Review: Incarceron by Catherine Fisher

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Pub. Date: January 2010
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Format: Hardcover, 448pp
Age Range: Young Adult

A thrilling, high-concept fantasy for fans of Garth Nix and Nancy Farmer.

Incarceron is a prison so vast that it contains not only cells, but also metal forests, dilapidated cities, and vast wilderness. Finn, a seventeen-year-old prisoner, has no memory of his childhood and is sure that he came from Outside Incarceron. Very few prisoners believe that there is an Outside, however, which makes escape seems impossible.

And then Finn finds a crystal key that allows him to communicate with a girl named Claudia. She claims to live Outside- she is the daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, and doomed to an arranged marriage. Finn is determined to escape the prison, and Claudia believes she can help him. But they don't realize that there is more to Incarceron than meets the eye. Escape will take their greatest courage and cost more than they know.

Fisher pulled me into the novel from the beginning. I found myself fascinated by the world of Incarceron whether it was Inside or Outside of the prison. The originality of this book kept me turning the pages, engrossed by the mysteries surrounding Incarceron. With treachery around every corner in Incarceron, you never know what will happen next.

The characters in Incarceron are outstanding. Finn was an intriguing character, stuck in a prison with no memory of how he arrived at Incarceron. Having to risk his life for spoils and riches under a nefarious Winglord, Finn did what he had to do to survive. I found myself sympathizing with how distraught he was over the Comitatus’s cruelty and infighting and his quest to escape Incarceron and find the answers of how he came to be a prisoner. Claudia is the Warden’s daughter and she’s a smart and fearless heroine. She’d do anything to get out of her arranged marriage no matter the costs. The secondary characters are quite interesting too. Fisher did a phenomenal job in pulling me into her world with a great cast of characters and the mysteries surrounding Incarceron.

The writing is impeccable. The plot is fast-paced and it kept me glued to the story down to the very last page. This is one of those books that I will be highly anticipating the sequel. Fisher has acquired a new fan. Readers of fantasy, be prepared to be a prisoner of Incarceron for it surely will keep you locked into its pages in the wee hours of the night.

Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

---

Check out the book trailer!