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Skandar #2
Skandar and the phantom rider
The Island shall have its revenge . . .
Skandar Smith has achieved his dream to train as a unicorn rider.
But as Skandar and his friends enter their second year at the Eyrie, a new threat arises. Immortal wild unicorns are somehow being killed, a prophecy warns of terrible danger, and elemental destruction begins to ravage the Island.
Meanwhile, Skandar’s sister, Kenna, longs to join him – and Skandar is determined to help her, no matter what. As the storm gathers, can Skandar discover how to stop the Island tearing itself apart – before it’s too late for them all?
Skandar Smith has achieved his dream to train as a unicorn rider.
But as Skandar and his friends enter their second year at the Eyrie, a new threat arises. Immortal wild unicorns are somehow being killed, a prophecy warns of terrible danger, and elemental destruction begins to ravage the Island.
Meanwhile, Skandar’s sister, Kenna, longs to join him – and Skandar is determined to help her, no matter what. As the storm gathers, can Skandar discover how to stop the Island tearing itself apart – before it’s too late for them all?
416 pages, Paperback
First published April 27, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 529 reviews
December 31, 2023
7.29 on CAWPILE
didn-t-read-because-reasons
June 8, 2022Unicorns hatch from eggs. I bet you didn’t know that.
May 3, 2025
I enjoyed this one slightly more than book one. I maintain that the worldbuilding makes no sense. I laugh hysterically that someone thought this was going to be as big as Harry Potter.
General spoilers:
I’m annoyed that once again it looks like we’re going to make women the villains of the story.
I don’t want to make it seem like I’m making a blanket complaint about female villains (because I generally love those) , I guess I’m more annoyed at how two dimensional and terribly cartoonish the Weaver is as a villain. At least the new one (because I’m just assuming that’s the path this story is going) will be somewhat more fleshed out since she’s been given more backstory and page time. But the Weaver’s story makes no sense really.. at all.
Anyway. There was some good intrigue and I liked the lore of the Secret Swappers. There was some tension built in. It’s still way too long.
I think we probably will continue. My daughter enjoys them so that’s what matters.
General spoilers:
I’m annoyed that once again it looks like we’re going to make women the villains of the story.
I don’t want to make it seem like I’m making a blanket complaint about female villains (because I generally love those) , I guess I’m more annoyed at how two dimensional and terribly cartoonish the Weaver is as a villain. At least the new one (because I’m just assuming that’s the path this story is going) will be somewhat more fleshed out since she’s been given more backstory and page time. But the Weaver’s story makes no sense really.. at all.
Anyway. There was some good intrigue and I liked the lore of the Secret Swappers. There was some tension built in. It’s still way too long.
I think we probably will continue. My daughter enjoys them so that’s what matters.
August 9, 2023
Obožavam kada je drugi dio serijala savršen nastavak, a ne onaj dio koji se morao tu naći samo kao rastegnuta dosada koja nas mora dovesti do trećeg napetog dijela. Ovaj je savršen u svakom pogledu, kakav je bio i njegov prethodnik, baš onako kako bi nastavak trebao biti.
Napetiji, s više novih tajni i s otkrivanjem starih, gdje je povezivanje priča koje su ostale nedorečene s likovima i njihovim porijeklom puno jasnije, gdje su likovi bivali zreliji, ali i dalje djeca željna svega što im njihovi suđeni jednorozi mogu pružiti. Ma ludnica!
Više o utiscima pročitajte klikom na link: https://knjige-u-svom-filmu.webador.c...
Napetiji, s više novih tajni i s otkrivanjem starih, gdje je povezivanje priča koje su ostale nedorečene s likovima i njihovim porijeklom puno jasnije, gdje su likovi bivali zreliji, ali i dalje djeca željna svega što im njihovi suđeni jednorozi mogu pružiti. Ma ludnica!
Više o utiscima pročitajte klikom na link: https://knjige-u-svom-filmu.webador.c...
December 29, 2022
I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of this book. It was even more than what I was expecting.
There was no wasted moments amd you get to learn so much about the world. The characters keep growing and developing, the villans over all plan still very much shrouded in shadow.
A must read series for fantasy lovers.
Can't wait for book three.
There was no wasted moments amd you get to learn so much about the world. The characters keep growing and developing, the villans over all plan still very much shrouded in shadow.
A must read series for fantasy lovers.
Can't wait for book three.
June 19, 2023
Probably not a 5, but I vowed to give every book in the series a 5 when I started it.
September 13, 2025
An improvement over the first one, but not by much.
"Better than Percy Jackson!" PJO, sweetie, I'm sorry this half-baked wannabe is talking smack.
SKANDAR AND THE UNICORN THIEF is one of the most It middle grade books of the moment, getting all the marketing, flashy film deals and general industry hype than any other book in recent memory. Having found the first book fun, but incompetently written and undeserving of the hype, I was pretty confident when I decided to crack open the first page for SKANDAR AND THE PHANTOM RIDER it would be much the same.
And... it was.
I'll start by saying PHANTOM RIDER is better overall than THIEF. The pacing, writing and general execution is more competently done, and I actually felt more compelled to read than I did the first as well – but 'better than the first book' does not equal 'good'.
Starting with what this series does best so far: the characters. I did adore Bobby, Mitchell, Flo and Kenna (even if the writing doesn't give them room to breathe, but I'll talk about that below). All four of them have their own personality and are easily distinguishable, and I think any kid will be able to latch onto a favourite. I will say, Bobby's panic attacks felt VERY much like an afterthought – she has two and both are skimmed over very quickly – so I hope this part of her wasn't just added in the first book for diversity kudos, and Mitchell has a pretty ham-fisted narrative about his relationship with his father – a fourteen(?) year old boy would not be so self-aware as to recognise his father's love is conditional, but it has a nice message about parenting and navigating difficult situations with an adult.
