253rd out of 1,210 books
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Superior Saturday (The Keys to the Kingdom #6)
by
Garth Nix (Goodreads Author)
On the sixth day, there was sorcery.
Arthur Penhaligan has wrested five of the Keys from their immortal guardians, the Trustees of the Will. But gaining the Sixth Key poses a greater challenge than any he has faced before. Superior Saturday is not just one of the Trustees – she is also the oldest Denizen and the most powerful and knowledgeable sorcerer within the House. She...more
Arthur Penhaligan has wrested five of the Keys from their immortal guardians, the Trustees of the Will. But gaining the Sixth Key poses a greater challenge than any he has faced before. Superior Saturday is not just one of the Trustees – she is also the oldest Denizen and the most powerful and knowledgeable sorcerer within the House. She...more
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published
August 1st 2008
by Scholastic Press
(first published June 1st 2008)
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Jul 30, 2008
Rosie
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Keys to the Kingdom fans
Shelves:
books-i-own,
teenage
After the wait between Lady Friday and the publication of Superior Saturday, it took a little while to first remember what had happened previously and to get into the mindset of all things Keys to the Kingdom. I have to marvel at Garth Nix's scale of imagination - far surpasses my own, and so I struggled with picturing Staurday's tower of iron cubes and chains. It was engaging, and Arthur's own changes and attitude were interesting to read about but it all sort of smacks of a sandwich with no bu...more
Book six and it only now finally occurred to me that, for a light kid's fantasy series focusing on a boy coming of age (that is pretty paint by numbers by this point), Nix is actually doing a rather good job with the female characters. So far, half of the trustees have been female, including two of the three highest ranking ones and the one to actually be helpful instead of a pain. The Will is female, the Architect is female, and both of Arthur's friends/confidants are female. Not a single swoon...more
Aug 20, 2008
Loren
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
All
Recommended to Loren by:
Me
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
It's now Saturday on Earth and Arthur continues along in his journey to save his family, his friends, his town, his world, and the rest of the universe. He finally shruggs off his reluctantance and constant fear of becoming immortal and starts using more of the power he's gained as the situation becomes exponentially more desparate and Nothing closes in. Saturday follows the similar pattern of the other books: find the next part of the Will and get the next Day's Key, except that this time the d...more
Reviewed by Candace Cunard for TeensReadToo.com
Having read and loved Garth Nix's OLD KINGDOM books (SABRIEL, LIRAEL, and ABHORSEN) as well as his SEVENTH TOWER series, I had pretty high expectations when I started in on SUPERIOR SATURDAY. I wasn't
disappointed. The action moves along quickly, with new and original presentations of magic at every turn, and major and minor characters worth cheering for (or, in the case of the antagonists, against).
The sixth book in Nix's KEYS TO THE KINGDOM serie...more
Having read and loved Garth Nix's OLD KINGDOM books (SABRIEL, LIRAEL, and ABHORSEN) as well as his SEVENTH TOWER series, I had pretty high expectations when I started in on SUPERIOR SATURDAY. I wasn't
disappointed. The action moves along quickly, with new and original presentations of magic at every turn, and major and minor characters worth cheering for (or, in the case of the antagonists, against).
The sixth book in Nix's KEYS TO THE KINGDOM serie...more
I loved the description of the Upper House, with the umbrellas and the cubicles and the impossibly high tower and the rain and the black Matrix suits. I wish we could have seen a bit more of it, or seen the setting put to better use. I loved the portrayal of sorcery as an almost banal office-grind type activity. I also loved Saturday herself; I wish we could have seen more of her. I was waiting for the epic showdown between her and Arthur. In that way, the book felt too short, like it was just a...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I have to say, as an audiobook, this was rather confusing. I probably should read the books as I am a visual person, but Sir Thursday was an audiobook and I listened to it quite well. Perhaps it was the fact that I couldn't really picture Superior Saturday's Tower. There was amazing detail on it, but it is still very confusing in my head. Oh well, on to something else.
