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ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSIn the kingdom of Carthya, a sharp-tongued orphan called Sage is caught running from the market with a stolen roast, and a nobleman named Bevin Conner pays the butcher fifty garlins to hand him over. Conner takes Sage from Mrs. Turbeldy's orphanage and brings him, along with two other orphans, the strong, eager Roden and the well-read Tobias, to his estate, Farthenwood. There he shares a deadly secret. The king, queen and crown prince have been murdered, and the kingdom is close to civil war. Conner plans to spend two weeks training the boys in reading, history, swordplay, riding and manners, then present one of them to the court as Prince Jaron, the king's younger son, who was lost four years ago when pirates attacked his ship. Conner says the plan will save Carthya, but only one boy can be chosen, and the three of them fear the losers will not be allowed to live. Sage, a left-handed thief with an Avenian accent, defies Conner at nearly every turn, and as the days run out, the rivalry among the boys turns dangerous.
Free Battle of the Books questions for The False Prince (The Ascendance Series)
SPOILERSEvery one of these has the same answer, and that is the point. In a real battle the question is read aloud with a dozen other books in play, and students have a few seconds to place it. Here is what a battle might ask about The False Prince (The Ascendance Series). Use them as a quiz, a trivia round, or BOTB practice.
Where in the book they come from
- Early in the book
In what book does a butcher's thrown cleaver stick in a wood post behind a fleeing thief?
✓ Answer
The False Prince (The Ascendance Series) by Jennifer A. Nielsen
The butcher chasing Sage for the stolen roast hurls his cleaver, and it cuts into a post just as Sage rounds a corner. Sage admits he can't help admiring the man's aim, even though he was the target.
- First half
In what book does a boy realize the mouse hole in his bedroom wall is really a listening hole?
✓ Answer
The False Prince (The Ascendance Series) by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Stuck outside, Sage slips in through Conner's window and finds hidden passages behind a tapestry. Following them back to his own room, he sees that the little hole at the base of the wall is no mouse hole at all, because Conner put the boys there so he could listen in on them.
- First half
In what book does a boy play a sad tune on a fippler that used to make his mother cry?
✓ Answer
The False Prince (The Ascendance Series) by Jennifer A. Nielsen
During dancing lessons, Conner hands Sage a fippler and asks him to play, since Sage has said his father was a musician. Instead of a dance tune, Sage plays a lonely melody that his mother used to cry over, and the whole room falls silent.
- Second half
In what book does a door servant tell a visiting royal, "You've got dirt on your face"?
✓ Answer
The False Prince (The Ascendance Series) by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Sage breaks Mott's rules by staring at Princess Amarinda, and when she asks why, he points out the smudge on her cheek from looking out her open window. His blunt honesty is exactly why she later chooses him to walk her to her room.
- Second half
In what book does a boy dodge a tossed wooden sword, calling it skill at evading an attack?
✓ Answer
The False Prince (The Ascendance Series) by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Mott pulls Sage out of Mistress Havala's history lesson for sword practice even though his back is still bandaged. When Mott tosses him a wooden sword, Sage jumps aside and lets it land in the dirt, then grins and asks if Mott is impressed.
- Near the end
In what book do two friends sit on a ledge outside an inn window, legs dangling in the night?
✓ Answer
The False Prince (The Ascendance Series) by Jennifer A. Nielsen
While Conner snores, Imogen asks Sage to take her out the window, and there she apologizes for the harsh things she said before they left the estate. She admits she once watched him crawling around the walls of Farthenwood at night.