Skandar himself, meanwhile, I was neutral to, and purely because he reads like every other protagonist constantly agonising over everything and mooning about the power of friendship. "Can I do this? Am I strong enough? Wait, of course I am, I have my friends with me!" I threw up a little in my mouth.
The unicorns unfortunately are still the same character cloned ad nauseam. Part of the problems carry over from THIEF where Skandar and Scoundrel have no grounding for their relationship, so it makes scenes where they're separated or using that power of friendship feel unearned and contrived. I still have yet to read a moment between them where they develop a deeper understanding of one another, and at this point I doubt we'll ever get it.
We could've had this but with unicorns!!
Now, the villain this time around – or should I say villains – are so cartoonishly rendered it's impossible to take them seriously. Dorian Manning starts off as the unyielding leader of the Silver Circle, an elusive society of riders who only have silver unicorns, but ends up as this froth-at-the-mouth anti-spirit bigot that Skandar and co have to stop after they've saved the day. The Big Bad Weaver, save for a few cameos in Kenna's chapters, is entirely absent for the rest of the book. What has she been doing this whole time? Twiddling her thumbs? There's no way whatever step of her master plan she's scheming needs more than a whole year to action – like, even Voldemort showed up at the end of CHAMBER OF SECRETS.
The story itself is littered with all sorts of these ridiculous plot and world-building choices: how big is the Island if the Silver Circle is so powerful but also can keep their death arenas secret despite thousands of spectators? Why are all political decisions made by the winner of a goddamn horse race and not an elected government/ monarch? What's the point in elemental separation if everyone can use every element anyway? What were the possessions for? Everything fell a little too conveniently into place – at one point, a prophecy dictates they'll need all five elements to make it through a task, but because of ✨plot reasons✨ Skandar manages to bullshit his way with four. Cop-out, much?
I was very excited to see where Kenna would go as well (my prevailing theory is that she would eventually get her own undead unicorn and join the Weaver), but I was disappointed overall with the direction her character went in – of course she finds out the truth about the Weaver, and is furious with Skandar for keeping it a secret, but the Weaver just decides to... abandon her off-page? What??? Obviously this is to set up a point of conflict in #3 but it almost makes her chapters feel pointless. Why couldn't we see the Weaver leaving her?
Shout-out to their dad for being terrible btw: who rows his sixteen-year-old daughter OUT TO SEA, AT MIDNIGHT, to get taken away UNDER COVER to a place he's never been? 😂 Did he not think for a second that this was suspicious???
The weakest point of the book, however, is of course the writing. I can overlook the absurd world-building rules and the strange narrative decisions, but the word choice, sentence structure and voice is so painfully amateur you can feel the second novel ever written energy radiating off every convoluted sentence, needless dialogue tag and hand-holdy description. I see Steadman is releasing an adult book in 2026 so I sincerely hope she's improved massively by then, because judging by the prose here she has a lot of work ahead.
I mean, just as an example, at one point there's a dialogue tag that says "the commentator shouted", and on the VERY NEXT PAGE there's another dialogue tag that says "said the commentator, shouting now" [paraphrasing]. Like?? Wdym 'now'??? He's already shouting???? 😂 This book could've easily shaved 20k words and been all the stronger for it.
At the end of the day, PHANTOM RIDER is just another mediocre entry into fantasy middle grade, but it isn't the worst thing to ever exist. This book is fine. Just... fine. Kids will eat it up, adults reading it with kids will cringe, and the earth will still turn. This world, and Steadman as writer, clearly has potential, but it needs more time to percolate before being worth reading.
WILL I READ ON? All that said, I got sent the third book, so I guess we're committed to the whole series now.
LAST REVIEW
1: SKANDAR AND THE UNICORN THIEF ★★★☆☆
3: SKANDAR AND THE CHAOS TRIALS ★★★☆☆
4: SKANDAR AND THE SKELETON CURSE ★★★☆☆
5: SKANDAR AND THE SPIRIT WAR ★★★★★
—
29th Jan 2023:
book 2 is out fairly soon so i’m going to theorise: kenna will join the weaver.
"Better than Percy Jackson!" PJO, sweetie, I'm sorry this half-baked wannabe is talking smack.
SKANDAR AND THE UNICORN THIEF is one of the most It middle grade books of the moment, getting all the marketing, flashy film deals and general industry hype than any other book in recent memory. Having found the first book fun, but incompetently written and undeserving of the hype, I was pretty confident when I decided to crack open the first page for SKANDAR AND THE PHANTOM RIDER it would be much the same.
And... it was.
I'll start by saying PHANTOM RIDER is better overall than THIEF. The pacing, writing and general execution is more competently done, and I actually felt more compelled to read than I did the first as well – but 'better than the first book' does not equal 'good'.
Starting with what this series does best so far: the characters. I did adore Bobby, Mitchell, Flo and Kenna (even if the writing doesn't give them room to breathe, but I'll talk about that below). All four of them have their own personality and are easily distinguishable, and I think any kid will be able to latch onto a favourite. I will say, Bobby's panic attacks felt VERY much like an afterthought – she has two and both are skimmed over very quickly – so I hope this part of her wasn't just added in the first book for diversity kudos, and Mitchell has a pretty ham-fisted narrative about his relationship with his father – a fourteen(?) year old boy would not be so self-aware as to recognise his father's love is conditional, but it has a nice message about parenting and navigating difficult situations with an adult.
