason. I also took a pause from it and read a lot more other books and when I went back to this book I noticed a lot of odd stuff such as a constant repeat in. metaphors and the way how objects and stuff were described. Was well…lack luster.

    I don’t mind books that aren’t that descriptive and this is more of a personal preference but it did make it hard for me to read when the sentences kind of felt like they were on repeat in some parts.

    The story itself has slowly become, more and more of a love story than about the main plot. The love story, originally if my memory serves, was more of a sub plot compared to the main one but took over a lot of the story that it kind of drained the original goal of it all. It became more revolved around “will they won’t they” then what was going on. Romance can be good in a story but if you’re doing a story that involves war and fighting it would be odd for that to take over the characters mind. But now I’m just going off over small things.

    Other things was how odd things were. Like from Sophie getting all of these powers yet somehow is still not powerful enough. She keeps getting upgrade, after upgrade and discovers new things and trains all the time but keeps failing as though there has been no progress. Its just weird you know. You have like and overpowered OC but for some reason they forget that???

    Also am I the only one weirded out about the age stuff? I thought Fitz and Sophie were like 2 years apart not three??? I also saw a comment say something about how technically Sophie was closer in age because age is different there then on earth which weirds me out more. Idk it just doesn’t sit right with me. And the someone else said that their grandparents are 7 years apart so its not that big of deal. Yeah maybe if they were adults, but mate these are minors we’re talking about.

    For the hot stuff I don’t recall much of that but I think they were referring to the fact that practically everyone in the group has a crush on her. Yes she was considered a freak for being really smart to the point she got asked to go to yail but if I’m being honest it kind of seem excessive and I don’t remember much of her showing this sort of high intelligence make it a lot more cartoonish though that could be because she’s in a different world meaning she kind of has to relearn everything.

    The whole gnomes thing is an argument I’m not sure I can argue about (I’m white) nor can I say has some harmful subtext. However that doesn’t mean it can’t be viewed as it. All I’m thinking of is Harry Potter and their elves (not the really hot ones, but a bunch of cute dobies) which said that they enjoyed working which is uhhh yikes mate. It enters the territory of slavery and abuse and stuff, and sure you can enjoy gardening but the way how it was handled wasn’t so nicely. People have pointed out that there are other non white characters that come in later in the series which is true however that doesn’t exactly just cover up this point. Harry Potter also has different diverse characters while there most prominent asian characters name is Cho Chang and they got elves saying they like to clean after their master for free and being hit is fun for them (ok that last part is semi-true but you get the point)…

    Is this similar to Harry Potter? Only like in two or three aspects however it doesn’t really rely on the school much and it is hardly a common setting in the story in later on books. That along with the Potions teacher thing however someone pointed out that those two relationships are different but the intent is kinda there, but overall I don’t think its that much of Harry Potter ripoff and more inspired from it and was trying to go for it but failed at it. Harry Potter isn’t the first to introduce the magical school nor the evil potions teacher anyways. Theres a story series and a Netflix series that I enjoy watching called “The Worst Witch” with the first one coming out in 1974. It’s probably going to eventually become a subgenera in the fantasy series which wouldn’t be that surprising.

    Overall though, I just can’t read these books anymore. I remember how aggravated I was at the characters, the writing, and the plot was just everywhere if memory serves. I really really started disliking them all, the only characters I enjoyed kind of disappeared into the background and were overtaken by Fitz and Keefe and the love triangle. Sophie just ignored Dex despite him worrying about losing her as a friend. Bianca idk where the hell she was at. The twins were idk doing illegal stuff. Sophie, I didn’t necessarily dislike her more was annoyed at her then anything. I feel like she should get her priorities straight and idk she just always seems to be injured or down in someway which is fine and all but she can still go beyond and stuff. Idk maybe I’m going to harsh on her but I will go harsh on Keefe and Fitz. Get a therapist, not a girlfriend. You got the money to get an appointment with your elf therapist instead of yelling at people at random and not getting sleep.