Arthur is growing up, he has this awful rage and sense of entitlement but he's fighting it. I love that aspect of the book. It he...more
Arthur is growing up, he has this awful rage and sense of entitlement but he's fighting it. I love that aspect of the book. It he...more
Although it's only been a few days in the mortal realm, a lot has changed for Arthur Penhaligan. On a Monday, he was declared the Rightful Heir to the Keys to the Kingdom. He was immediately thrust into a world where everyone was taller, stronger, more magical and far more knowledgable, but he somehow triumphed over the dog-faced men in bowler hats, magical plagues, and clockwork eye-thieves populating the Lower House. He had scarcely returned to his own world when the machinations of Grim Tuesd...more
Superior Saturday is the reason the House is collapsing. She wants to reach the Incomparable Gardens (Lord Sunday's Realm) and fight him for it, for she believes it is rightfully hers. She's building a tower in the Upper House, building it high enough to reach the Gardens. But no matter how fast she builds, the Drasil trees that hold up the Garden grow faster, and she cannot reach them. So, in order to finally reach them, she has let loose the Nothing on the House, therefore ruining the roots of...more
Bloody brilliant!
Action packed from the word go, rather I was concerned about how fast I was going through the pages when the story seemed like it was only 1/2 done. Compared to the other trustees, it seemed that Gareth Nix intended not to put as much details into this as no there is exposure of Saturday from the start. We hardly know much about her, nor see her in action especially towards Arthur, and has the last page of the book said:
“See how it all ends in Lord Sunday”
It’s a bitch of a cliff...more
Action packed from the word go, rather I was concerned about how fast I was going through the pages when the story seemed like it was only 1/2 done. Compared to the other trustees, it seemed that Gareth Nix intended not to put as much details into this as no there is exposure of Saturday from the start. We hardly know much about her, nor see her in action especially towards Arthur, and has the last page of the book said:
“See how it all ends in Lord Sunday”
It’s a bitch of a cliff...more
This is the sixth book in The Keys to the Kingdom series. If you haven't read the others, you shouldn't start with this one because it won't make sense. This is probably the weakest book in the series. Still worth reading, but not as strong as some that have come before.
It's a relief to see Arthur accepting what has become his destiny. No longer eschewing magic in an effort to remain human and embracing what needs to be done to save his world and the people he cares for makes him a more sympath...more
It's a relief to see Arthur accepting what has become his destiny. No longer eschewing magic in an effort to remain human and embracing what needs to be done to save his world and the people he cares for makes him a more sympath...more
This is the 6th book in the Keys to the Kingdom series by Garth Nix. This was a good book but the ending left me puzzled. I listened to this on audio book and the quality of the audio book was excellent.
Arthur and Suzy venture into Superior Saturday's realm to try and retrieve the 6th part of the Will. Arthur is finding it harder and harder to stay human, and is really starting to struggle with the part of himself that is turning into something else. The lower house is being destroyed by Nothing...more
Arthur and Suzy venture into Superior Saturday's realm to try and retrieve the 6th part of the Will. Arthur is finding it harder and harder to stay human, and is really starting to struggle with the part of himself that is turning into something else. The lower house is being destroyed by Nothing...more
It's now Saturday on Earth and Arthur continues along in his journey to save his family, his friends, his town, his world, and the rest of the universe. He finally shrugs off his reluctance and constant fear of becoming immortal and starts using more of the power he's gained as the situation becomes exponentially more desperate and Nothing closes in. Right after he has put this scenario to rest another rises. Now he has to find a way to stop mini nukes from raveging his town and the hospital ful...more
Arthur Penhaligan has major problems. Having faced five of the immortal Trustees and collected their parts of the Will of the Architect and their five keys, he now has to figure out how to defeat Superior Saturday, oldest of the denizens and the most powerful sorceress in the House. Saturday's goal, however, is to destroy the Lower House and bring the Upper House within striking distance of Lord Sunday's Incomparable Gardens. Arthur's going to get in her way, and that doesn't bode well for him o...more