Skandar himself, meanwhile, I was neutral to, and purely because he reads like every other protagonist constantly agonising over everything and mooning about the power of friendship. "Can I do this? Am I strong enough? Wait, of course I am, I have my friends with me!" I threw up a little in my mouth.
The unicorns unfortunately are still the same character cloned ad nauseam. Part of the problems carry over from THIEF where Skandar and Scoundrel have no grounding for their relationship, so it makes scenes where they're separated or using that power of friendship feel unearned and contrived. I still have yet to read a moment between them where they develop a deeper understanding of one another, and at this point I doubt we'll ever get it.
We could've had this but with unicorns!!
Now, the villain this time around – or should I say villains – are so cartoonishly rendered it's impossible to take them seriously. Dorian Manning starts off as the unyielding leader of the Silver Circle, an elusive society of riders who only have silver unicorns, but ends up as this froth-at-the-mouth anti-spirit bigot that Skandar and co have to stop after they've saved the day. The Big Bad Weaver, save for a few cameos in Kenna's chapters, is entirely absent for the rest of the book. What has she been doing this whole time? Twiddling her thumbs? There's no way whatever step of her master plan she's scheming needs more than a whole year to action – like, even Voldemort showed up at the end of CHAMBER OF SECRETS.
The story itself is littered with all sorts of these ridiculous plot and world-building choices: how big is the Island if the Silver Circle is so powerful but also can keep their death arenas secret despite thousands of spectators? Why are all political decisions made by the winner of a goddamn horse race and not an elected government/ monarch? What's the point in elemental separation if everyone can use every element anyway? What were the possessions for? Everything fell a little too conveniently into place – at one point, a prophecy dictates they'll need all five elements to make it through a task, but because of ✨plot reasons✨ Skandar manages to bullshit his way with four. Cop-out, much?
I was very excited to see where Kenna would go as well (my prevailing theory is that she would eventually get her own undead unicorn and join the Weaver), but I was disappointed overall with the direction her character went in – of course she finds out the truth about the Weaver, and is furious with Skandar for keeping it a secret, but the Weaver just decides to... abandon her off-page? What??? Obviously this is to set up a point of conflict in #3 but it almost makes her chapters feel pointless. Why couldn't we see the Weaver leaving her?
Shout-out to their dad for being terrible btw: who rows his sixteen-year-old daughter OUT TO SEA, AT MIDNIGHT, to get taken away UNDER COVER to a place he's never been? 😂 Did he not think for a second that this was suspicious???
The weakest point of the book, however, is of course the writing. I can overlook the absurd world-building rules and the strange narrative decisions, but the word choice, sentence structure and voice is so painfully amateur you can feel the second novel ever written energy radiating off every convoluted sentence, needless dialogue tag and hand-holdy description. I see Steadman is releasing an adult book in 2026 so I sincerely hope she's improved massively by then, because judging by the prose here she has a lot of work ahead.
I mean, just as an example, at one point there's a dialogue tag that says "the commentator shouted", and on the VERY NEXT PAGE there's another dialogue tag that says "said the commentator, shouting now" [paraphrasing]. Like?? Wdym 'now'??? He's already shouting???? 😂 This book could've easily shaved 20k words and been all the stronger for it.
At the end of the day, PHANTOM RIDER is just another mediocre entry into fantasy middle grade, but it isn't the worst thing to ever exist. This book is fine. Just... fine. Kids will eat it up, adults reading it with kids will cringe, and the earth will still turn. This world, and Steadman as writer, clearly has potential, but it needs more time to percolate before being worth reading.
WILL I READ ON? All that said, I got sent the third book, so I guess we're committed to the whole series now.
LAST REVIEW
1: SKANDAR AND THE UNICORN THIEF ★★★☆☆
3: SKANDAR AND THE CHAOS TRIALS ★★★☆☆
4: SKANDAR AND THE SKELETON CURSE ★★★☆☆
5: SKANDAR AND THE SPIRIT WAR ★★★★★
—
29th Jan 2023:
book 2 is out fairly soon so i’m going to theorise: kenna will join the weaver.
January 13, 2026
I've been reading these to my kids and this is even better than book 1! The complexities and power of friendship, magical challenges and danger, and lots of twists and turns. Really fantastic middle grade fantasy series with interesting, nuanced characters, cool world-building, and a compelling story. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, all opinions are my own.
January 10, 2024
3,75 / 5
Cada vez tengo la impresión de que en cuanto tenga su adaptación cinematográfica (que la tendrá), se convertirá en el nuevo Percy Jackson / Harry Potter / Eragon para una nueva generación. Una segunda entrega que sube las apuestas y se nota mucho más su carácter como saga, desmarcándose en su propia dirección con una aventura repleta de ritmo, peligro, acción y misterio hasta unos compases finales (sobre todo el epílogo) que nos dejan repletos de preguntas.
Skandar Smith ha conseguido su sueño: ¡por fin puede entrenarse como jinete de unicornio! Sin embargo, no todo será un camino de rosas. Primero, el resto de jinetes le odia abiertamente debido a que le han permitido utilizar el elemento prohibido, el elemento espíritu. Además, para aumentar el caos, algunos jinetes están siendo poseídos y también están apareciendo unicornios salvajes muertos, lo cual se creía imposible. Mientras tanto, la isla se autodestruye debido a desequilibrios en su magia, que está profundamente entrelazada con el bienestar de los unicornios salvajes. Que Skandar y sus amigos puedan salvar la isla depende de si pueden descifrar las pistas de la siniestra canción verdadera de un bardo, una lúgubre profecía que advierte de un terrible peligro.
