The Serpent's Fury

Royal Guide to Monster Slaying #3

by Kelley Armstrong

Rowan faces her most dangerous monster-slaying challenge yet, confronting what could be the most infamous monster of all.

Rowan is Tamarel's Royal Monster Hunter, and her twin brother, Rhydd, will be its king. After the events of The Gryphon's Lair, Rowan, along with her friends, her brother, and an entourage of monstrous companions, makes her way back to the Dunnian Woods to deal with the pack of dropbears the group trapped in an abandoned cabin after a vicious attack. The dropbears are just one of a number of rare monster species acting erratically in Tamarel.
After a swarm of colocolos nearly tramples the group, Rowan becomes convinced that someone (or something) is driving these monsters out of their natural habitats. But nothing can prepare the Royal Monster Hunter for the truth of the matter: monsters even bigger and deadlier than gryphons have returned to the world, and their nest-building, as well as the actions of the humans trying to drive them out, has upset the balance of nature in Tamarel.
Do Rowan's monster magnet skills work against the most fearsome monsters imaginable?

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Adventure, Audiobook, Fiction, Childrens, High Fantasy

328 pages, Hardcover

First published June 8, 2021

About the author

Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. Her earliest written efforts were disastrous. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers' dismay. All efforts to make her produce "normal" stories failed.

Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She's the author of the NYT-bestselling "Women of the Otherworld" paranormal suspense series and "Darkest Powers" young adult urban fantasy trilogy, as well as the Nadia Stafford crime series. Armstrong lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and far too many pets.

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 /5 stars

The Serpent's Fury is the third book in this middle grade fantasy series.

Kelley Armstrong is my favorite author. And I've enjoyed the previous two books in this series.

Once again the narrator is almost 13 year old Princess Rowan (1st person POV). She is the Royal Monster Hunter elect and she adores monsters.

This book features a lot of monster sightings. And a cute baby dropbear. There is an interesting mystery plotline.

I enjoyed getting to see Rowan, Dain and Alianor again. But there was just a bit too much fighting off monsters for me. But overall this was a nice addition to the series.

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rowan and the gang are dealing with a dropbear problem in the Dunnian Woods. But this leads to a larger question: who or what is driving the creatures of the woods out of them?

The whole gang investigate, which leads them to uncover poaching and smuggling of monsters and other unusual creatures, with the perpetrators pointing to a neighbouring kingdom as the source of requests. This has larger political implications, which Rowan’s mother appreciates abd Rowan is beginning to see. Also, the original quest to find what is emptying the woods leads Rowan and the gang to what she and everyone else thought were now mythical creatures: dragons. Particularly, a really pissed off mother dragon.

This book is fun, with Rowan again learning to handle difficult situations with her friends, and also learning from her past mistakes. I love that she doesn’t keep making the same wrong decisions that someone else has to save her from. She's really growing into her role and her position, and it's a pleasure to see, even with Jacko frequently insisting he has to sit on her head.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

How does this series keep getting better?

[Lola · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this series and this book was just as good as the previous ones. The Serpent's Fury follows Rowan and the rest of the characters as they go back to the cabin where they trapped some dropbears in book 2 and try and figure out what's causing the dropbears to move somewhere they usually aren't.

I really enjoyed this book, with how Rowan and the rest have a clear goal from the start and encounter many obstacles on their investigation. This book was so much fun to read, I liked reading about the monsters and seeing how Rowan dealt with everything. She's a great main character and I like how she deals with things, she feels mature for her age and handles the responsibility well, but also makes some mistakes at times and then aims to correct those. I enjoy seeing her learn and adapt along the way and her bond with the monsters she encountered.

I liked the new monsters the characters encounter in this book and the serpent that is referred to in the title was awesome to meet. I also liked seeing more of Rowan, Dain and the rest and the monsters they travel with. There are new monsters and new characters as well in this book. The ending sets things up for the next book, while also wrapping up this book's adventure in a satisfying way.

To summarize: This was another great book in this series. I really like this author's writing style and this series is just so fun to read. Rowan and the others investigate what's causing monsters to move to places they usually aren't seen and along the way they meet new characters and monsters. I like reading about Rowan and how she deals with everything on her path. There are some exciting new monsters in this book and the book is just a whole lot of fun to read. I am already looking forward to the next book!