Why on earth haven't I read Nix before? This series was so imaginative and gripping that I just couldn't put the books down, but read a few of them in one sitting. Alright, I wasn't always impressed by the ridiculously stereotypical monsters every cheap Saturday morning cartoon is stuffed with, but I can forgive that bit to some degree. Reading about the complex, very surreal universe Arthur and his friends inhabit makes your imagination soar, and while Nix clearly has borrowed common elements f...more
Poor Arthur. Now not only has he become fully a Denizen (or something beyond even that) but his Denizen status is driving him into very un-arthur like behavior. He can barely control the rage that passes through him, even driving him to attack a defenseless Piper's child! Plus, his mum's still missing, the rest of his family's about to be obliterated by an atomic bomb, he's at war with three different and dangerous foes, he's not even sure he can trust all of his allies and he has some serious g...more
Here I am, almost at the end of the series -- and I want to finish it now. In this 6th book, Arthur hears from his older brother that the hospital where his mother works is going to be hit by nuclear weapons. Leaf is also still stuck in the area. The time for the attack is set at 12:01, but the evil force who has been in the background for every book has instructions to act at 1 second past midnight -- a fact Arthur does not know. In fact, Arthur does not even register the fact that the attack h...more
The final book so far has finally been opened to the public, and I managed to buy this book before it was sold out. This book was so worth the wait to find the last book in stock, and I want to really read more. Superior Saturday is almost the finale in the Keys to the Kingdom series.
So this one is about Arthur again, after he just saved his friend Leaf who was accidentally caught in between this conflict. He just defeated Lady Friday, just as the Lower House is completely wiped out by the Not...more
So this one is about Arthur again, after he just saved his friend Leaf who was accidentally caught in between this conflict. He just defeated Lady Friday, just as the Lower House is completely wiped out by the Not...more
I liked this better than Lady Friday. Friday just left me going "whaaaat?" especially after the excitement in Sir Thursday.
I like Arthur more now. I was mostly apathetic towards him before and I can't seem to recall why I never warmed up to him. It's been a while since I read the last book.
Saturday makes a surprisingly brief appearance. (She had blue hair. I think it was electric blue. I had squinted hard at the page and started to wonder if I had accidentally dropped into a fanfic instead. Tha...more
I like Arthur more now. I was mostly apathetic towards him before and I can't seem to recall why I never warmed up to him. It's been a while since I read the last book.
Saturday makes a surprisingly brief appearance. (She had blue hair. I think it was electric blue. I had squinted hard at the page and started to wonder if I had accidentally dropped into a fanfic instead. Tha...more
(an Audible audiobook)
What's really funny is that, at the very beginning of this book I thought "Hm. That sounds familiar..." yet I forged on. About halfway through I figured out that I had, in fact, read this book once before. No worries. I expect that time had been interrupted midway through, which is why so much of it *didn't* seem familiar.
I have thoroughly enjoyed this series. I like that, although the main character is a boy, he has acquired *two* side-kicks, both of which are awesome, sti...more
What's really funny is that, at the very beginning of this book I thought "Hm. That sounds familiar..." yet I forged on. About halfway through I figured out that I had, in fact, read this book once before. No worries. I expect that time had been interrupted midway through, which is why so much of it *didn't* seem familiar.
I have thoroughly enjoyed this series. I like that, although the main character is a boy, he has acquired *two* side-kicks, both of which are awesome, sti...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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It feels like this book and Lady Friday had everything crammed together at the third of the book. Then the first half of the next book, it feels like it is trying to resolve most of the plot of the previous book. I think this trend might carry through to Lord Sunday but I don't know how that will happen seeing as it is the last book in The Keys to the Kingdom series.