La volátil situación hace que gran parte de las sospechas de todo recaigan sobre el joven Skandar, mientras extrañas tempestades y fenómenos atmosféricos azotan la isla. Para complicar todo un poco más, la temible Tejedora sigue urdiendo sus planes entre bambalinas. Con la creciente tormenta en el horizonte, Skandar buscará la clave para evitar que la Isla desaparezca: ¿podrá encontrar las respuestas antes de que sea demasiado tarde? Skandar y el jinete fantasma se lee como un rompecabezas imparable, donde nos vemos arrastrados a la aventura y al misterio mientras vemos como nuestro querido cuarteto crece, evoluciona y ve su vínculo forjado más fuerte que nunca.
Al igual que de La piedra filosofal a La camara secreta, o de Eragon a Eldest, hay un escalón hacia delante y hacia arriba tanto en la escritura como en la construcción de sus universos. Skandar y el jinete fantasma, al igual que estos, da un paso hacia la oscuridad y plantea varios conflictos entre sus protagonistas que los hace crecer como grupo. Sobre todo, obviamente, Skandar, que sigue actuando como ese héroe protagonista (por algo su nombre va en el título), pero que en esta segunda entrega aprende a usar sus habilidades y a responder a los prejuicios que enfrenta día a día, así como a encontrar lugares donde encajar y refugiarse en sus amistades. Por otra parte, el Nidal y la isla se hacen más y más grande, cobrando cada vez una dimensión más política y a la vez más mágica. ¿Recuerdas cuando descubres el Ministerio de Magia o los exteriores de Hogwarts? Bueno, pues los tiros van un poco por ahí, pero obviamente en su propia dirección, mucho más sanguinaria de lo que uno puede esperar en un libro de grado medio.
Curiosamente en este libro no vemos mucho del Gran Malo de la serie conocida como La Tejedora. Ella está muy en segundo plano muy discreto, con mínimas apariciones. Una decisión curiosa, pero que pone el foco en otros asuntos más importantes: dar cierto lore a la isla y crear lazos más profundos entre sus protagonistas. Sin embargo, A. F. Steadman parece estar tejiendo (si, mi humor, lo sé) mirando hacia el futuro con una segunda historia, la de la hermana de Skandar: Kenna. Y es que entre los (largos) capítulos principales, tenemos unos episodios cortos de Kenna y como dos tipos encapuchados la están utilizando como peón para llevar a cabo otros planes en la Isla.
Y aunque en el tramo final parece que entendemos un poco de que va todo en esta emocionante segunda entrega… la Tejedora está tejiendo (si, de nuevo) sus malvados planes en segundo plano, pero hasta el momento permanecen hábilmente ocultos como nos deja bien claro el epílogo de esta entrega. La incertidumbre de ese final nos impele a querer leer Las pruebas del caos cuanto antes (en mayo, en inglés), y aunque algunas cosas se solucionan un poco de forma facilona (recordemos que es una serie de grado medio) su tono sangriento en ocasiones y las historias de fondo de los personajes, así como los valores que representan cada uno, aparte de su mundo, son suficiente atractivo para quedar atrapados y querer volver, una vez más, al Nidal.
Reseña en el blog: https://boywithletters.blogspot.com/2...
Cada vez tengo la impresión de que en cuanto tenga su adaptación cinematográfica (que la tendrá), se convertirá en el nuevo Percy Jackson / Harry Potter / Eragon para una nueva generación. Una segunda entrega que sube las apuestas y se nota mucho más su carácter como saga, desmarcándose en su propia dirección con una aventura repleta de ritmo, peligro, acción y misterio hasta unos compases finales (sobre todo el epílogo) que nos dejan repletos de preguntas.
Skandar Smith ha conseguido su sueño: ¡por fin puede entrenarse como jinete de unicornio! Sin embargo, no todo será un camino de rosas. Primero, el resto de jinetes le odia abiertamente debido a que le han permitido utilizar el elemento prohibido, el elemento espíritu. Además, para aumentar el caos, algunos jinetes están siendo poseídos y también están apareciendo unicornios salvajes muertos, lo cual se creía imposible. Mientras tanto, la isla se autodestruye debido a desequilibrios en su magia, que está profundamente entrelazada con el bienestar de los unicornios salvajes. Que Skandar y sus amigos puedan salvar la isla depende de si pueden descifrar las pistas de la siniestra canción verdadera de un bardo, una lúgubre profecía que advierte de un terrible peligro.
La volátil situación hace que gran parte de las sospechas de todo recaigan sobre el joven Skandar, mientras extrañas tempestades y fenómenos atmosféricos azotan la isla. Para complicar todo un poco más, la temible Tejedora sigue urdiendo sus planes entre bambalinas. Con la creciente tormenta en el horizonte, Skandar buscará la clave para evitar que la Isla desaparezca: ¿podrá encontrar las respuestas antes de que sea demasiado tarde? Skandar y el jinete fantasma se lee como un rompecabezas imparable, donde nos vemos arrastrados a la aventura y al misterio mientras vemos como nuestro querido cuarteto crece, evoluciona y ve su vínculo forjado más fuerte que nunca.