    Anyways so yeah. I probably will forget about this but idk you guys can go wild if you want with this comment. But just because you love this book series doesn’t mean you have to tear apart the review.

  • KENNEDYDAPOTATO
    December 28, 2020 at 4:02 am

    Lol my grammar is so bad. Also sorry for the poor structure. I had added spaced in between paragraphs of this book I just wrote in the comment section but it didn’t go though

  • KENNEDYDAPOTATO
    December 28, 2020 at 4:06 am

    Also at that anomynous person who is 11 years late completely agree with your points mate except the HP part but its been awhile since I’ve cracked open those books lol

  • Anonymous
    January 24, 2021 at 8:14 pm

    I’m sorry, but I can’t take this seriously. You guys didn’t even try to cover the GOOD parts of the book, like the emotions and plot, and instead picked it apart searching for the negative. This was said before, but the amount of books and television shows where the lead turns out to be the hero/heroine is more myriad than the stars. You said it journeys into “Harry Potter Knock-off land”, but it simply contains some similar elements. After the first book the series grows increasingly distant from that claim, building into its own world that does NOT prominently feature school, mean teachers, curses, etc.

    To all the people who removed/are removing this series from their to-be-read list, I implore you to just try the first couple books for yourself, or at LEAST find some more reviews. Do not shun a story that you may turn out to love because of two people’s incomplete review.

  • Anonymous
    January 26, 2021 at 7:22 am

    Wow. Just Wow.
    KOTLC is the best book and you don’t get to judge about the book because it just isn’t your type.
    I can’t believe you wrote your opinion here.

  • Anonymous
    April 15, 2021 at 6:42 pm

    I personally couldn’t agree more with Thea and Ana. This book is very poorly written and the characters and world building are unoriginal and bland. To everyone saying to read the book before you criticize it, I have read the whole series though it pained me to do so. If you really enjoy this book that’s fine, but I think it’s one of the worst books I’ve ever read.

  • Black Reader
    June 13, 2021 at 9:45 am

    I am also late to the conversation, having just read book 1. I suspect that whether you see the racism in this book depends on your own race. As a Black woman, I was appalled that a relatively young writer from southern California could publish this text without recognizing language that has been used to oppress “others” throughout history.
    The argument that gnomes enjoy and benefit from their subservience was used to justify Slavery in the United States. For those who argue that gnomes are not human, let me point out that dark-skinned humans also get their color from absorbing the sun in the sense that melanin absorbs sun and determines skin color. Dark-skinned people have also been considered less than human as evidenced by our classification as 3/5 of a person in the US Constitution and the designation of male, female, and colored bathrooms in the Jim Crow south. It has also been argued that we liked slavery and would have been lost without masters to care for and protect us.
    Messenger introduces a species of “gray beasts” with” “flat noses” in the goblins. They also appear to work for the elves as bodyguards and security details.
    What makes this racism is that in the book, one’s station in life is determined by one’s genetics. The constant references to color associated with beauty and prestige such as pale/porcelain skin, rosy/pink cheeks, blonde/amber/golden ringlets, and aquamarine/blue/periwinkle eyes is a not-so-subtle way of telling non-White readers that no one who looks like them truly belongs in this world. It’s implied that even Sophie with her brown eyes is an outsider, created rather than born. Fortunately, her slender build and blonde hair redeem her. It’s common for White (and all) authors to fill their imaginary worlds with people who look like them but this book is intentional about emphasizing the skin tone, eye color, weight/build, hair color, and even hair texture of every character. These superficial traits are viewed as evidence that a character does or does not belong to an intelligent, unbelievably attractive, and highly evolved race/species.
    To make matters worse, there is very little acknowledgement, analysis, or discussion of the racism, colorism, and classism found in this series. I’ve looked online and it’s rarely mentioned. I was not surprised that at least one of the authors of this review is non-White since the review is one of a few that brings up the treatment of the brown-skinned gnomes.

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