Keeper of the Lost Cities

Keeper of the Lost Cities is an upper-middle-grade fantasy series by Shannon Messenger that has appeared on the New York Times Best Seller list^[1] for a total of ten weeks.

Plot summary

The protagonist of the series, Sophie, is an elvin twelve-year-old with telepathy who lives in San Diego, California with a human family.

While on a school field trip, another elvin teenager, Fitz, tracks her down and reveals that she is elvin. He discusses the reality of their world with Sophie and tells her that she must move to the Lost Cities, a place unknown to humankind where elves, trolls, ogres, goblins, gnomes and dwarves live in harmony. She is forced to leave her human family behind and stay with an elvin couple, Grady and Edaline, who later adopt her. She starts school at a noble elvin academy named Foxfire.

The main conflict in the series is between the Black Swan, a rebel organization, and the Neverseen, a group of criminal extremists. Sophie learns that the Black Swan are her creators. She learns that her old neighbor from the human world, Mr. Forkle, is the director of the Black Swan's Project Moonlark, the project in which she was created. Sophie's biological parents are unknown due to catastrophes that could be created if she finds out. The parents could face scorn and be punished for being involved in Project Moonlark due to its secretive and illegal nature. Later in the series, Sophie is desperate to find out who her biological parents are, believing it to be the best solution, otherwise she would be unmatchable, meaning she would be looked down upon if she married someone not on her match list.

Series

Main series

The main series currently consists of 10 released books, along with Unlocked, an installment between Legacy and Stellarlune:

1. Keeper of the Lost Cities (October 2, 2012)
2. Exile (October 1, 2013)
3. Everblaze (November 4, 2014)
4. Neverseen (November 3, 2015)
5. Lodestar (November 1, 2016)
6. Nightfall (November 7, 2017)
7. Flashback (November 6, 2018)
8. • Legacy (November 5, 2019)
   • 8.5. Unlocked (November 17, 2020)
9. Stellarlune (November 8, 2022)

Another (possibly final) installment in the series was originally scheduled for 2023 but does not have a publication date as of January 2024.^[2]

Graphic novel adaptation

A graphic novel adaptation of Book 1 was released on November 7, 2023, and is divided into two halves following the main storyline of the original book.^[3]

Reception

The series' reception was largely positive. Kirkus Reviews said of the first book: "wholesome shading to bland", but "well-stocked with exotic creatures and locales, plus an agreeable cast."^[4] Booklist Reviews called it a "exciting start to a promising series."

Film adaptation

On January 11, 2021, it was announced that Ben Affleck would be directing an adaptation of Keeper of the Lost Cities for Walt Disney Pictures. The release date has not been announced, neither has the cast list. ^[5][6] No new information has been released as of January 18, 2024.

Characters

• Sophie Elizabeth Foster: The main protagonist of the series. She is a Telepath, Inflictor, Polyglot, Teleporter, and Enhancer. Her genes, sourced from Councillor Oralie, an unknown elf, and alicorn DNA, were tweaked by the Black Swan, giving her unusually powerful abilities. One of her parents is revealed to be Councilor Oralie in Legacy, but the name of her father is unknown. She was raised by humans after her experimentation and brought back to the Lost Cities at the age of twelve to complete her education at Foxfire Academy in addition to being adopted by Grady and Edaline Ruewen.
• Keefe Sencen: Sophie's close friend. He is an Empath, allowing him to detect others' feelings. Unlike other Empaths, he can sense emotions without physical contact. In Unlocked, he also becomes a Polyglot, capable of speaking all languages, and manifests two unnamed abilities. His mother, Gisela, is one of the main antagonists of the series. He is known for his mischievous ways, such as "the Great Gulon Incident" which is mentioned multiple times throughout the series.
• Fitzroy "Fitz" Avery Vacker: Sophie's close friend. He is a highly skilled Telepath and becomes Sophie's Cognate, making them a close telepathic pair. After he and Sophie broke up, their Cognate relationship was damaged. He belongs to a prominent family of elvin nobility. He is sometimes known for his temper issues, relying on anger when he is not sure how to feel, almost murdering his brother Alvar at one point.
• Dexter "Dex" Alvin Dizznee: Sophie's best friend; also a talented alchemist with Technopathy, the ability to manipulate technology. He was sometimes forced to make devices by the Council, for example the Ability Restrictor in Everblaze. He is a member of Team Valiant.
• Biana Vacker: Sophie's enemy-turned-friend and Fitz's younger sister. She is a Vanisher, allowing her to turn invisible. She is often found sneaking around and listening in on people's conversations. She is shown to be popular in the series. She is also a member of Team Valiant.
• Tam Dai Song: Sophie's friend, a previous student ("Wayward") at Exillium, a school for banished and or "unruly" elves. He is a Shade, capable of manipulating shadows. Because of his ability, he is rarely trusted by strangers. In Flashback, he is shown to be able to manipulate an element called "Shadowflux," shown to be very powerful through the later books.
• Linh Hai Song: Tam's twin sister, also a Wayward at Exillium. She has the ability of Hydrokinesis, the ability to control water. She is known as "the girl of many floods" due to the fact that she caused many floods while mastering her Hydrokinesis, causing her to be banished from the Lost Cities. She later saves the city of Atlantis along with Sophie and Keefe.
• Marella Redek: Sophie's gossipy friend with a rare and illegal special ability, Pyrokinesis, letting her control fire.
• Stina Heks: an Empath who used to bully Sophie but changed her views on Sophie after Neverseen. Her family is currently affiliated with and supports the Black Swan. In Legacy, she becomes a member of Team Valiant, and helps Sophie in many ways, proving that she is not as mean as she once was, however, Sophie still considers her a jerk.
• Wylie Endal: The son of Prentice Endal, a key member of the Black Swan. He is a Flasher, which means he can sense and manipulate colors of light. He also lived with his adoptive father Tiergan after his father's memory break. He is a member of Team Valiant.
• Mr. Forkle: He is the leader of the Black Swan and a fatherly parental figure to Sophie. When she was young, and still in the human world, he consumed ruckleberries, giving him a bloated look that reeked of feet.
• Grady Ruewen and Edaline Ruewen: A couple who are Sophie's adoptive parents. Grady works as an Emissary. Edaline is a Conjurer and rehabilitates animals.
• Councillor Oralie: Sophie's biological mother, an Empath, and took part in Project Moonlark.
• Councillor Bronte: Besides being known to have a cold attitude, he is one of the Lost Cities' only Inflictors (besides Sophie), meaning he can inflict emotions on others. He is also currently the oldest and longest-standing member of the Council.
• Fintan Pyren: An Ancient, once a Councillor and former main antagonist of the series. He is the only known Pyrokinetic left alive with the ability to spark Everblaze. He is the former leader of the Neverseen and currently resides in prison.
• Lady Gisela Sencen: Keefe's mother, the former leader of the Neverseen, and one of the main antagonists of the series. She is a Polyglot, and hid the fact that she is a Conjurer for many years, wishing to be underestimated.

References

External links

Official website