I would that this book is an improvement after Lady Friday. I was glad to see that there were more chapters focusing on Arthur with...more
I would that this book is an improvement after Lady Friday. I was glad to see that there were more chapters focusing on Arthur with...more
This is a charming series about a young boy, Arthur Penhaligon, who is selected by agents of another dimension, so to speak, as the heir to the Keys of the Kingdom. The Kingdom was made by the Architect, and it includes the House, the Secondary Realms (worlds like ours), and the entire universe. But her Trustees haven't been very faithful, and her Will has been split into parts and unable to be fulfilled. Arthur is pulled into a world of magic and mayhem where each Trustee has control over a dif...more
This has been my least favourite of the Keys to the Kingdom so far. Not only did it not have an ending, but the series seems to be getting old and there are no new revelations, at least any of interest to me. It asks a couple questions at the beginning such as what is Arthur the heir to, and who he is inheriting it from, but then seems to forget about them completely. The only exception for the minor note that Arthur's blood is golden, neither the red of a human or the blue of a denizen. To me t...more
I don't know what it is about kids books that I love so much.
If you have started the series but haven't read this one yet. Don't. I'm not saying that it's not a good book. If you love books that are geared for the younger reader (i.e. harry potter), then you'll love this series. But this book is much more of a cliff hanger than any of the other ones. And I would recomend waiting until the last book, Lord Sunday, is almost out (or if it's out when you're reading this, then whatever). I debated ab...more
If you have started the series but haven't read this one yet. Don't. I'm not saying that it's not a good book. If you love books that are geared for the younger reader (i.e. harry potter), then you'll love this series. But this book is much more of a cliff hanger than any of the other ones. And I would recomend waiting until the last book, Lord Sunday, is almost out (or if it's out when you're reading this, then whatever). I debated ab...more
Down the home stretch of this series and in Book 6, Arthur's story really intensifies.
This book features the 2nd most powerful Trustee, yet surprisingly spends the least amount of time on her than any of the other 7. Nevertheless, some very interesting story lines in this book; the teasing of Lord Sunday over Saturday and Saturday's eternal battle to reach the Incomparable Gardens; the very curious nature of Saturday's Denizens/sorcerers (made extra humourous for anyone who happens to work in an...more
This book features the 2nd most powerful Trustee, yet surprisingly spends the least amount of time on her than any of the other 7. Nevertheless, some very interesting story lines in this book; the teasing of Lord Sunday over Saturday and Saturday's eternal battle to reach the Incomparable Gardens; the very curious nature of Saturday's Denizens/sorcerers (made extra humourous for anyone who happens to work in an...more
ALMOST.DONE
When I started this series, I wasn't entirely sure I liked it, but it was interesting enough to keep going. Now that I've only got one book left, I have to finish it but I definitely want it to end.
It's not that it's bad... it's just there is so much that is annoying. I've wondered a few times if, since I'm six books into the 7 book series, I should mark them up a star to 4 stars... but no. They are all 3 stars.
I like the parts where Arthur stops and reminds himself that he is Human...more
When I started this series, I wasn't entirely sure I liked it, but it was interesting enough to keep going. Now that I've only got one book left, I have to finish it but I definitely want it to end.
It's not that it's bad... it's just there is so much that is annoying. I've wondered a few times if, since I'm six books into the 7 book series, I should mark them up a star to 4 stars... but no. They are all 3 stars.
I like the parts where Arthur stops and reminds himself that he is Human...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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Garth Nix was born in 1963 in Melbourne, Australia, to the sound of the Salvation Army band outside playing 'Hail the Conquering Hero Comes' or possibly 'Roll Out the Barrel'. Garth left Melbourne at an early age for Canberra (the federal capital) and stayed there till he was nineteen, when he left to drive around the UK in a beat-up Austin with a boot full of books and a Silver-Reed typewriter.
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“I am not going to change who I am. I am human and I know how to love, and be kind, and be compassionate to those who are weaker than me. Just because I have power doesn't mean I have to use it!”
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“There is never one absolutely right thing to do. All you can do is honor what you believe, accept the consequences of your own actions, and make the best out of what happens.”
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Sep 21, 2008 09:49pm