Al igual que de La piedra filosofal a La camara secreta, o de Eragon a Eldest, hay un escalón hacia delante y hacia arriba tanto en la escritura como en la construcción de sus universos. Skandar y el jinete fantasma, al igual que estos, da un paso hacia la oscuridad y plantea varios conflictos entre sus protagonistas que los hace crecer como grupo. Sobre todo, obviamente, Skandar, que sigue actuando como ese héroe protagonista (por algo su nombre va en el título), pero que en esta segunda entrega aprende a usar sus habilidades y a responder a los prejuicios que enfrenta día a día, así como a encontrar lugares donde encajar y refugiarse en sus amistades. Por otra parte, el Nidal y la isla se hacen más y más grande, cobrando cada vez una dimensión más política y a la vez más mágica. ¿Recuerdas cuando descubres el Ministerio de Magia o los exteriores de Hogwarts? Bueno, pues los tiros van un poco por ahí, pero obviamente en su propia dirección, mucho más sanguinaria de lo que uno puede esperar en un libro de grado medio.
Curiosamente en este libro no vemos mucho del Gran Malo de la serie conocida como La Tejedora. Ella está muy en segundo plano muy discreto, con mínimas apariciones. Una decisión curiosa, pero que pone el foco en otros asuntos más importantes: dar cierto lore a la isla y crear lazos más profundos entre sus protagonistas. Sin embargo, A. F. Steadman parece estar tejiendo (si, mi humor, lo sé) mirando hacia el futuro con una segunda historia, la de la hermana de Skandar: Kenna. Y es que entre los (largos) capítulos principales, tenemos unos episodios cortos de Kenna y como dos tipos encapuchados la están utilizando como peón para llevar a cabo otros planes en la Isla.
Y aunque en el tramo final parece que entendemos un poco de que va todo en esta emocionante segunda entrega… la Tejedora está tejiendo (si, de nuevo) sus malvados planes en segundo plano, pero hasta el momento permanecen hábilmente ocultos como nos deja bien claro el epílogo de esta entrega. La incertidumbre de ese final nos impele a querer leer Las pruebas del caos cuanto antes (en mayo, en inglés), y aunque algunas cosas se solucionan un poco de forma facilona (recordemos que es una serie de grado medio) su tono sangriento en ocasiones y las historias de fondo de los personajes, así como los valores que representan cada uno, aparte de su mundo, son suficiente atractivo para quedar atrapados y querer volver, una vez más, al Nidal.
Reseña en el blog: https://boywithletters.blogspot.com/2...
May 8, 2023
A generous 2.5* - it’s weird because I do want to know what happens but the book is so lazily written and steals ideas from other children’s books all the time and the premise is sometimes just so ridiculous, it’s an annoying read. The characters are also not very likeable, Skandar being the worst culprit. Not sure if I would read more book, maybe just a summary from Google if they are published.
August 26, 2024
A good sequel, a little slow to get going but, a clever story.
November 20, 2022
Full review to come but suffice to say book 2 is even better than book 1 and I loved being back amongst the gang. Book 2 gives us more of the island, the elements, new characters, more Island history, and fleshes out our heroes even more. Oh, and we have a new enemy...
Special thank you to the author, and publisher for a very early limited proof.
Special thank you to the author, and publisher for a very early limited proof.
September 19, 2023
Just as good as the first 🙌🏼
May 5, 2023
This series is such a lot of fun and The Phantom was a brilliantly action packed second instalment. The Phantom Rider continues with Skandar’s and his friends story with all the adventure, excitement and brooding tension of book one. Without a dull moment or lull, I flew through this book and am already looking forward to the next one. This is a read I happily recommend for children and adults looking to lose themselves in an all consuming, magical adventure.
June 18, 2023
This book is all my Skandar obsessed students have been taking about over the last few weeks, and I promised them I’d read it before the last day of school so we can discuss. They claimed it was better than the first, and they are correct: it is (and I really enjoyed the first one).
Much like Potter, this second book has more complexity, mature themes, more darkness, and more uncertainty, making it a very compelling read. And the ending!! Perfection.
Much like Potter, this second book has more complexity, mature themes, more darkness, and more uncertainty, making it a very compelling read. And the ending!! Perfection.
June 24, 2023
Why he sooo obsessed with mayo?
Will I torture myself through another? Probably.
Will I torture myself through another? Probably.
August 20, 2024
Fantastyczna przygoda dla młodszego i starszego czytelnika! Cudownie jest znowu trafić do świata Skandara i krwiożerczych jednorożców i liczę na to, że kolejny tom szybko trafi na nasz rynek! Jestem pod wrażeniem wyobraźni, nietuzinkowego przedstawienia tak popularnych stworzeń, jakimi są jednorożce. Wyraziste postacie, fabuła, która zaskakuje nas na każdym kroku + doceniam mocno, że żaden z nich nie jest nieomylny, potrafi się przyznać do błędu i nie działają mi na nerwy. Czułam się podczas słuchania jak wtedy, gdy po raz pierwszy trafiłam na takie historie jak Percy Jackson - czysta radość.
June 22, 2023
“I think I need to branch out”
“What are you a tree?”
For the quartet being 14/15, when compared to other typical kids series they are immature dumbasses way more than they should be
I weirdly want to keep reading and know what happens but also find it very annoying to read at times
“What are you a tree?”
For the quartet being 14/15, when compared to other typical kids series they are immature dumbasses way more than they should be
I weirdly want to keep reading and know what happens but also find it very annoying to read at times
June 10, 2023
You can see the progress in the author's writing when I compare it with her first novel Skandar and the Unicorn Thief. Can't wait for part 3!