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book had a koala on the cover so of course I wanted to read it. It was okay. The koala sidekick did not really do much. This is the third book in the series and I did not read the first two, but it did not seem to matter. They pretty much tell you what you missed throughout the book. So the creatures in the forest seem to be migrating East and the monster hunters need to know why. Unfortunately the title of the book gives away it is a serpent of some kind. Anyway, the first part of the book is just the kids constantly fighting off creatures. Over and over. Finally they start their quest West to figure out what is going on and then of course one of the kids runs off to do something on their own so of course now they have to go after that kid. At the end of the book their was a field guide with drawn pictures of the creatures. I wish I would have known that while reading. However the koala like creature was not in the field guide! Maybe because it was on the cover or maybe it was in a previous book.

"I'm not falling for it this time, tiny monster bear!"
"Monster marsupial, you mean."

[Devann · Rating 4 out of 5]

actual rating: 3.5

Another cute book in this series. I haven't been reading very many middle grade books recently so I almost skipped this one but I'm glad I ended up reading it because these books are always a lot of fun with all the mythical creatures. Took a little while to get going but was overall really enjoyable and I especially liked the end.

[Crystal K · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

This was fun.

[Chrissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun, imaginative Middle Grade adventure with Rowan and her friends and companions - both human and monster. I'll be curious to see how this series wraps up with the 4th book next year.

[eve.lyn._.reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

·°⨳°⊹٭тнє ѕєяρєηт'ѕ ƒυяу ٭⊹°⨳°·..·°⨳°
Rowan and her entourage of friends are returning to the woods in the hope of dealing with the dropbears that they left behind in the cabin. But their group is separated and Dain and Rowan get caught in a deathly stampede of animals fleeing. Now Rowan, Dain, and Alianor are curious to see what is driving all the monsters away. Rowan uncovers something she didn't expect, a hidden conspiracy, a tricky manipulating boy, and a creature that they all had believed had disappeared.

The Serpent's Fury is another thrilling installment to the series. I didn't enjoy this book as much as the second one. However, I loved how this was in a different area of the forest. I loved the introduction of new animals: nekomata, tatgzelworm, cath palug, rompo, dragon, harpy, and colocolo. Despite being a fantasy, this series is very much rooted in science. Rowan is someone who has a strong ground for her morals and beliefs, yet is able to understand and evaluate others. I love how the series is a mixture of both science and magic.

Dain and Rowan's friendship is complicated but one of my favourites! Loved the introduction of Dez...! Trysten was an unreliable character, switching at every turn, but I really enjoyed how he made the plot more intriguing. Alianor is a character I like and she has got some good character growth. I do want to see more of Rhydd!

Really been enjoying this quartet so far! I am excited to read the final book when I get it from the library.
☑️PLOT
☑️PLOT TWIST
☑️CHARACTERS

[Ellen Dark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Third in the middle grade fantasy series moved along quickly. There were times when the narrator's voice sound more like a science teacher than a twelve-year-old princess. The good news for me was that the ending indicated to expect another book.

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book 3 of monster non-slaying goodness, with ecological and anti-poaching messages this time.

In the last book, Rowan imprisoned the drop bears in a witch's cabin, so this time they're on their way to free them before they starve to death.

Along the way, they encounter the witch, who is none too happy about the state of her cabin. They also discover the monsters are surging toward Rowan and Rhydd's kingdom in deadly droves. The kids have to figure out why. Of course, they're accompanied by adults -- a bodyguard, the adult monster slaying trainer, and more. But early on a wave of monsters separates them and Rhydd is sent back to the Queen for reinforcements, which don't show until the very end.

It's up to Rowan and what's left of the expedition to figure out what's causing the monster exodus out of the forest, which is oddly quiet. They're attacked by harpies and they discover a band of men have taken up in a small "village" of abandoned buildings in the forest, where they're hunkered down.

Rowan figures out what's causing the harpy attacks. The men are poachers and first trick her into separating the baby harpies from their parents, earning their wrath.

But even the poachers, while evil, aren't enough to spark the monster migration out of the forest. She gets ever closer to the truth, and discovers… Ha! Not going to tell you what she discovers, read it and find out for yourself. But it's my favorite fantasy creature of all time. 😉

And the poachers have them in their sights, as well.

So now it's up to Rowan to figure out how to save them from extinction.

The set up for the next book is divine, in that Rowan will have to travel to other lands and kingdoms dealing with the political fall out of this latest discovery for her mother, the Queen.

Looking forward to the sequel!

Enjoy.

Looking for more book suggestions for your 7th/8th grade classroom and students?