June 1, 2024
3,5 - Une autre lecture très divertissante avec Skandar, ses amis et les licornes sanguinaires.
C'est certes un peu prévisible mais c'est plein d'action, mignon par moments et ça fait parfaitement son boulot!
C'est certes un peu prévisible mais c'est plein d'action, mignon par moments et ça fait parfaitement son boulot!
July 6, 2023
Pri svätom jednorožcovi! Popravde, prvý diel mal svoje kvality, no nedokázala som si príbeh a nápad obľúbiť. Druhý diel som si zrejme vybrala zo zvedavosti a z takého divného princípu… A dopadlo to celkom inak. Od začiatku ma dej extrémne bavil, postavy mi prirástli k srdcu a drvivú väčšinu času som sa od knihy nedokázala odtrhnúť. Tentoraz ma celý ten svet, tvory, nápad, zápletka… a neviem, čo všetko možné a nemožné úplne pohltili. Môžem povedať, že Skandar sa právom zaradil medzi moje obľúbené série. A fakt sa z toho teším! :)
July 24, 2024
«Скандер та Примарний вершник» А. Ф. Стедмен – друга частина підліткового фентезійного циклу. Намагатимусь загально розповідати скоріше про весь цикл (точніше про перші 2 частини), а не як про окрему частину (ну бо нащо вам ці спойлери😉).
Якщо вам подобається фентезійна й пригодницька література по типу «Персі Джексона», «Гаррі Поттера», ви не проти мінімальних вайбів «Четвертого крила», то вам однозначно варто читати цю серію. Бо це реально мікс всього, проте він по-своєму цікавий та захопливий, зі стихійною магією❤️🔥.
Скандер живе й навчається на Острові, де має спорідненого однорога. У цьому світі є дикі однороги, які надзвичайно небезпечні, та споріднені, які пов'язуються з вершниками. На Острові є таке собі Гніздо, щось по типи школи, де навчаються ці вершники. Вони пов'язуються з однорогами, а потім опановують магію певної стихії (вода, вогонь, земля, повітря).
Все звучить досить просто, але наш головний герой потрапляє на Острів незвичним способом, вже тоді все йде не так, якби мало би бути... (але про це було у першій частині😏).
У другій книзі таємниці лише поглиблюються, пригод стає ще більше, відповідно – небезпек також. Так, деякі сюжетні повороти очевидні, однак деякі — змогли здивувати, закидаючи «гачки» на наступні книжки циклу.
Це серія-дорослішання. У кожній книжці герої підростають, ще більше навчаються, починають змінюватись, здобувати якісь нові вміння й потрапляти у ще більшу кількість халеп (ось тут прям дуже по-гаррі-поттерівськи😁)
А ще зрозуміла, що однороги мені більше подобаються, аніж дракони. Вони дуже незвичні, потужні й мілашні (моментами).
Якби я прочитала серію про Скандера у років 12-16, ця історія була б точно однією з улюблених. У ній є все, щоби такою стати! Хоча й в дорослому віці я гарно проводжу час з книгами циклу🥰.
Наступну частину нам обіцяють взимку, думаю, там і четверта не забариться (в оригіналі вона вийде 10 жовтня 2024 року). Так, аторка активно пише цикл, поки не знаю, скільки там буде книжок.
Якщо вам подобається фентезійна й пригодницька література по типу «Персі Джексона», «Гаррі Поттера», ви не проти мінімальних вайбів «Четвертого крила», то вам однозначно варто читати цю серію. Бо це реально мікс всього, проте він по-своєму цікавий та захопливий, зі стихійною магією❤️🔥.
Скандер живе й навчається на Острові, де має спорідненого однорога. У цьому світі є дикі однороги, які надзвичайно небезпечні, та споріднені, які пов'язуються з вершниками. На Острові є таке собі Гніздо, щось по типи школи, де навчаються ці вершники. Вони пов'язуються з однорогами, а потім опановують магію певної стихії (вода, вогонь, земля, повітря).
Все звучить досить просто, але наш головний герой потрапляє на Острів незвичним способом, вже тоді все йде не так, якби мало би бути... (але про це було у першій частині😏).
У другій книзі таємниці лише поглиблюються, пригод стає ще більше, відповідно – небезпек також. Так, деякі сюжетні повороти очевидні, однак деякі — змогли здивувати, закидаючи «гачки» на наступні книжки циклу.
Це серія-дорослішання. У кожній книжці герої підростають, ще більше навчаються, починають змінюватись, здобувати якісь нові вміння й потрапляти у ще більшу кількість халеп (ось тут прям дуже по-гаррі-поттерівськи😁)
А ще зрозуміла, що однороги мені більше подобаються, аніж дракони. Вони дуже незвичні, потужні й мілашні (моментами).
Якби я прочитала серію про Скандера у років 12-16, ця історія була б точно однією з улюблених. У ній є все, щоби такою стати! Хоча й в дорослому віці я гарно проводжу час з книгами циклу🥰.
Наступну частину нам обіцяють взимку, думаю, там і четверта не забариться (в оригіналі вона вийде 10 жовтня 2024 року). Так, аторка активно пише цикл, поки не знаю, скільки там буде книжок.
February 22, 2024
Tellement meilleur que le premier tome que j’avais bien aimé, mais j’ai dévoré celui-ci!
L’univers merveilleux de l’île est encore une fois totalement fascinant! Complexe quand même mais si riche!
J’ai pris grand plaisir à retrouver le quatuor de Skandar avec Bobby, Flo et Mitchell. Ils sont très attachants dans leurs aventures. Et j’ai aimé les hauts et les bas de la relation d’amitié qui les unit.
L’intrigue est vraiment enlevante et commence rapidement avec l’histoire de la Véritournelle. Et la fin.. mon doux! J’ai déjà hâte au prochain tome!
L’univers merveilleux de l’île est encore une fois totalement fascinant! Complexe quand même mais si riche!
J’ai pris grand plaisir à retrouver le quatuor de Skandar avec Bobby, Flo et Mitchell. Ils sont très attachants dans leurs aventures. Et j’ai aimé les hauts et les bas de la relation d’amitié qui les unit.
L’intrigue est vraiment enlevante et commence rapidement avec l’histoire de la Véritournelle. Et la fin.. mon doux! J’ai déjà hâte au prochain tome!
June 21, 2023
Saved by a sammie!
August 19, 2024
4.75
Yum I love this series 😋
So much drama I love it
I ship Mitchell and Jamie so much 🥰😍
Onto the next one 🫡🫡
Yum I love this series 😋
So much drama I love it
I ship Mitchell and Jamie so much 🥰😍
Onto the next one 🫡🫡
September 22, 2024
Miluji to ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
November 17, 2023
3,5*
Bin bisschen unbeeindruckt.
Und einige Charakterentwicklungen fand ich inkonsistent.
Und es ist sehr düster, in dem Sinne, dass die Gruppe nie wirklich schöne Momente hat.
Bin bisschen unbeeindruckt.
Und einige Charakterentwicklungen fand ich inkonsistent.
Und es ist sehr düster, in dem Sinne, dass die Gruppe nie wirklich schöne Momente hat.
July 1, 2023
“Svi možemo biti junaci budemo li dovoljno hrabri. Samo moramo dati sve od sebe.”
Blažene bile ovakve knjige, zaboraviš tako lako one koje ti nisu odgovarale. Svaka čast autorici na maštovitosti!
Pročitala sam negdje da će 2024./2025. izaći film prema prvoj knjizi, u vrijeme kad autorica objavi četvrtu knjigu iz serijala. Jedva čekam sve ponuđeno!!!
Blažene bile ovakve knjige, zaboraviš tako lako one koje ti nisu odgovarale. Svaka čast autorici na maštovitosti!
Pročitala sam negdje da će 2024./2025. izaći film prema prvoj knjizi, u vrijeme kad autorica objavi četvrtu knjigu iz serijala. Jedva čekam sve ponuđeno!!!
May 11, 2025
Auch der zweite Teil ist ganz unterhaltsam...
January 3, 2024
http://www.hyperebaaktiivne.ee/2023/1...
A.F. Steadman "Skandar ja kummitusratsur" on teine osa Skandari sarjas, järg romaanile "Skandar ja ükssarvikuvaras". Selles maagiaküllases sarjas õpivad lapsed, kel õnnestub ükssarvik kooruma panna, viis aastat ratsuriteks pidevalt omavahel võisteldes, kusjuures nõrgemad praagitakse välja. Teisel õppeaastal ähvardab Saart uus hädaoht ning Skandaril tuleb leppida, et kaasõpilased teda vaimuelemendi tõttu tõrjuvad.
Skandari titesuleaasta Kotkapesas. Ükssarvikud saavad sadulad selga ning ratsurid õpivad elementides relvi vormima. Kui tibuna nägi Skandar kurja vaeva vaimuelemendi varjamisega, siis nüüd on saladus väljas ja poiss peab hakkama saama umbusu ning halvakspanuga. Tema sõpradel on igaühel omad mured ja õde pole siiani leppinud, et temast ratsurit ei saa. Lisaks luusib endiselt kuskil Põimija ringi ning tagatipuks tabab Saart uus häda. Keegi on välja mõelnud, kuidas tappa metsikuid ükssarvikuid, mis viib elemendid tasakaalust välja, ohustades kogu Saare tulevikku.
Teine õppeaasta toob kaasa uued seiklused, uued mured, uued sõbrad, uued vaenlased, uued saladused. Teos keskendub Skandari suhetele, tuues mängu võõraviha: kõiki, kes teistest erinevad, kardetakse, tõrjutakse, süüdistatakse kõiges halvas. Kuigi ta saab nüüd vabalt vaimuelementi kasutada, toob see rõõmu asemel kaasa üksilduse ja ühe saladuse asemel tuleb varjata järgmist. Aasta jooksul juhtub nii mõndagi. Perekond jääb üha kaugemaks ning tema sõpradel on igaühel midagi südamel. Üks neist keerab ootamatult poisile selja, aga leidub ka neid, kes näevad eelarvamustest kaugemale.
Tegevus on nii tihe, et väiksemate loogikaapsude peale aega mõelda ei jää, aga kaht teemat ei suutnud ma mõtteist heita. Esimene kerkis esile, kui tuli juttu, et läheneb ühe tegelase 15. sünnipäev ja mu aju jooksis korraks lühisesse, sest nad käituvad pigem nagu 10-11. Niipalju on tegelased kasvanud, et ükssarvikute peeretamisest on tunduvalt vähem juttu. Muude teemade osas jätan igasugused Potteri võrdlused siit arvustusest kõrvale, aga kui 14-aastasel Harry elus mängis esimene armumine küllaltki suurt rolli, siis samaealiste Skandari ja tema sõprade hormoonid pole veel möllama hakanud. Väga hajusalt viidatakse, et kahe kõrvaltegelase vahel võib tulevikus hakata sädemeid lendama.