Visit my blog, The Fabric of Words, for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/

[Kenya Starflight · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Royal Guide to Monster Slaying has become a guilty pleasure for me -- fun escapist fantasy in between heavier and more "mature" reads, full of delightful monsters and plucky heroes and heroines. I've been enjoying the continuing story of Rowan, her friends, and her growing collection of monster friends, and "The Serpent's Fury" is another great read.

Rowan is the royal monster hunter, charged with protecting the people of Tamarel from monsters... and monsters from the people of Tamarel. So when it becomes clear that something is forcing monsters to flee the mountains and come into closer contact with people, Rowan and her friends set out to investigate. Their adventure will lead them to adopting a baby dropbear, running into a kidnapped kind-of-prince (long story), and discovering a village of monster poachers. And when they finally face the creature that's upsetting the balance of nature in Tamarel, they will need all their ingenuity and skill to survive the encounter.

These books are delightful -- nothing too heavy in plot, tone, or worldbuilding, but enough fun adventures and unique touches to the worldbuilding that they're fun to read. I enjoy the adventures of Rowan and her friends, human and otherwise, and seeing the wide variety of creatures she faces along the way. And it's nice to see the story and the characters grow and evolve throughout the series. And for those of you wondering if we'd finally get to see dragons in these monster-centric books, well, wonder no more!

It's been nice seeing Rowan mature and grow over the course of the series. She's still the monster-obsessed girl from the first book, but has really grown into her responsibilities as the series has progressed, and her relationships with her mentor and her friends have progressed as well. It's going to be satisfying seeing her finally face the trials to become the royal monster hunter in full.

This is a delightful series that should appeal to fans of Fablehaven, and enjoyable for readers of all ages.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as magical and amazing as the first two books in the series, but still a worthy and wonderful read. Our cast of characters, and monsters!, returns with a new adventure. We get right into the action, almost too quickly, and it never really lets up all that much. Since everyone is older now, so do our protagonists problems become more mature and complicated. Necessary, I guess, but it took away from the magical fun of the monsters. Our story is still Rowan's to live, which was epic! Females rule these books and I absolutely love that. And there's no scheming 'Mean Girls' shit or lameass insta-love either, which was just fine by me. We have smart, capable, brilliant, independent, witch-y, caring females who also like to talk about dresses, sometimes. Hahaha! The core adventure of this book is quite well written and quite far-reaching (into the next book even!) and shows the variety of skills Rowan has at her disposal. I love how badass Rowan is, yet she is also able to harness her emotions to allow them to compliment her vast huntress talents. I also love how all the monsters are attracted to her monster-skills thing. It is simultaneously cute, funny, and wildly dangerous. I wonder what book#4 has in store for Rowan???

[Diana Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finally got a chance to settle down and read the third book in Kelley Armstrong's Royal guide to Monster slaying series. The serpent's fury is meant for middle school kids, but again its fun for all ages. My enjoyment was not only a great adventure with Rowan and her gang, but seeing her grow into her role as the Official Monster Slayer, which was meant to be her brother, but it appears that they were correct in switching as Rhydd will make a better King as his strength lies in politics and negotiations and Rowan has an obvious love and gift for Monsters....they seem to flock to her; especially the young. The Serpent's tale picks up with the group heading back to the abandoned cabin to deal with the group of dropbears they locked there. After a swarm of colocolos nearly tramples the group, Rowan becomes convinced that someone (or something) is driving these monsters out of their natural habitats. Will Rowan and her friends be able to figure out what is driving the monsters away from their homes? What new monsters will Rowan discover next? What did I love most....Jacko....I really want a Jackalope of my own!

[The Captain · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ahoy there mateys! I am a big fan of Kelley Armstrong but this series was hard to get through and if I had not listened to the audiobooks, I might not have finished.  In fact, I thought it was a trilogy and was actually sad when book 3 ended and I knew there had to be one more.  I may have liked this if I were younger but being as I am much older, I had issues.  The primary one is that the main character, Rowan is a special snowflake.  The other big one is she is 12 and sent on missions to hunt with little real training.  She collects an entire menagerie over the course of the book but really only a few animals are used well in the books.  The number of times Rowan yells "Malric, NOOOOOO!!!!!!" was annoying.  And Rowan did not use her brain and often just rushed into danger getting out by luck.  The books got repetitive.  Run into dangerous monster no one has seen in centuries.  Fight.  Rinse.  Repeat.  Did like the focus on science to learn about monsters though I don't know if I can recommend this to anyone who isn't under the age of nine. Arrr!