Teine küsimus, mis saadab mind juba eelmisest raamatust, puudutab Kotkapesa õppekava, mis koosneb ainult õhulahingutest ja maagiaturniiridest. Maagilises koolis õppimine meenutab rohkem tippsportlaseks pürgimist. Mida rohkem ma selle teema peale mõtlen, seda rohkem neid küsimusi tekib. Kuna algse plaani järgi on veel kolm raamatut minna, siis loodan, et vähemalt mõned saavad vastatud. Ma ei saa olla ainus, kellel need tekkinud on. Ehk hakatakse peale selle raamatu sündmusi õpetama ka ajalugu, sest neist teadmistest oleks Saare päästmisel kasu olnud. Kõige rohkem meeldiski mulle teoses, kuidas sai selgemaks, miks on ükssarvikud sellised nagu nad on.
Kriitika kriitikaks, "Skandar ja kummitusratsur" oli marupõnev. Kui sarja avaosa vaimustas uue põneva maailmaga, siis teises raamatus on panused palju kõrgemal. Ohus on kogu Saare tulevik, mistõttu vana vaenlane unustatakse ära, nii et ta saab rahulikult oma plaane põimida. Raamatu lõpp on intrigeeriv ja jään huviga ootama, mida Skandari kolmas kooliaasta pakub.
Aitäh, Varrak, raamatu eest!
A.F. Steadman "Skandar ja kummitusratsur" on teine osa Skandari sarjas, järg romaanile "Skandar ja ükssarvikuvaras". Selles maagiaküllases sarjas õpivad lapsed, kel õnnestub ükssarvik kooruma panna, viis aastat ratsuriteks pidevalt omavahel võisteldes, kusjuures nõrgemad praagitakse välja. Teisel õppeaastal ähvardab Saart uus hädaoht ning Skandaril tuleb leppida, et kaasõpilased teda vaimuelemendi tõttu tõrjuvad.
Skandari titesuleaasta Kotkapesas. Ükssarvikud saavad sadulad selga ning ratsurid õpivad elementides relvi vormima. Kui tibuna nägi Skandar kurja vaeva vaimuelemendi varjamisega, siis nüüd on saladus väljas ja poiss peab hakkama saama umbusu ning halvakspanuga. Tema sõpradel on igaühel omad mured ja õde pole siiani leppinud, et temast ratsurit ei saa. Lisaks luusib endiselt kuskil Põimija ringi ning tagatipuks tabab Saart uus häda. Keegi on välja mõelnud, kuidas tappa metsikuid ükssarvikuid, mis viib elemendid tasakaalust välja, ohustades kogu Saare tulevikku.
Teine õppeaasta toob kaasa uued seiklused, uued mured, uued sõbrad, uued vaenlased, uued saladused. Teos keskendub Skandari suhetele, tuues mängu võõraviha: kõiki, kes teistest erinevad, kardetakse, tõrjutakse, süüdistatakse kõiges halvas. Kuigi ta saab nüüd vabalt vaimuelementi kasutada, toob see rõõmu asemel kaasa üksilduse ja ühe saladuse asemel tuleb varjata järgmist. Aasta jooksul juhtub nii mõndagi. Perekond jääb üha kaugemaks ning tema sõpradel on igaühel midagi südamel. Üks neist keerab ootamatult poisile selja, aga leidub ka neid, kes näevad eelarvamustest kaugemale.
Tegevus on nii tihe, et väiksemate loogikaapsude peale aega mõelda ei jää, aga kaht teemat ei suutnud ma mõtteist heita. Esimene kerkis esile, kui tuli juttu, et läheneb ühe tegelase 15. sünnipäev ja mu aju jooksis korraks lühisesse, sest nad käituvad pigem nagu 10-11. Niipalju on tegelased kasvanud, et ükssarvikute peeretamisest on tunduvalt vähem juttu. Muude teemade osas jätan igasugused Potteri võrdlused siit arvustusest kõrvale, aga kui 14-aastasel Harry elus mängis esimene armumine küllaltki suurt rolli, siis samaealiste Skandari ja tema sõprade hormoonid pole veel möllama hakanud. Väga hajusalt viidatakse, et kahe kõrvaltegelase vahel võib tulevikus hakata sädemeid lendama.
Teine küsimus, mis saadab mind juba eelmisest raamatust, puudutab Kotkapesa õppekava, mis koosneb ainult õhulahingutest ja maagiaturniiridest. Maagilises koolis õppimine meenutab rohkem tippsportlaseks pürgimist. Mida rohkem ma selle teema peale mõtlen, seda rohkem neid küsimusi tekib. Kuna algse plaani järgi on veel kolm raamatut minna, siis loodan, et vähemalt mõned saavad vastatud. Ma ei saa olla ainus, kellel need tekkinud on. Ehk hakatakse peale selle raamatu sündmusi õpetama ka ajalugu, sest neist teadmistest oleks Saare päästmisel kasu olnud. Kõige rohkem meeldiski mulle teoses, kuidas sai selgemaks, miks on ükssarvikud sellised nagu nad on.
Kriitika kriitikaks, "Skandar ja kummitusratsur" oli marupõnev. Kui sarja avaosa vaimustas uue põneva maailmaga, siis teises raamatus on panused palju kõrgemal. Ohus on kogu Saare tulevik, mistõttu vana vaenlane unustatakse ära, nii et ta saab rahulikult oma plaane põimida. Raamatu lõpp on intrigeeriv ja jään huviga ootama, mida Skandari kolmas kooliaasta pakub.
Aitäh, Varrak, raamatu eest!
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