[Kathie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third book in the excellent Royal Guide to Monster Slaying series. When Rowan and her entourage travel back into the Dunnian Woods, they discover something is driving the monsters out of their homes. They mount an expedition to find the root of the disruption and come across a nest of one of the deadliest monsters around. While their goal is to protect the monsters in the forest, not everyone has the same mission, and the group are in danger from beasts and human. While I found this book a bit slower than the first two in the series, I still enjoyed another adventure with Rowan and her companions.

[AK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic adventure with Rowan and friends. Honestly, I'm so entertained by these books. They're full of adventure, harrowing action scenes, cute (and dangerous) mythical creatures (named Monsters, but they come from mythology), and fantastic scenes between comrades and friends that help readers understand guilt, blame, and anger, but also joy, friendship, and family (found and blood).

Middle grade is so underrated. I'm going to go binge the last book now, kthxbye.

TW: violence, (mythical) animal death, kidnapping, mentions slavery and war

Finished copy gifted by Penguin Random House Canada in exchange for an honest review.

[Hannah Belyea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rowan and her team head to the mountains to investigate the cause of a mass monster migration, but are sidetracked by stampedes and missing travellers - and yet, the deeper they delve, the more each encounter ties into a startling discovery that could threaten all of Tamarel. Armstrong continues this exciting adventure with another riveting entry, high stakes met head on by its ever lovable cast and fascinating beastology. What lays at the center of the mountains, and can Rowan's skills prove useful against such a threat?

[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Serpent's Fury by Kelley Armstrong is the third book in the series. I reread the first two books before I read this one. These books are so good and so much fun. I love how Rowan, Dain and Alianor are growing up and their friendship grows. I love reading about all the monsters, and new ones each book. My favorite monster was in this book, but it's a spoiler, so I'll just say I was very happy to read about them. Another great book by Kelley Armstrong.

[E.M. Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the book. Granted, I am not the intended audience, but I still like Rowan’s narration. That being said, it is my least favourite of the three so far. I felt like it took a while to grip me this time around, and I probably wouldn’t have continued with it had I not already been a fan of the author. I’m glad I did stick with it though because it did pick up towards the end and I liked it. Looking forward to book four!

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

9.93 on CAWPILE

Another win from Kelley Armstrong, I loved this one as much as the first two, and I enjoy seeing how much Rowan and her companions have grown since the first book, but that they still make mistakes and rash decisions because so do real people. plus, Dragons!!! and Baby Dragons!!!

Content Warnings - Animal Death, description of suffocation, blood, battle, talk of death

[Shauna Morrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I freaking love Kelley Armstrong, she is awesome!

This series is great, I hope there are at least a few more books because I feel that Rowan, Dain, and the rest of the monster hunting crew have so many more monsters to find and learn about.

I highly recommend this series whenever I am asked for a recommendation at work. Can't wait for more books from Kelley.

[Jennifer Watson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this series! These books give me the same great strong female main characters that I find in Tamora Pierce books. I can't wait to see what will happen next!

I love the small menagerie of monsters that Rowan is gathering. Her little jackalope might be my favorite of all! Each book features a new twist I never expected and this one may have the biggest twist of all!

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m way past the age recommended for this series but I’m still really enjoying it. Rowan and her monster companions are the best part of the books. I’ve also enjoyed watching Rowan learn to be a monster hunter. Her brother and friends are great supporting characters. I know I’ll miss it when the series ends with the next book.

[Lindsay Rankin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story!

I enjoyed the adventure of this story, and I love Rowan and her friends! There is the hint of the possibility of an LGBT relationship between two minor side characters, which lowered my rating.

[Gracie Marie Mahala · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMAZING

I LOVED it couldn't have been better, the only thing is, I read them quite fast. But that's just because I love reading, and I'm good at it. 😃😃😃😃😃😃😁😁😁😁😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺

[Suzan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am loving this series!! Kelley Armstrong can do no wrong!! I can't wait for the next book!

[Heather McLaughlin]

These books are so much fun.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love this series & can’t wait for the next one.

[Anne Patkau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tumbles from troubles to traitors, danger from dropbears. Rowan tells how Daine infiltrates trappers of Geraint, barefoot sort-of Prince Trysten, overwhelming monster herds, her hunters fight harpies, follow dry river bed to source Mt Geraint, a big black angry mama.